St. Anna’s to host WINTER TALK 2010

St. Anna’s Episcopal Church in Poarch will be buzzing with excitement when parishioners host Winter Talk 2010 January 16-19.

Winter Talk is an annual gathering of Native American Episcopalians from Native American Episcopal Churches throughout the United States including Alaska and Hawaii.  It is usually held on northern or western United States Indian reservations, but this year the planning committee voted to come south and specifically to St. Anna’s and the Poarch Creek Indian Reservation.  Approximately 80-100 Native Americans will participate in the gathering.

Such a gathering at Poarch would not be possible without the assistance of the Poarch Creek Indians who will provide assistance with accommodations, transportation, cultured events.

The group arrives at Pensacola Airport on Saturday, January 16th and bussed by Holy Cross Episcopal Church Pensacola to Christ Episcopal Church  Pensacola where they will be treated to refreshments,  collected and transported to Winn Creek Hotel and Muskogee Inn and finally to St. Anna’s for supper and where meetings will be held.

On Sunday morning, January 17th, the group will gather at St. Anna’s for breakfast and a traditional Indian church service with the Holy Eucharist, followed by a brunch, meetings and a buffet supper at Wind Creek.  The Rt. Rev. Philip Duncan, Bishop of the Central Gulf Coast Diocese, and Mr. Buford Rolin, Chairman of the Poarch Creek Indians will speak to the group during Sunday afternoon meetings.

Following breakfast and lunch at St. Anna’s on Monday, the group will continue its meeting at St. Anna’s followed by a tour of the Poarch Creek Indian Reservations, culture demonstrations by the Poarch Creek Indians Culture Authority and dinner with Poarch Creek Indians at the PCI SAIL Center.  The main topic of the gathering will be a healthy discussion on domestic poverty as it exists throughout the world, the United States, and especially on Indian Reservations.

Although St. Anna’s is an all inclusive Episcopal church, all parishioners are proud to host this Winter Talk 2010 gathering as St. Anna’s is the foundation of the Poarch Creek Indians.  St. Anna’s records proved to the federal government that Indians lived under its own leadership in Alabama and subsequently awarded federal recognition as the only federally recognized in Alabama.

Following a few days of excitement with other Native American, Participants in Winter Talk 2010 will depart St. Anna’s on Tuesday, January 19th following breakfast, and again transported by PCI buses to the Pensacola Airport.