VA Employees Experience Rebirth of Cultural Roots
When the smoke clears and the last bead of sweat drops from his brow, Corey Newman feels a sense of rebirth. For him, a ceremonial Native American sweat is a sacred space.
“The reasons people go to a sweat lodge varies from person to person,” Newman explained.
Newman, a registered nurse at Central Virginia VA Health Care System (CVHCS) in Richmond, Virginia, attends sweats regularly to help him with chronic back pain. During a sweat, a spiritual leader guides participants in a ritualistic meditation to promote healing, restore hope and renew the spirit.
According to Native American tradition, a sweat lodge is described as a small, dome-like structure made of natural materials, and it represents the womb of Mother Nature. Inside, stones are heated to intense temperatures, and as the heat rises, participants are said to become more emotionally vulnerable. Darkness consumes the sweat lodge which is believed to strengthen the meditation. After surrendering to the process, the hop is to emerge reborn.
“It is round, dark and hot like a mother's womb and when a baby is born it is free,” Newman shared. “That is how you are supposed to feel when you come out of a sweat.”
Newman didn’t find out about his heritage until he was grown. Now, he is a member of the Piscataway Conoy Tribe.
“The elders in my family told me they had to label us Black or African American on our birth certificates to protect us,” said Newman. “They said Native Americans were hated more than any other race.”
As Newman’s cultural roots became more exposed, he branched out into his newfound native traditions.
Trian Hammie, a supervisory medical support assistant at the VA clinic in Emporia, leads the American Indian and Alaska Native Special Emphasis Program at CVHCS. Hammie and Newman volunteer to support VA employees in their efforts to celebrate and acknowledge diversity.
Hammie says he will now take the opportunity to get involved in the Native American community.
“My family was among those who refused to register for the Dawes Act, and rejected the pressure of assimilation which resulted in the loss of my family’s cultural identity,” Hammie said. “Through the oral testimony of my family, specifically my grandmother, I now know I am a clandestine descendant of either the Occaneechi Band of the Saponi Nation or Tuscarora Nation.”
Both Hammie and Newman are eager to share their cultural identity with the CVHCS employees and community.
“I am excited to have a role in helping the staff recognize and understand that we all have different values shaped by our diverse cultural backgrounds,” Hammie said.
One mission
The mission of CVHCS employees is to care for those who have served, their caregiver and their families. No matter a Veteran’s race, gender or sexual orientation, our focus is to provide world class customer service to all.
Upcoming events
In honor of National Native American Heritage Month, CVHCS is hosting two Native American events, including a Sweat Lodge Lakota Ceremony on Saturday, November 13 and a Native American Appreciation Day on Monday, November 15. Event details will be listed on our homepage: https://www.va.gov/richmond-health-care/.
For more information about the AIAN SEP, visit: https://www.va.gov/ORMDI/DiversityInclusion/AIAN.asp