Seneca Nation expert headlines new O'Hara speaker series aimed at inclusivity

An expert on Native American culture, an award-winning author and the first female lieutenant governor of Maryland will headline a new speaker series at Lauri Ann West Community Center in O’Hara.

“KNOWbodies: Knowledge Through Perspective” will kick off Sept. 12.

“The title really sums up what we are looking to do,” said Nadine Ostrowski, director of the center’s community outreach.

“The speakers will be as widely varied as I can create, in order to bring the community an opportunity to learn from others who see and experience life through a different lens.”

The events are free but registration is required. Doors open at 7 p.m. and the talks begin at 7:30.

The center is at 1220 Powers Run Road.

The series aims to build connections and expand horizons to encourage people to work together in inclusivity, Ostrowski said.

Scheduled to lead the first event is Joe Stahlman of the Seneca Nation Tribal Historic Preservation Office and director of the Seneca-Iroquois National Museum in New York. Stahlman, who holds a Ph.D. in cultural anthropolgy, will speak on the history and culture of the Seneca Nation and the deep roots between Seneca Chief Guyasuta and the Fox Chapel area.

Stahlman’s talk began as a desire to provide the community more information about the well-known Chief who traveled the region as an advisor to George Washington.

“Everyone in our community knows about Camp Guyasuta and has driven down Guyasuta Road,” Ostrowski said. “There is a sculpture of Chief Guyasuta and George Washington on Mount Washington. But do people know who Chief Guyasuta was? Do they know about his influence on our history? Do they know that George Washington and Chief Guyasuta met in 1753 near the Chartier’s Creek nexus with the Ohio River? That’s practically in our back garden.”

A second event on Oct. 17 will see Tom White, author of 11 books, share the story and cultural meaning behind the region’s supernatural legends.

White wrote “Forgotten Tales of Pittsburgh.”

On Nov. 14, the center welcomes Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, the oldest child of Robert and Ethel Kennedy and the first female lieutenant governor of Maryland, serving from 1995 to 2003.

Townsend will share her experience of living a life of service, as well as stories about her famous family.

Rounding out the first slate on Dec. 14 is Kate Townsend, an investigator who will share with people how to research family history.