Questions We Asked Our Board of Trustees

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Trustee Brittany Kathleen Hall

I attended a meeting after hearing about CFT through a good friend. After listening to the other board members and teammates I decided this was an organization I was interested in. I felt it was important to have all voices be heard and that included the feminine voices.

Trustee Dalton Horsman

I decided at our first board meeting I was invited to by Kane. CFT’s drive for culturally accurate and tribal citizen led interpretation on historic sites astounded me and I have wanted to help anyway I can. 

Secretary/Treasurer Timothy Haney

I am a Founder of Caesar’s Ford Theatre, Inc and have been a member of the leadership team since 2009. My passion for theatre, especially outdoor historical theatre, inspired me to join the team.

Vice President Jeremy Turner

My first introduction to Caesar's Ford Theatre was through Stacey Halfmoon in 2019. Stacey is the current Executive Director of Cultural and Historic Preservation for the Shawnee Tribe. However, at that time, she served as the Director of American Indian Relations for the Ohio History Connection. Kane Stratton had contacted her for help in finding a Shawnee historic cultural consultant to assist him in writing and producing a script and short film about the life of an African American man named Caesar who had been adopted into the Shawnee Tribe in the 18th century. After Stacey put Kane in contact with me, we began working on the script. During that time of working on the Caesar film, Kane and I developed a friendship and a vision to transform Caesar's Ford Theatre into a nonprofit specializing in creating historical drama, films and living history interpretation led by actual citizens of federally recognized American Indian Nations. Up until that point, Caesar's Ford Theatre had been like all other outdoor drama theatres in the Ohio River Valley, an organization with no actual American Indian input or participation in programs being produced. It is with that vision in mind, to have an organization that produces the finest quality historically accurate historical drama, films, and living history interpretation while casting citizens of federally recognized communities in all American Indian roles, which I agreed to join Caesar's Ford Theatre’s board of directors.

President Jason Jones

I have been involved with providing living history programs for various museums and historical sites across the eastern states for quite a few years. Mostly, those programs were events set up by my friend and fellow board member, Jeremy Turner, in which we provided historically, and culturally accurate educational programs as requested by the individual sites. We had been discussing forming our own Non-profit organization focused on doing this very thing where we could provide the most accurate and culturally relevant living history interpretations to sites along with educating other American Indian Tribal Citizens about 18th century material culture. When Jeremy asked me if I would consider joining the board of Caesar's Ford Theatre, I saw this as an opportunity to do exactly what we had been discussing. We envisioned that we could bring aboard other Tribal Citizens who had similar interest to ensure that CFT was being guided by a majority American Indian board. 

Trustee Xavier Michael 

I was introduced to Caesar’s Ford Theatre through my connection to then Board Members Jason Jones and Jeremy Turner. I eventually became aware of events involving cultural education in the historical homelands of the Shawnee and Delaware. When I expressed an interest in participating in the Historical Interpretation done at CFT, Jeremy felt my knowledge in Tribal history and experience in drama would be beneficial for being a board member and help out with events in the Ohio-River valley area.

Trustee Logan York

I joined after learning about CFT and what they stood for. I have always enjoyed living history and history in general and to see the state of Native reenactment in our traditional homelands was quite a pill to swallow. I came to see CFT as a good first step to correcting the poorly done reenactments in our homelands and start the road to true living history with actual Native peoples with support of tribes doing the part of telling our story from our point of view. 

Trustee Mathew Putnam

I was introduced to Caesar's Ford Theatre thru Shawnee relative Jeremy Turner.  What truly perked my interest was the commitment and accountability to historical accuracy of Caesar's Ford Theatre. By this I mean that living history events, historical dramas, and films would be historically accurate, but more importantly by only casting citizens of federally recognized tribal nations, Caesar's Ford Theatre ensures that all cast/interpreters are actual American Indian people. The ongoing and extremely prevalent practice of utilizing any person claiming to be “indigenous”, so long as they have brown skin and dark hair, in historical dramas, living history interpretation, theater, and film is completely unacceptable.  These practices continue to promote inaccurate stereotypes and do nothing except further damage American Indian communities and continue to take opportunities from bona fide American Indian people.  The commitment to these morally ethical standards are what sets Caesar's Ford Theatre apart from other organizations.

Trustee Belinda Patterson

I was introduced to Caesars Ford Theatre through fellow board member, Jeremy Turner. I had the privilege of being the Native Interpreter/Educator at Old Fort Niagara in Youngstown NY for just under 10 years. I had met many Indigenous historians and reenact-ors, including Jeremy. We connected on authenticity in reenacting and pursing genuine native portrayals. I had learned that Jeremy was already on this mission through CFT and through my participation more dots are now connected, including Haudenosaunee territory. I still do outreach and education programs independently since moving on from OFN and still seek authentic portrayals.

Trustee Andy Jacobs

I was introduced to Caesar's Ford Theatre through Jeremy Turner and Kane Stratton. I have worked alongside Jeremy for a couple years in living history interpretation. I love working with my peers to educate the general public about our history, while continuously striving to gain more knowledge through reading and examining historical documents and artifacts.  Because my Lenape community was stripped of our traditional ceremonial teachings by the Moravian preachers who converted us and eventually removed us to the Moraviantown Reserve in Canada we didn’t learn our true cultural teachings.  Whereas now I am more at peace within myself  thanks to the reconnecting I have been able to do with our other Lenape communities in Oklahoma and Wisconsin due in part to being involved in living history programming.  I no longer feel like I am missing a piece of who I am as a Lenape woman.  I am excited to be on the board and working with the people, I do already know and am extremely excited to continue to meet new like mind people involved with historical interpretation.

Trustee Sarah Thaxton Boyd

I was introduced to CFT through Jason Jones, president my family and I were asked to participate in a living history event in June 2024 that included Jeremy Turner and his family. I have know Jason and Jeremy for many years and am aware of the work they do. Just a short few months later I was asked by Jason Jones to join the board. It was an easy decision for me to become a board member because mine and CFT’s vision and values align. 

Trustee Brittany Kathleen Hall

One positive outcome I hope to see from CFT is for the growth of the organization. I have seen it grow in the short time I have been involved and I would love to see it grow nationwide to help spread the honest truth of Native Americans and colonialism. I would also love to help teach and share how non-Natives can advocate and learn.

Trustee Dalton Horsman

I hope to see a wider and deeper understanding of the Ohio River Valley so that Tribes across the nation may aspire to also have tribal citizen led interpretation on their historic lands.

Secretary/Treasurer Timothy Haney

A positive outcome of Caesar’s Ford Theatre, Inc that I hope to see is educating the public about the history of American Indians who once made Ohio their home in a culturally and historically accurate way. I believe it is important to correct long held historical and cultural inaccuracies that contribute to stereotypes, myths, and harmful misinformation about the history of Ohio.

Vice President Jeremy Turner

Through the work that Caesar's Ford Theatre has committed to, I hope to see more opportunities for federally recognized tribal citizens from historical tribes of Ohio to travel back to their historical homeland and interact with the land and places where their ancestors lived and were forced to leave because of President Andrew Jackson’s federal Indian removal policy. Those strictly enforced policies robbed the American Indian people of their beautiful homes/land as well as the chance for citizens of the state of Ohio the ability to interact and learn from American Indian people. It is my hope that we will begin to see the reverse of the damage done to both American Indian people and citizens of the state of Ohio that these policies created with opportunities nurtured by the work of Caesar's Ford Theatre.

President Jason Jones

I would like for other Tribal citizens to see that there is immeasurable value in providing living history interpretation whether it is for historical sites and museums, on stage for plays, or in film/cinema. This is extremely important not only for what they can learn about themselves and their culture, but most importantly to provide legitimacy and accuracy to any portrayal of American Indian people. I envision Caesar's Ford Theatre doing just that with opportunities we are focused on providing for other Federally Recognized American Indian Tribal citizens.

Trustee Xavier Michael-Young 

I hope to see more living history events in the future that cast federally recognized tribal members within their productions to better educate non-native people. This goal will help ensure that the descendants of the Tribal Nations who were present in the area can be provided with opportunities to return back to their homelands and learn about their own tribal history while being provided with financial support to do so. 

Trustee Logan York

I hope to see Living history told from the Native Federally Recognized Tribes to this area perspective. I don't think you can properly interpret history if you are missing the culture you are trying to interpret. Things are missed, misconstrued and flat out lied or made up. These are problems I think that CFT could very well start to fix. I think that the state of reenactment and living history surrounding Native peoples is largely done quite poorly by the main body of people who do it. I think CFT could do an amazing job and has done amazing work already. 

Trustee Mathew Putnam

I hope to see both the public and other tribal citizens gain a better understanding of the historically accurate culture of 18-19th century Ohio country tribal communities through the work of Caesar's Ford Theatre.   Misrepresentation and cultural appropriation are two important issues that Federally Recognized American Indian communities face today.  The work that Caesar's Ford Theatre has committed to is focused on correcting these two issues.  It is my hope that we will be the example that all other organizations, including big screen film producers, look to when telling American Indian stories and casting American Indian roles.  

Trustee Belinda Patterson

I hope the board creates a connecting platform for those who seek and need genuine indigenous participation. It is important to discourage improper portrayals and use of culture. I believe CFT will be and is a supporting role to see that through.

Trustee Andy Jacobs

I hope to see Caesar's Ford Theatre facilitate the truth of our history and removal as Ohio River Valley American Indian Tribal Nations while being accurately portrayed by our community members.  It is extremely important for that history to be respectfully and accurately portrayed by us to maintain the integrity and humanity of our Tribal Nations and our ancestors who lived through that time period.

Trustee Sarah Thaxton Boyd

There has been a lack of representation of Lenape people in multiple facets of history. Even though we Lenape have a very rich and colorful history like the treaty of Fort Pitt signed Sept. 17, 1778 ceding almost the entire state of Ohio to us to include a seat in Congress and I might add this was the first treaty to be signed between a Native tribe and the newly formed United States of America. This is just but one example of the profound history we have. My hope for Caesar Ford Theater is to continue to tell the true history of native people of the Ohio River Valley by native people on a national scale.