Center marks Blackbear Bosin’s birthday, unveils outdoor center

Sunday marks what would have been the 95th birthday of the man behind the “Keeper of the Plains”: Blackbear Bosin.

In honor of Bosin’s birthday and the reopening of its Outdoor Learning Center, the Mid-America All-Indian Center provided cake, crafts and activities Saturday afternoon at the center’s Little Tipi on the Prairie event.

“We need to remind people that, yep, he was an Indian and he made that ‘Keeper,’ but there’s more of a story than that,” executive director April Scott said.

“That’s why we tied Blackbear (to the celebration), because we are tied to the ‘Keeper’ and the ‘Keeper’ is tied to us.”

The Indian center focuses on the education and preservation of American Indian cultures and features Bosin’s work, from his earliest to the last thing he created, said Sarah Adams, museum director.

“We’ve got all these things out here that are connecting people to their history and showing them that these are things that are alive today,” Adams said.

The Indian center received a $4,000 grant from the Kansas Humanities Council to fund part of its renovations to the Outdoor Learning Center, Scott said. She said it was the first humanities grant the center has received.

The total project cost $10,000, Scott said, and included 28 new signs that provide information about the various components of the Outdoor Learning Center, which features native plants, prairie grasses, a tipi, an old powwow bench, sensory gardens with plants to touch and smell and a structure that provides shade and a place to educate tour groups.

The outdoor center is an outdoor wildlife learning site, said Crystal Bachicha, education director. It is used for school groups and educational activities and is always free to the public.

“We use (the learning center) to connect the past to today for American Indian people, so we let them know how it was and how people lived and kind of where they’re at today,” Bachicha said.

Marcus Petty, communications staff member at the Indian center, spearheaded applying for the grant. The center applied in January and was awarded the grant in April, so the renovations were completed in less than two months, Petty said.

“It was definitely a team effort in terms of making sure it spoke to what we were trying to make it be,” Petty said. “We really wanted ... to connect the past to the present and then going into the future and really have that humanities tie into it.”

Around 25 community volunteers helped with the project, putting in at least 75 hours of work, Bachicha said.

The Little Tipi on the Prairie event was named in honor of Bosin’s birth in a tipi on the Oklahoma prairie. Community groups, including the Wichita Gourd Gild, Great Plains Nature Center and Master Gardeners, provided additional hands-on activities. About 100 people attended throughout the afternoon, Petty said.

The event also featured three speakers: David Simmonds, Bosin’s stepson and author of “Blackbear Bosin: Keeper of the Indian Spirit”; Gloria McSpadden-Streib, Shawnee American Indian elder and main consultant on the outdoor project; and Katie Sparks from the University of Kansas Biodiversity Institute.

Carla Ridener of Derby said she is a member of the Mid-America All-Indian Center. She and her husband brought their two grandchildren to the event.

“(Sparks) kept the two small grandchildren quiet so they were interested, so that’s a good speech,” Ridener said.

Bachicha said the center is significant to all Wichita-area residents.

“I feel it’s important because it’s an outdoor learning center, an outdoor exhibit right in the middle of the city,” Bachicha said. “It brings the wilderness ... to the city.

“It’s right at the heart of Wichita, and I think that’s really important for the community.”

This story was originally published June 4, 2016 at 5:04 PM with the headline "Center marks Blackbear Bosin’s birthday, unveils outdoor center."