Katari Righthand from the Siksika First Nation with Lexi 

It gives my great pleasure to  share the accomplishments of one of my grand daughters,  Lexi Hilderman. 

Recently she won, the 2021 Calgary Stampede Youth Poster Competition. 

Her artwork featured a young Fancy Dancer with rainbow ribbons flowing from her regalia, inspired by the image of a young woman named Katari Righthand from the Siksika First Nation. 

She said "I was drawn to her story and it became important for me to learn about her culture and to understand how she feels when she's dancing," 

In developing a relationship with Righthand and her family, Lexi learned that she was given the name Nààpiwa otó piim Akikowan (Rainbow Girl) in 2013 following the southern Alberta floods, representing the hope that comes after a storm. 

“I wanted to show her standing strong, looking forward with determination. To me this image is about optimism, and also a representation of youth carrying on their legacy and the legacy of the Calgary Stampede’s celebration of the arts, culture and community.” 

The Calgary Stampede Youth Poster Competition is a unique youth achievement program that provides talented young Albertans with the opportunity to showcase their talent on a world stage. Generously funded by the Brandon Flock Foundation, this program provides one of Canada’s largest art scholarships. As the winning artist for 2021, Lexi has been awarded a $10,000 scholarship and her artwork will now become part of Calgary Stampede history and distributed around the world.

Quotes were taken: from  https://www.calgarystampede.com/poster

Lynne Ann Hilderman's Birthday

 It was a great pleasure and gratitude for the ZOOM visit to celebrate my daughter, Lynne's birthday. We caught up on what everyone is doing. Lynne's family joined in, her husband Kerry, daughters Kaney, Lexi and Nikki. Her brothers, Mark, from Ontario and Leon  and Geni Stephenson, from North Carolina, also joined in.