Karenne Wood facts for kids

Karenne Wood (born 1960, died 21 July 2019) was a special member of the Monacan Indian tribe. She was famous for her beautiful poems and for her important work in tribal history. She helped lead the Virginia Indian Programs in Charlottesville, Virginia, U.S.A. Karenne Wood also worked on a history project for the Monacan Nation. She did research at the National Museum of the American Indian and served on a special group called the National Congress of American Indians' Repatriation Commission. In 2015, she was honored as one of the "Virginia Women in History" by the Library of Virginia.

Karenne Wood's Life Story

Early Life and Education

Karenne Wood was born in 1960. She grew up near Washington, DC. She was a registered member of the Monacan Indian Nation. She studied at George Mason University and earned a Master's degree. Later, she got her PhD in anthropology from the University of Virginia. Anthropology is the study of human societies and cultures.

Working for Native American Heritage

Karenne Wood worked as a researcher at the National Museum of the American Indian. For six years, she was also the official historian for the Monacan Nation. This meant she kept track of their history and stories.

In the mid-2000s, Karenne Wood helped Native American communities get back important cultural items. This process is called repatriation. She was part of the National Congress of American Indians’ Repatriation Commission. She also served on the Monacan Tribal Council, which helps lead the tribe.

Helping Virginia's Native Americans

For four years, the governor of Virginia chose Karenne Wood to lead the Virginia Council on Indians. She also helped plan the "Jamestown 400th Commemoration" in 2007. This was a big celebration of Virginia's 400-year history. As part of this, she edited a book called The Virginia Indian Heritage Trail. She also helped create an exhibition called Beyond Jamestown: Virginia Indians Past and Present at the Virginia Museum of Natural History.

In 2008, she became the director of the Virginia Indian Heritage Program. This program helps share the history and culture of Virginia's Native American tribes.

A Voice for Her People

Karenne Wood was a published poet, meaning her poems were printed in books. She also studied the Monacan language. This language is no longer spoken by people today. She wanted to understand her tribe's language history. She also explored how losing a language affects people and their values. She thought about how people connect with their elders and ancestors when the words they used are gone.

Her Important Writings

Karenne Wood wrote several important works. These include poems and books about Native American history.

• "Urban Nightmare," American Indian Quarterly, Vol. 22, No. 4 (1998), p 493
• The Monacan Indians: Our Story (1999)
• Weaving the boundary: [poems] (March 2016) University of Arizona Press, Sun Tracks series.
• Wood, Karenne (2007)The Virginia Indian Heritage Trail, 2nd ed. Charlottesville, VA: Virginia Foundation for the Humanities.

In Anthologies

• Ghost Fishing: An Eco-Justice Poetry Anthology (2018) University of Georgia Press.