Keynote Speaker

NDLA 2001

 

Name of Presenter: Kenneth Thomasma

 
 

Title of Program: Sacajawea: A Child Undaunted by Adversity

 

Ken Thomasma - Background Information

 

Native of Grand Rapids, Michigan

 

AB Degree from Calvin College in Grand Rapids Michigan, 1953

 

Masters Degree from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Michigan, 1958 Educator for 48 years as Elementary School Teacher, Junior High Teacher, Elementary Principal, Junior High Principal, College Professor, Media Specialist, Professional Storyteller and Writing Workshop Leader.

 

20 years of summer camp work and film and travelog production.

 

16 years traveling to schools in the U.S., Denmark, Norway, and the Netherlands as a storyteller and writing workshop leader.

 

Author of the series of books called “Amazing Indian Children” and the non-fiction book titled THE TRUTH ABOUT SACAJAWEA. His book on Sacajawea was instrumental in developing the new Golden Dollar Coin. Ken went to Washington D.C. to help select the design for the new coin. He helped defeat legislation aimed at removing Sacajawea from consideration for the honor of being on the coin. He and his wife were guests of Mrs. Clinton on the South Lawn of the White House on May 4,1999 for the dramatic ceremony to unveil the design of the Sacagawea Golden Dollar.

 

Ken’s book titles include: NAYA NUKI: SHOSHONI GIRL WHO RAN, SOUN TETOKEN: NEZ PERCE BOY TAMES A STALLION, OM-KAS-TOE: BLACKFEET TWIN CAPTURES AN ELKDOG, KUNU: ESCAPE ON THE MISSOURI, PATHKI NANA: KOOTENAI GIRL SOLVES A MYSTERY, MOHO WAT: SHEEPEATER BOY ATTEMPTS A RESCUE, AMEE-NAH: ZUNI BOY RUNS THE RACE OF HIS LIFE, THE TRUTH ABOUT SACAJAWEA, and DOE SIA: BANNOCK GIRL AND THE HANDCART PIONEERS.

 

Ken has won the State of Wyoming Children’s book award three times, once in 1986, again in 1993, and again in 1996. Four times his books have been nominated for the Colorado Children’s Book Award and the Colorado Blue Spruce Book Award. NAYA NUKI was nominated for the Utah Children’s Book Award. All books are translated into Danish, Dutch, Norwegian, Eskimo Dialects, and Japanese.

 

Ken is married. His son, Dan, wife Cathy, granddaughter, Melissa and grandson, Oliver live next door. Ken is a wilderness survival expert and has climbed most of the major mountain peaks in the U.S.A as well as five peaks in the European Alps.

 

Ken owns all the rights to his books and publishes them under his company name, Grandview Publishing of Jackson, Wyoming. He has contracted with Baker Book House of Grand Rapids, Michigan agreeing to a dual publishing arrangement so Baker Book House can publish and distribute Ken’s books.

 

E-mail: kenthomasma@blissnet.com