Thanksgiving can be a complicated for many Native people, and we really wanted to capture that from a Native perspective, including the values of gratitude and family/clan our cultures have always been lead by.

So for the Molly of Denali Thanksgiving episodes, Princess Daazhraii Johnson really tackled a Wampanoag voice in the holiday as well as how our/Wampanoag foods feed our values as much as our bodies. And I tackled some of the history of our own celebrations and traditions being outlawed for so long, and why the holiday itself can be complicated even within the same Native families. 

This weekend would be a great time to watch “Truth, Trust, and Harvest” written by Gwich’in writer Princess Daazrhaii Johnson, and “Thanks-for-Giving” by myself, Tlingit/Dena’ina writer Vera Starbard. And I’d love to know what you get from them!

“Thanks-for-Giving” was also recently nominated for a Children’s and Family Emmy for the “Outstanding Writing for a Preschool Animated Series.” An awful lot of people put an awful lot of thought and care into these episodes, with the hope that they can grow both children’s AND adult understanding of Native cultures and our own American holidays. 

Here’s the full two-story episode on YouTube

You can watch via the free PBS KIDS app

Or purchase the episode through Amazon

KTOO Interview About Nomination