About the Center
Board of Directors
- Gaylene Crouser, Lakota, Chair
- Debbie Rodriguez, Choctaw, Vice Chair
- Teddy Tatum, Red Lake Band of Chippewa, Secretary
- Tina Marie, Cherokee, Treasurer
- David Barnett, Muscogee (Creek)
- Deborah Veatch, Wea
- Robert Henshaw
- George Biswell, Cherokee
- Don Nieto, Santo Domingo Pueblo
Staff
- Nancy Blue, Interim Executive Director
- Gayle Kallmann, Morningstar Counselor
- Cheree Solomon, Dine (Navajo), ANBL Coordinator
- Ken Forbes, Food Pantry Coordinator
- Maura Garcia, Cherokee/Mattamuskeet, Office Manager
Our Logo
The head of the spiritual being is synonymous with the eye of the eagle, and both watch over the smaller physical Native, who is protected by two shades of spirit wings… representing traditional ways and modern life.
History
Founded in 1971, the Heart of America Indian Center (HAIC) operates as the Kansas City area’s only multi-purpose social service agency for Native Americans. The HAIC has the distinction of being the one of the oldest, continuously-operating Indian center (of 46 such urban organizations) in the nation.
Following World War II, with government relocation and training programs — and a formal policy in the early 1950s of reservation termination — Native Americans began "migrating" to urban areas. To help sustain the cultural and spirit beliefs of their tribes, local elders began a social club: The Council Fires of Greater Kansas City.
With the advent of Indian set-aside programs in the "Great Society " era, the center was founded as a formal, tax-exempt, 501-c-3 organization to accept Federal, state and private funds for poverty-oriented social programs.