Dakota language teacher Franklin Firesteel dead at 51 (fwd)

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Dakota language teacher Franklin Firesteel dead at 51

The Associated Press - Tuesday, July 13, 2004
MINNEAPOLIS
http://www.in-forum.com/ap/index.cfm?page=view&id=D83Q06HG1

Franklin Firesteel, who taught the Dakota language and tried to pass on
his cultural traditions, has died of liver failure. He was 51.

Firesteel, who also went by the name Isna Hoksina, which means Lone Boy,
worked to pass along the culture of his people. He taught the Dakota
language, culture, history and art at the University of Minnesota and
in tribal settings.

"He was a natural teacher, an empowering teacher who made learning fun.
He made the students want to learn," said Neil McKay, one of
Firesteel's former students and teaching assistants and a University of
Minnesota language instructor in the Department of American Indian
Studies.

A member of the Sisseton-Wahpeton Dakota tribe in South Dakota,
Firesteel worked for the university during the 1990s in the American
Indian Studies department and at the Bell Museum.

Besides Dakota culture and history, he also taught Dakota art to groups
in the Twin Cities and served as a consultant and teacher to the
Mendota tribe of the Dakota Nation.

Ellen Neale of Shakopee, Firesteel's ex-wife, said she knew at least a
half-dozen students who became fluent in Dakota thanks to Firesteel.
"He has planted many seeds from the culture and language," she said.

Firesteel died of liver failure at the Minneapolis Veterans Medical
Center on June 30. Services have been held.
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Information from: Star Tribune, http:// WWW.STARTRIBUNE.COM