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PARK HILL, OKLAHOMA – On Saturday, June 2, the Cherokee Heritage Center will host a day of traditional Cherokee games. The activities will begin at 10 a.m. with the cornstalk shoot competition. The blowgun shoot will begin at 11 a.m. Cash prizes will be awarded to the winners in each competition. The cornstalk shoot goes back to a time when Cherokee hunters and warriors competed for accuracy with their bows and arrows. To keep the tips of the arrows from breaking, participants would shoot through a large bank of dried cornstalks. Today the game is played in much the same way. Approximately 200 cornstalks, about three feet long, are laid down to create a target wall one foot thick. Participants shoot from a distance of 80 to 100 yards. The winner is determined by the total number of points scored for each shot. The blowguns are made from rivercane, which is similar to bamboo. Darts for this six to eight-foot long gun are typically made of Bois d’arc wood and thistle down. Traditionally, the blowgun was used for hunting small game. Blowguns are rarely used for hunting today. Instead they are primarily reserved for demonstration and competitions. Competitors shoot at a target approximately 20 yards away. Points are determined by the dart’s proximity to the bull’s-eye. There is no charge to compete in the games and participants are not required to be Cherokee. Competitors should bring their own equipment in order to participate in each of the games. The activities on June 2 mark the first of a two-part series of Cherokee games to be played at the Cherokee Heritage Center. Part two, featuring Cherokee marbles, stickball and chunkey, will be held on Saturday, September 29. The Cherokee Heritage Center is located at 21192 S. Keeler Drive, in Park Hill, Oklahoma. For more information on the Cherokee Games series, please call Tonia Weavel, phone: 918-456-6007 (Ext.241), or toll free 888-999-6007, or send e-mail to education@cherokeeheritage.org.

Related Cherokee Nation contact information:

Mike Miller, Cherokee Nation Director of Communications Phone: 918-456-0671 (ext.2210) Fax: 918-458-5580 E-mail: Communications@cherokee.org Larry Daugherty, Advertising Manager Cherokee Nation - Public Affairs Phone 918-456-0671 (Ex.2324) E-mail: ldaugherty@cherokee.org

Steven Swogger, Agriculture Liaison Natural Resources Department Phone: 918-456-0671 (ext.2546) FAX: 918-458-7673 E-mail: sswogger@cherokee.org Bradley D. Peak, Cherokee Nation Natural Resources Specialist Phone: 918-456-0671 (ex.2843) E-mail: bpeak@cherokee.org