Anne Akins Wood of Auburn will use her new eagle feathers for traditional ceremonies.
AUBURN – For hundreds of years, Native Americans have used eagle feathers for healing, marriage and naming ceremonies.
Anne Akins Wood of Auburn will carry on that tradition.
In December a styrofoam box arrived at her doorstep. Inside was a frozen eagle carcass packed in blue ice.
She sent it off to Tom Berube of Minot, a local prize-winning taxidermist, to begin the arduous task of creating ceremonial and sacred objects for her.
Just this month, she got the finished work.
Berube had constructed a set of 3-foot open wing feathers, placed the head of the bald eagle on a pedestal and made talon sets for ceremonial use. He also made a fan from white tail feathers that Wood will use for sacred occasions.
A member of the Penobscot Nation, Wood waited four years for her very own eagle carcass from the National Eagle Repository.
“The eagle is recognized throughout the United States and Canada to Indian tribes. It is a big bird, powerful hunter and very majestic,” she said.
The soaring flight of the eagle high in the sky is believed to be the spiritual messenger of the creator.
When a Native American receives an eagle feather, that person is being acknowledged with gratitude, love and the ultimate respect. To wear or hold an eagle feather causes the creator to take immediate notice, they believe.
Wood will use her eagle regalia for special Wabanaki ceremonies at tribal gatherings. She will carry the feathers while exchanging welcomes and during solemn ceremonies.
The Wabanaki of Maine, known as the People of the Dawn, include the Penobscot Nation, the Passamaquoddy Nation, and the Houlton Band of Micmac and Maliseet.
Wood grew up on Indian Island near Old Town. She learned a repertoire of traditional dances at an early age when she was “taken by the hand” to perform publicly in the Bangor area. She received the Maine Arts Commission’s Traditional Performing Artist for 1999-2000 award for Penobscot dancing.
Waiting list
In recognition of the significance of eagle feathers to Native Americans, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service established the National Eagle Repository in the early 1970s to provide Native Americans with the feathers of golden and bald eagles needed for ceremonial purposes.
The repository is at the Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge in Denver and serves as a collection point for dead eagles. Most of them have been salvaged by state and federal wildlife personnel.
The birds die from electrocution, vehicle collisions, unlawful shooting and trapping, or from natural causes. Dead birds, about 900 per year, are stored in a freezer until they are ready to be shipped.
Recipients must be certified by the Bureau of Indian Affairs as members of a Native American tribe. The eagles can be used only religious purposes.
There are more than 4,000 people on a waiting list for feathers or parts of feathers, which cannot be sold or traded. They may, however, be handed down to family members or from one Native American to another for religious purposes.
Wood plans to someday hand her sacred objects to her 14-year-old son, Eric.
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