MAKING OF THE SHIRT In July of 1993, while attending International Brotherhood Days at Porcupine, South Dakota, I was asked by my friends of many years, Frank Andrews and the Young Bear family, to construct a "Chief's Shirt" for Severt Young Bear. This honor has seldom if ever been given to anyone other than a Native American. I as a white South Dakotan, felt most privileged to have been asked to create this "Head-man's Shirt" for Severt. During Thursday evenings dancing, Frank approached me about this project. Of course I was thrilled and then he dropped the bomb! The shirt would have to be finished and ready for use by Sunday, only three days away! That evening, I was supplied with five brain-tanned skins, tanned by Frank, four deer and one elk. Later that evening, I gathered my craft case from my tipi and drove to the Young Bear home. By this time it was nearly midnight. The coffeepot was going strong at Severt's home with several family members and an array of house guests enjoying the evening. There was much joking and laughter and the clock was ticking away. By one in the morning I decided it was time to get serious and start the project at hand. Severt reassured me by telling me there was plenty of time. Sure, he wasn't making the shirt! I was presented with a large paper sack of neatly tied hair bundles. Each hair lock was from a family member, direct or adopted and from a multitude of friends. Two of the ladies present agreed to help by sorting the hair locks bundles and wrapping them with sinew, red wool, and buckskin thongs which I supplied from my craft case. Visitors continued to arrive and leave. One of the arrivals was my friend, Florentine Blue Thunder. Florentine is a fine bead worker and quilt maker. With Florentine's help, we began to patch the few holes in the buckskins and loosley fit the the shirt to Severt. More hair bundles were cut from nearly arriving friends and the work continued until 4:30 AM that morning. By this time I needed sleep. Off to the campground where I enlisted the help of my good friend, Olin West, of Santa Fe, New Mexico, with whom I was camped. By noon of that Friday, Olin and I were back at the Young Bear compound. We loosely tailored the shirt to Severt, began attaching the hair locks and Olin began to bead a bib for the shirt. I trimmed all of the edges of the buckskin with very short fringe. I then returned to the campground with a list of many other friends of the Young Bear family who were asked to contribute hair locks, plus the locks we had already prepared. We had well over two-hundred locks to attach to the shirt. We worked steadily throughout the day and evening and finished for that day to attend a camp feed and prepare for the evening's dancing. The workday began again on Saturday in the early afternoon and continued without stopping until 6:00AM on Sunday morning with the shirt finally finished. I must say, our creation was very beautiful and we were very proud of our accomplishment. Yet olin and I felt most humble and honored to have been asked to build this shirt. We wondered if we should even have been allowed to do this. On Sunday afternoon, Severt was made "Headman" of the Brotherhood Community in a beautiful ceremony in which all of the camp took part. Friends and family contributed additional traditional apparel that complimented the shirt. Olin West contributed a beautiful pair of blue wool beaded leggings to Severt. I gave him a beaded clout. He wore a beautiful pair of moccasins which were prepared for him by his wife Myrna, and he wore a very old and handsome eagle bonnet. Severt presented a most noble and elegant figure and leader. Due to Severt's many health problems, mainly his Diabetes, he was not able to walk well and used a wheel chair during the ceremony. He was resplendent in his beautiful clothing and the day was a very happy one for him, his family and his many friends. Unfortunately, Severt passed away approximately one month later in August of 1993. His funeral was held in the Brotherhood dance arena and was attended by hundreds of friends from all around the nation. He was dressed in his new shirt and laid to rest on family land near his home. Severt Young Bear will always be remembered for his kindness, generosity and willingness to help others. His devotion to Lakota culture, his people and singing will rarely be duplicated. Olin West and I wish to thank our friend Frank Andrews and the Young Bear family for allowing us the honor of building Severt's shirt.
Submitted by Jack Smith
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