Grassroots recovery organization partners with Tuscarora Nation for fatherhood event

On Saturday, Oct. 14, 2023, Stop The Pain hosted a Fatherhood event at the Tuscarora Nation of North Carolina, bringing together families to discuss recovery and the roles of men in the community.

Sponsored by Stop The Pain, and its affiliates the Wakulla Grass Roots and PAWSS, this event delivered engagement about the positive impacts that strong male role models have had on families in the community. Offering fellowship, food and talking circles, this event made crucial the importance of remembering relatives who have made the Journey but were recognized for their sacrifices, mentorship and joy they brought to those around them. Recovery Ambassador and Director of the Board at PAWSS, Mr. Rocky Locklear, has demonstrated a great level of respect and connection with the Tuscarora Nation in organizing the event and honoring the loss of beloved relatives and community members.

By highlighting the significant impacts that his uncle Ab Locklear had on his own life and community, Director Locklear was able to bring awareness to the essential role of strong male role models throughout our extended communities. During the event other men were highlighted who have made lasting impacts on the community; Ricardo Locklear, and the Tuscarora Nation’s beloved son Seneka “Buck” Locklear and his relative Darrell Locklear. Although no longer with us in the physical form, our relatives left in their wake prime examples of fatherhood for others to admire and mirror. Despite COVID-19 disrupting Native communities’ ability to grieve in traditional ways, this event created a space to process grief in a traditional environment.

When families lose fathers and other male role models there is a plethora of economic, physical and psychological stresses that compound over time for those relatives. While everyone deals with grief in their own ways and in their own time, the loss of a loved one never permanently dissolves away. One step in the process of dealing with grief is acknowledging all the light that others brought into the lives of those they hold dear, especially those who continue to illuminate our sometimes-cloudy days from beyond the grave. The program hosted by Stop The Pain at the Tuscarora Nation utilized traditional and Indigenous methods of recovery and healing. Creating reconciliation for the loss of family members through the sharing of food and stories has long been a traditional practice of Indigenous nations, like the Tuscarora, for generations.

Typically, after the loss of a family member, the extended family, friends and community would visit the immediate family of the deceased and bring with them food, stories, and understanding. These traditional elements have carried our families for centuries, enabling us to support and protect each other during times of loss and grief. Through this recent partnership with the Tuscarora Nation of NC, Director Locklear is excited at the possibility of developing a long-term relationship between the Tuscarora and PAWSS. The idea of training and endorsing Tuscarora tribal members as Recovery Community Ambassadors has been promoted by the Director and this proposition has been taken seriously by the Tuscarora Nation. For their dedication and amazing outreach, the Tuscarora Nation of NC gives Mr. Locklear and PAWSS our sincere gratitude, and we look forward to future partnerships.