fbpx
facebook app symbol  twitter  linkedin  instagram 1
 

For many of us, an essential part of decking the halls for the holidays is getting our Christmas tree to look as festive as can be. Not only is it a fun family activity that helps get everyone into the holiday spirit, but it can also be an opportunity to showcase the lifeways, language, and heritage of Native Americans.

In downtown Oklahoma City, the ninth annual Red Earth TreeFest at the Red Earth Art Center is doing just that by showcasing the distinctive cultures of nearly a dozen of the 39 Tribal Nations headquartered in the state of Oklahoma through decorated holiday trees. 

“With the intermingling that has happened with the removal, a lot of times in Oklahoma, Tribes can be tossed into one barrel,” Danny Sands (Seminole Nation), Red Earth Art Center Manager, told Native News Online. “This can really help to show highlights from different Tribes that make them unique,” 

This year’s TreeFest includes trees decorated by the Caddo Nation, Cherokee Nation, Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribe, Citizen Potawatomi, Comanche Nation, Kiowa Tribe, Muscogee Creek Nation, Osage Nation, Ponca Nation, and Wichita and Affiliated Tribes. 

Enjoying Native News Coverage?
NNO Logo Make A Donation Here

From clear glass bulbs filled with cedar, tobacco, and sweetgrass of the Citizen Potawatomi’s tree to a miniature teepee topping the Ponca Tribe’s tree, each tree celebrates the unique and diverse tribal palette of Oklahoma. 

“Some Tribes so far have even put on painted ponies as well as some words that represent things similar to Christmas, as they did not have a word for Christmas back in those days,” Sands said. 

A total of 38 tribal nations call Oklahoma home, creating a rich blend of culture for the state. While many of those tribes were forcefully removed from their ancestral homelands and moved to Oklahoma in the 19th century, the state’s Native American history extends all the way back to 30,000 years ago. 

Students from the Norman Public Schools Indian Education program were also given the opportunity to decorate an intertribal tree with ornaments they made.

“In 2024, Red Earth will be running a photography program here where those students at Norman Public School can be prepared to learn to take pictures of dancers at powwows and things like that,” Sands said. 

Red Earth Art Center is a non-profit organization featuring original Native artwork, both contemporary and traditional, from throughout the United States. 

“Anything that we can do to promote Indigenous Arts and Culture is what we are trying to do,” Sands said. “Anything that can celebrate collaboration within the Tribes and anything that can allow people outside those Tribes to have more education on those Tribes is something that we are interested in not only for the holiday season but year-round.”

In addition to the trees on display, the Red Earth Art Center’s retail gallery space has additional trees decorated with handcrafted ornaments made by Oklahoma Native American artists that are for sale. 

Red Earth TreeFest is free and open to the public from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays through Dec. 29 in the Red Earth Art Center located in the lobby of the BancFirst Tower in downtown Oklahoma City. 



More Stories Like This

Cheyenne River Youth Project Showcases RedCan at Smithsonian Folklife Festival, Prepares to Kick Off 2025 Graffiti Jam This Wednesday, July 9
"Jim Thorpe: Lit by Lightning" Director Chris Eyre: 'Thorpe was one of the greatest Americans to Ever Live.'
“First Voices Radio” to Air Final Broadcast on Sunday, July 6, 2025
First American Art Highlighted at Artesian Arts Festival
New Book Features Professional Runner Jordan Marie Brings Three White Horses Whetstone,

Help us tell the stories that could save Native languages and food traditions

At a critical moment for Indian Country, Native News Online is embarking on our most ambitious reporting project yet: "Cultivating Culture," a three-year investigation into two forces shaping Native community survival—food sovereignty and language revitalization.

The devastating impact of COVID-19 accelerated the loss of Native elders and with them, irreplaceable cultural knowledge. Yet across tribal communities, innovative leaders are fighting back, reclaiming traditional food systems and breathing new life into Native languages. These aren't just cultural preservation efforts—they're powerful pathways to community health, healing, and resilience.

Our dedicated reporting team will spend three years documenting these stories through on-the-ground reporting in 18 tribal communities, producing over 200 in-depth stories, 18 podcast episodes, and multimedia content that amplifies Indigenous voices. We'll show policymakers, funders, and allies how cultural restoration directly impacts physical and mental wellness while celebrating successful models of sovereignty and self-determination.

This isn't corporate media parachuting into Indian Country for a quick story. This is sustained, relationship-based journalism by Native reporters who understand these communities. It's "Warrior Journalism"—fearless reporting that serves the 5.5 million readers who depend on us for news that mainstream media often ignores.

We need your help right now. While we've secured partial funding, we're still $450,000 short of our three-year budget. Our immediate goal is $25,000 this month to keep this critical work moving forward—funding reporter salaries, travel to remote communities, photography, and the deep reporting these stories deserve.

Every dollar directly supports Indigenous journalists telling Indigenous stories. Whether it's $5 or $50, your contribution ensures these vital narratives of resilience, innovation, and hope don't disappear into silence.

Levi headshotThe stakes couldn't be higher. Native languages are being lost at an alarming rate. Food insecurity plagues many tribal communities. But solutions are emerging, and these stories need to be told.

Support independent Native journalism. Fund the stories that matter.

Levi Rickert (Potawatomi), Editor & Publisher

 
 
About The Author
Kaili Berg
Author: Kaili BergEmail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Staff Reporter
Kaili Berg (Aleut) is a member of the Alutiiq/Sugpiaq Nation, and a shareholder of Koniag, Inc. She is a staff reporter for Native News Online and Tribal Business News. Berg, who is based in Wisconsin, previously reported for the Ho-Chunk Nation newspaper, Hocak Worak. She went to school originally for nursing, but changed her major after finding her passion in communications at Western Technical College in Lacrosse, Wisconsin.

July 07, 2025 Levi Rickert
Opinion. On July 1, President Donald Trump visited a newly unveiled deportation facility in the Florida Everglades alongside Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem—the former South Dakota governor who was banned by tribal nations during her final year in office. The Trump administration has dubbed the site “Alligator Alcatraz.”
Currents
July 08, 2025 Native News Online Staff Currents 2406
The National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) strongly condemns the hateful and genocidal statement made by Ann Coulter on July 6, 2025, in a post on the social media platform X, where she declared: “We didn’t kill enough Indians.” There is no place in society for this direct incitement of hatred and violence toward American Indian and Alaska Native people.
Opinion
July 08, 2025 Chief of the Choctaw Nation of... Opinion 950
Guest Opinion. It has been five years since the July 9, 2020, ruling that the U.S. Supreme Court handed down in the case of McGirt v. Oklahoma – a generational win for Native American rights.
July 08, 2025 Cheryl Crazy Bull Opinion 1093
Guest Opinion. As we learned last week, the nation’s legislators passed the Trump Administration’s reconciliation bill that included significant budget changes for many programs including many that serve Indian Country.
Sovereignty
July 08, 2025 Native News Online Staff Sovereignty 572
The Muscogee Nation marked the fifth anniversary of the historic McGirt v. Oklahoma decision with a Sovereignty Day celebration held at the College of the Muscogee Nation’s STEM Building Lecture Hall. The event brought together tribal leadership, citizens, and special guests to honor the Supreme Court ruling that reaffirmed the Nation’s reservation boundaries and fortified the legal foundation of tribal sovereignty across Indian Country.
July 06, 2025 Native News Online Staff Sovereignty 1195
On Thursday, July 3, 2025, Navajo Nation President Buu Nygren, 25th Navajo Nation Council Speaker Crystalyne Curley, and Law and Order Committee Chair Eugenia Charles-Newton signed a joint letter formally recognizing Associate Justice Eleanor Shirley as the Interim Chief Justice of the Navajo Nation.
Education
June 27, 2025 Native News Online Staff Education 2501
Native Forward Scholars Fund , the nation’s largest direct provider of scholarships to Native students, has announced the recipients of its prestigious Student of the Year Award at the 2025 Empowering Scholars Summit.
June 24, 2025 Native News Online Staff Education 10218
On Tuesday, June 17, Speaker Crystalyne Curley and Council Delegate Dr. Andy Nez met with representatives from the Department of Diné Education (DODE), Diné Bi Oltá School Board Association (DBOSBA), and the BIA Navajo Region to develop a unified response to the Bureau of Indian Education’s recent “Dear Tribal Leader” letter.
Arts & Entertainment
July 07, 2025 Cheyenne River Youth Project Arts & Entertainment 1266
EAGLE BUTTE, SD — The Cheyenne River Youth Project has announced that its RedCan Invitational Graffiti Jam was represented at this year’s Smithsonian Folklife Festival, with two CRYP youth artists painting alongside RedCan headliner Hoka Skenandore on the National Mall this past week. The nonprofit youth organization also has released its official lineup of youth activities, special events and performances for RedCan 2025, which kicks off Wednesday, July 9 and continues through Saturday evening, July 12.
July 06, 2025 Kaili Berg Arts & Entertainment 4392
A new documentary celebrating one of the greatest athletes of all time, Jim Thorpe, premieres on The History Channel on Monday, July 7. Jim Thorpe: Lit by Lightning tells the story of the Sac and Fox/Potawatomi sports icon, often called the greatest all-around athlete in history, whose accomplishments and struggles still resonate today. The documentary premieres on The History Channel.
Health
Environment
July 01, 2025 Native News Online Staff Environment 5112
A wildfire that has been burning across Navajo Nation since last Saturday has grown to more than 9,800 acres with 0 percent containment, according to the latest announcement from Navajo Nation President Buu Nygren’s office .
June 30, 2025 Patrick Lohmann, Source New Mexico Environment 2443
A wildfire that erupted over the weekend on the Navajo Nation near the New Mexico border has grown to more than 6,200 acres, according to the latest updates.