Official Banks Family Statement -

Sunday, May 10, 2009 –

Our father Dennis James Banks had a heart attack on Friday, May 8, 2009. The exceptional medical staff at the Good Samaritan Medical Center in Phoenix acted swiftly which resulted in his life being saved; the cardiac doctors performed a common heart procedure where two stints were placed into his main heart artery.  On Saturday, he was transferred out of ICU and is expected to make a full recovery.

We are forever grateful to Vernon Foster, dad’s longtime friend, for taking care of dad and not leaving his side until the danger passed.

We also want to acknowledge the hundreds of calls and emails we have been receiving from around the world. Thank you all for your thoughts and prayers and … even the occasional joke to bring him a smile. We pass every single one of them on to him so thank you!

Sincerely Yours,

The Banks Children

P.S.  Lots of folks have asked where they can send Get Well cards, cards can be mailed to:

10038 Sugar Point Dr. NW
Federal Dam, MN 56641

We are proud to announce the launch of our new website. This site will be the new home for all our upcoming events and news. Please check back regularly to keep on top of information. We invite you to comment on any of the posts that you find interesting. If you have any trouble, or need any assistance, or would just like to let us know what you think of our website, you can contact us via the contact form on the contact page.

Migwitch,
Nowa Cumig Institute

This years race was in memory of Floyd Redcrow Westerman who went to the Sprit World this year. Floyd had been a long time supporter of the event, and this was the first time in 3 years that Floyd had not been here to bless our ceremony. 

On August 2nd-3rd of 2008 the 7th Annual yamamoto Cup was held. This event was our largest ever with more than 80 racers competing for a grand prize of an all expense paid trip to Tokyo Japan. Ever year our winning racers travel to Japan to experience and share cultural traditions with the native Japanese people. (more…)

This was our largest race yet. We had more than 40 racers. We are so happy to see the race growing to be a larger community event. We have people coming from all over the Country and Canada to join in our celebration of Traditional Native Sports. Some of our racers even participated in the Native Olympic Games, and two of our star paddlers won gold medals in the race. Congratulations to everyone for a fantastic year. (more…)

The 2006 Canoe Race was the longest race yet. The racers went from the Manomin House on Sugar Point all the way around bear island. The race was long, and the winners worked hard to earn their medals.

This years race was down the Red Lake River. It was a grueling seven mile course. All the participants did their best, and finished Still Strong! This year we were joined by the Mother Earth Tour 2005. We were glad to have you at our event, and we hope your Tour went well. Please visit their web site at www.piazzatrading.com/motherEarth.htm

The 2004 Yamamoto Cup was a great success. The main event tool place on Cass Lake. There were two days of races, and all the children and young adults gave it all they had. The community came together and ralleyed in support of the next generation. Please come and join us next year at the 2005 Great Anishinabe Canoe Race.

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