EADS, Colo. (KOAA) — Thursday’s annual Sand Creek Massacre Spiritual Healing Run is proceeding as planned thanks to an injection of state money from History Colorado.
Multiple sources confirmed History Colorado donated a little over $2,000 to the National Park Service (NPS) to allow the Sand Creek Massacre National Historic Site to open up for the first time since the government shutdown.
History Colorado is a charitable organization and an agency of the State of Colorado under the Department of Higher Education, according to its website.
In Denver, the History Colorado Center has an extensive exhibit highlighting the Sand Creek Massacre, with close ties to the descendants of the hundreds of peaceful Cheyenne and Arapaho people murdered by US troops in 1864.
The annual Healing Run has been happening for almost three decades, and organizers feared it wouldn’t be able to start at the Sand Creek Massacre site this year. About 150 participants are expected on Thursday.
“In the 27 years since the run has taken place, never has there been a year where it couldn’t start at the Massacre Site,” said Alexa Roberts, member of the board of directors of the Sand Creek Massacre Foundation. “To not carry on that extremely important tradition would be an ultimate injustice to the descendants of the Cheyenne and Arapaho massacre.”
According to Roberts, the History Colorado donation was done with a very specific funding agreement between the museum and NPS, which is allowed under the Department of Interior guidance issued for the shutdown.
The run begins at the massacre site on Thursday with a 7 a.m. sunrise ceremony. The run itself starts at 1 p.m. as the participants spend multiple days making their way to Denver.
On Saturday, Oct. 25, the group will make its way through downtown Denver, ultimately ending at the Colorado State Capitol and then History Colorado Center.
Closed since Oct. 1 when federal appropriations ceased amidst a fight between Republicans and Democrats over funding, Sand Creek Massacre National Historic Site will open from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Thursday.
The Sand Creek Massacre Foundation said they initially reached out to the Colorado Commission of Indian Affairs and commended the commission for elevating their request to the proper channels.
Governor Jared Polis’ office confirmed they had been willing to help open the massacre site with state funds through the Colorado Department of Natural Resources. It’s unclear what happened, but the money ultimately came from History Colorado.
“The Sand Creek Healing Run is an important annual ritual that builds awareness of the deadliest day in Colorado history and creates collective healing,” said a spokesperson from History Colorado. “It is important to our friends and colleagues from the descendant Tribes of the Sand Creek Massacre, the Cheyenne and Arapaho. The pandemic impacted the annual event and History Colorado wanted to ensure that nothing would get in the way this year.”
With the money donated from History Colorado, about a half dozen NPS staff members will be on hand to help the event run smoothly, multiple sources said.
A federal law titled the ‘Sand Creek Massacre National Historic Site Establishment Act of 2000’ requires the NPS to provide reasonable access to tribes for ceremony and cultural observance.
Had History Colorado not stepped in to fund site operations for the day, it’s unclear how the NPS might have allowed the Healing Run to proceed as planned.
Separately, Great Outdoors Colorado, which invests money from Colorado Lottery proceeds, also donated funds to the Sand Creek Massacre Foundation to help put on the run.
"We're grateful for the opportunity to sponsor the Sand Creek Healing Run and honor Colorado’s full history while supporting healing connections to the land. This event embodies a spirit of resilience, relationship building, and community that resonate with GOCO’s mission," said GOCO Executive Director Jackie Miller. "We'll be thinking about all of the participants on the journey."
Members of the public are allowed to visit the Sand Creek Massacre National Historic Site Thursday until 4 p.m.
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