U.N.C.P Library recieves gift of Native American studies resources
Written & submitted by Elinor Folger Foster

Pictured are the first two recipients of the Joan Howard Wallace-NCSDAR American Indian Nursing Scholarship at UNCP (second year students) Amy Revels Locklear, Joan Wallace, Jimmy Locklear and Cherry Beasley RN MS UNCP Nursing Dept.

Recently the SampsonLivermore Library was the recipient of educational and entertaining materials relating to Native Americans. The 280 items included 220 books and 60 media items of special interest to children and those engaged in teaching children the history and culture of American Indians.

These valuable gifts are the gifts of Joan Howard Wallace, a Native American Mekoce Shawnee, orginally from Massachusetts who now lives in Marble, NC.

For years, Wallaca visited schools and libraries and talked with children about Native American history and culture. She has for the past six years been the North Carolina chairperson for the Americans Indian Committee of the Daughters of the American Revolution. In this capacity she visited with the former director of the Nursing Department at UNCP, Dr. Peggy Opitz who is an officer in the Colonel Thomas Robeson chapter NCSDAR which meets in Lumberton.

Wallace, a retired Registered Nurse, appreciated Dr. Opitz's concerns with Native American health care; Dr. Opitz has written grants to provide health care services to Lumbee Indians of Robeson County. Wallace was a guest lecturer for the Nursing Department students on substance abuse.

Eventually the friendship of Dr. Opitz and Mrs. Wallace led to the gift of the first endowed scholarship for a nursing student at UNCP and the donations of the Indian education materials to the Sampson-Livermore Library. Library staff is gratefull to Joan Howard Wallace for her contributions to the resources we can offer to students of american Indian History and Culture.