Tapestry Institute

"The weavers who maintain the cloak of this world are few. Please help Tapestry keep faith with the vision of a whole cloak by supporting their work!"

Caitlín Matthews

Author of "Singing the Soul Back Home"
and "Sophia, Goddess of Wisdom"

"I can't tell you how pumped I was by my experience at the Voice of the Horse Conference in Iowa. I knew it would be a special event right from the beginning with the opening ceremonies by local Native Americans. I was not disappointed. I laughed and cried through the entire weekend as artists, musicians, filmmakers, riders, and writers shared their experiences of how they've heard the voice of the horse."

Jane Savoie
Olympic Squad Member, U.S. Equestrian Team, Barcelona Author and international speaker

"I realized early on that sometimes the answers to problems are not always something new but often can be found in old, traditional, lost or neglected ways. Contrary to a common American way of thinking, there is not just one answer to every question; sometimes there are many. And sometimes the solutions even to new problems can be found in ancient ways surviving and even thriving right beside us but forgotten in our rush to find new methods. Richard Fool Bull, a Lakota holy man, told me thirty years ago that Native knowledge is not all that mysterious, nor is it exclusive to Native people. He said that the non-Native is often simply educated out of seeing and knowing the obvious. If we only look… And there’s the rub all right…”if we only look.” There aren’t many agencies taking the risks of remaining open to unlikely, unconventional, alternative information sources, even though that is precisely what is needed. It takes a lot of courage to go out on that limb. The Tapestry Institute does, and that’s why I am proud to be considered a friend."

Roger Welsch
Prolific author, CBS Sunday Morning with Charles Kurault for 10 years, Author of "Science Lite" column in Natural History magazine for 15 years, Professor of Anthropology, Retired, University of Nebraska, Lincoln

(read the complete text of Roger's testimonial here.)

Words from Participants in Tapestry's Programs

"A very strong memory is that of American Indian and 'Western' scholars sharing their wisdom as presenters and conferees in one place and time. That rarely happens. I hope there will be additional opportunities for more workshops like this."

"I liked the Tapestry workshop ('Mythic Living for Modern Women') better than ones I've taken at the Center for Story and Symbol, from the psychology professor who was founding curator of the Joseph Campbell Archives and Library, because a lecture is just a lecture, no matter how good it is. At Tapestry Institute I also got to experience the personal meaning of myth and integrate the science, song, art and movement of myth. All those ways of knowing reinforce each other and work together so that I continue to benefit from the experience."

"I cherish the memory of being taught a hand weaving technique and northwest environmental science issues by American Indian female PhD scientists in an ad hoc women's circle. Just amazing. So many vital needs were met simultaneously."

(In response to a prompt to list "three important things you learned"): "1) That there are a lot of PhD native scientists out there doing great things; 2) that native people from all over our country have a deep history in the sciences in both our stories and our array of cultures; 3) that we have a great and wonderful mission ahead of us to share the importance and significance of Native Science."

(In response to "How was the workshop?"): "I was asked. It appeared that I was so positive in spreading the good word about what Native people are doing in the sciences, that people stated I had some kind of aura around me and the group got a little larger in my discussion, "It is good to be Indian . . . and let me tell you why . . ."

“The most important thing was being given an opportunity to 'be' in a different way of thinking long enough to actually understand that it exists as a reality, not just as a theoretical concept. It was the unusual combination of academic, artistic, spiritual, conceptual presentations that combined to build the momentum for conceptual change.”

"A lecture is just a lecture, no matter how good it is. At Tapestry Institute I also got to experience the personal meaning of myth and integrate the science, song, art and movement of myth. All those ways of knowing reinforce each other and work together so that I continue to benefit from the experience."

"The best thing that came out of the conference for me was renewing the connection I had with horses when I was a child. I don't currently own a horse. But this was such a phenomenal conference."