Paul Summers is one of nine winners of the 2024 Midwest Culture Bearers Award. This award celebrates artisans and folk arts practitioners whose work is rooted in cultural preservation and sharing knowledge with the next generation.
“I was one of the Native American children adopted at birth and removed from America’s Indian reservation system. I was raised in a small white middle class farming community in SW MN but never told I was American Indian. At the age of 38, I found my biological family and was reunited on the Lower Brule Sioux Indian Reservation. My newly realized heritage opened many new doors, including the founding of the American Indian music and dance group Brulé. At that time, I dedicated the balance of my life to working on reconciliation of the cultures and to use the music of Brulé as my medium. This mission has had an inspiring impact on the next generation of tribal youth as performances and residencies have taken place in Native American communities.
I’ve produced over 100 episodes of the TV show ‘Hidden Heritage’ for RFD-TV that share positive and uplifting stories from across Native America. I’ve also produced several concert specials for PBS and, in keeping up with the times, recently began producing a podcast of the same name. I began doing this work over 30 years ago. Recently, I received the Lifetime Achievement Award at the Native American Music Awards.”
