Funeral held for revered Mohawk leader

The funeral for a respected Mohawk spiritual leader was held Monday in Akwesasne.

APTN National News
AKWESASNE MOHAWK TERRITORY-
-The funeral for a respected Mohawk spiritual leader was held Monday in Akwesasne.

Jake Swamp, 68, died last Friday morning at a hospital in Massena, NY, after suffering a heart-attack.

Swamp, whose Mohawk name Tekaronhianeken means where “two skies come together,” was a diplomat, author, teacher and chief who embodied all the key ingredients of a great leader, said the Mohawk Nation Council of Chiefs, in a statement.

The council is the designated representative body of the traditional Mohawk nation and sanctioned by the Haudenosaunee Confederacy.

Swamp was “one of the most respected and honoured Mohawk Iroquois leaders of the past century,” said the council. “He possessed great knowledge…he was patient, compassionate, humble, generous, intelligent and kind.”

Swamp served as a Mohawk nation diplomat and was once a delegate to the United Nations where he met with foreign leaders and dealt with politicians from Canada and the U.S.

He also helped push the U.S. Senate pass a resolution acknowledging the influence of the Haudenosaunee on the U.S. Constitution.

Swamp also founded the Tree of Peace Society in 1984 to promote environmentalism and he planted “Peace Trees” around the world, said the council.

Swamp is survived by his wife Judy of 49 years, seven children, 23 grand-children and 12 great-grandchildren.

“It is taught by the Haudenosaunee that whatever one does in life it is essential to leave things better than when they were found, to take into consideration the effect of one’s actions on the seventh generation into the future,” said the council. “Throughout his wonderful life, Tekaronianeken abided by this principle. Through his books, his words and his actions he brought great honour to his family, his community, the Mohawk Nation and the Haudenosaunee.”

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