Gijigowi (Victor Kishigo) the architect of the Institute recently walked on. It was his foresight and leadership that brought the Institute to where it is today. Migwetch Gijigowi.

The Odawa Institute formed as a grassroots effort to bring our language and culture to prominence among our Tribal people. We are doing this during a time when English and the materialism of the United States dominate the lives of our young. Our language is the manner in which we transmitted our history, culture, and our way of life. In order for us to survive as Tribal people, we must have our language. We recognize the need to promote our language and culture in a manner that will survive within dominant society. Our elders possess the language and the key to the future of our culture. In the past, our elders looked to the future for many generations. Our clans made a compact and planted trees in a circle to symbolize the growth and strength of the compact. The result of that council was to last as long as the trees grew. Looking ahead for the life of a tree was the way our elders planned for their future. We have designed a language implementation plan that braids who we were with who we are today and who we will become.

Where we came from: As Odawa people, we came from the Moose Clan. We lived among the Tribes of the Great Lakes region and spoke the Odawa dialect of Anishnaabemowin. Our language has its roots in the Algonquian family. We lived from the gifts of our Mother Earth and our friends from the other clans. We lived where we wanted. We had religious and cultural precepts that guided our daily lives.

Where we are: Although the membership of the Institute comes from many tribes the majority comes from the Waganakising Odawa. The Waganakising Odawak also known as The Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians (LTBBOI) is federally recognized Indian Tribe. Our Reservation boundaries checkerboard across Emmet and Charlevoix counties in the northern portion of the southern peninsula of Michigan. Tribal membership is 3188. We live in two cultures.

Where we are going: Through the Odawa Institute, we will weave the use of our language and culture of our past into use for a people surrounded by foreign language and society. As a grassroots organization we have made many contributions to our community. The Institute sponsors an annual jiiman (canoe) trip across Little Traverse Bay, a Feast for the Pipes, an annual Odawa Language Conference, and many other cultural activities. We have been used as a source of interpreters for the Tribal Archives department and have been asked by local organizations to open meetings and ceremonies. We have taken this one step farther than planning for the immediate future by creating an endowment fund. This fund will contribute significantly to the life of the projects we have created. It is our intent to develop programs that will last an eternity through this endowment. In our vision we hear the voices of our ancestors from the tongues of our children.