Niwot Historical Society Feb. 26 lecture on reestablishing relationships with Indigenous Peoples

The Niwot Historical Society's first Now & Then Lecture Series for 2025 will feature Friends Peace Teams on Wednesday, Feb. 26, at 7 p.m. with the lecture, "Fort Chambers: A Call for Boulder to Reckon with our History and Build Right Relationships with Indigenous Peoples Today."

The lecture will feature three presenters at Niwot Hall (formerly Left Hand Grange) who are a part of The Land Group of Right Relationships Boulder (RRB), Jerilyn DeCoteau, Paula Palmer, and Laurie Rugenstein. The Land Group is a subdivision of the Friends Peace Teams that aims to secure land in and around the Boulder area where native tribes were once established so that native people may reestablish their presence in their homelands.

DeCoteau is one of the co-founders of RRB who serves on the organization's coordinating council and the committee for Indigenous Peoples Day. DeCoteau is also an enrolled member of the Turtle Mountain Chippewa tribe, and as an attorney, has fought to defend the rights of tribal nations.

Palmer serves as RRB's other co-founder and also serves on the coordinating council and the Indigenous Peoples Day committee. Palmer, alongside DeCoteau, directs the national program known as "Toward Right Relationship with Native Peoples." This program facilitates educational workshops both online and in person.

Rugenstein, the other presenter for the Historical Society's lecture, also serves on the coordinating council with the added roles of working in the RRB Education & Schools Group and the Land Group. Rugenstein is a retired professor from Naropa University where she taught music therapy and transpersonal counseling.

Kathy Koehler, President of the Niwot Historical Society, said, "I look forward to the lecture and learning about what this organization is proposing for open space lands throughout the county."

General admission is $5 at the door and free to Niwot Historical Society members.