(TAYLOR, NE)- Dr. Susan La Flesche Picotte passed away on September 18th, 1915. 108 years later to the day, she and fellow unsung hero Dr. Elizabeth Catlett continue to have their stories told thanks to two bright youth in the small town of Taylor, Nebraska.
Friends, family, teachers, and students filed into the Loup County gymnasium for a special recognition for juniors Madison Glidden and Angel Estrada on Monday morning. It wasn’t until that morning that they each realized the gathering was for them.
“Well I thought I wasn’t going to be here today and mom tricked me. So then Angel comes up to me and goes ‘I think this is for us’ and I was like ‘Oh no, now I’m nervous’!” said Glidden.
Despite the others in the gym that morning knowing they were there for Madison and Angel, only a select few knew where they had placed in the Lowell Milken Center (LMC) for Unsung Heroes Discovery Award competition. Executive Director Norm Conard made the trip from Fort Scott, Kansas to make the presentations.
“What we do is present awards and we have an international competition, the Unsung Hero Award, and it is given out to documentaries, performances, and websites, the best in the world, the best in the country. We are here because your students entered this competition and we wanted to just recognize your school for being that kind of school. The students who enter are representative of every student in this school, every teacher, every parent of the entire community,” explained Conard.
Conard welcomed Madison Glidden up front to recognize her for her documentary about Dr. Susan La Flesche Picotte, the first ever Native American doctor. Moments later, he revealed how Glidden’s work had placed nationally.
“We’d like to mention that through the semifinals and finals your film received just great accolades from judges over and over again. It was the kind of film that we all thought, ‘Boy, would I like to make one like this’ and you did! Your film was the Outstanding High School Project in America from the Lowell Milken Center International Discovery Board competition, number one in the United States” said Conard.
Glidden wiped away some tears as she accepted a large $2,000 check. During her research and composition of the documentary, she conducted Zoom interviews with three of Dr. La Flesche’s surviving family members who are located throughout the country. She also spoke with biographer Joe Starita, who wrote the book A Warrior of the People: How Susan La Flesche Overcame Racial and Gender Inequality to Become America’s First Indian Doctor. In a video viewed by those in attendance, Starita attempted to put into words how important work like Glidden’s is.
“In 1890, the year of the Wounded Knee massacre, there were 104,805 licensed physicians in the United States of America, 4.4% of whom were women. But only one of those women was a Native American woman, and her name was Dr. Susan La Flesche. Your hard work is allowing both natives and non-natives to see this true trailblazer, a woman who became the nation’s first Native American physician 31 years before women could vote, 35 years before people who looked like Susan La Flesche were considered citizens on lands they had lived upon for ten thousand years.”
Glidden said the long days of researching, interviewing, and editing were fulfilling. “It took a long time. I had to find all of the information and I just wrote stuff down. But really putting the video together took a lot of work and a lot of editing and it was just a lot of fun.”
Joining Glidden among the nation’s best was classmate Angel Estrada, who placed in the top 14 nationwide for his documentary Artist to Some, Activist for Many, Unsung Hero to All about Dr. Elizabeth Catlett. Catlett was an African/Mexican American who used her art to break barriers and leave a lasting legacy for people of color.
During his research which resulted in the $500 Honorable Mention Award, Estrada also interviewed several people with ties to Dr. Catlett, including Naima Mora who won the 2005 season of America’s Next Top Model.
Mora applauded Estrada’s work in a video message. “I wanted to say thank you again for having me as part of your documentary, and I wanted to say congratulations on everything and I’m sending you all my love. You have such a promising, beautiful future ahead of you. Keep going, never give up, and follow those dreams. You’re gonna make them come true.”
Estrada said that Catlett’s story spoke to him and clicked because of his shared interest of art. He said he knew he wanted others to hear it and know about it. He also thanked his teacher, Megan Helberg, for the help she gave both him and his classmate.
“She’s been my teacher since 8th grade and I’m just glad to have her. I probably could not have done this without her. She’s the one that introduced us to this project and she helped keep everything in order and in line. She helped me with my Zoom interview. I was pretty nervous for it. She helped keep me calm, and helped walk through it with me” said Estrada.
Mrs. Helberg tossed appreciation for her students right back.
“As their teacher I could not be more proud, but also I’m not surprised that this award came to Madison and Angel. Madison and Angel are the type of kids who are not okay with just being okay. They want to be great. They want the quality of their work to be exceptional; not just in what they do in school but it’s just how they live their lives” grinned Helberg.
About LMC’s Discovery Award
LMC’s Discovery Award provides a unique opportunity for U.S. and International students in grades 4 through 12 to research primary sources and use their talents to develop projects that showcase the power of one person to make positive change in the world. The actions which define the Unsung Hero’s legacy as a role model must have occurred a minimum of 20 years ago, and the project must demonstrate the impact made over time as a result of those actions. Students can create a documentary, performance, or website featuring an Unsung Hero and must include a supportive annotate bibliography and process paper. Submissions for the next competition season will open in February 2024.
