I was born in Houston, Texas in 1952. My father (Morris Benjamin Konstantin, Jr.) was born in east Texas. We do not know of any Indian blood in his ancestry. Oddly enough, though, he grew up in Cherokee County. My mother (Lila Beatrice Adair Konstantin) was born in Oklahoma. My Cherokee ancestry is from my mother. My enrollment number with the Cherokee Nation is C0189288. My Grandfather (George Adair) was on the Dawes Rolls (#2391), as were my Great- grandparents Joseph Adair (2389) and Nancy Walkingstick (2390). My maternal grandfather died or disappeared when my mother was seven years old. She was the youngest child in her family (as was my father). While a few of my mother's older siblings went to "Indian" schools for a while, she did not. My mother was not raised in the "old ways;" but, she is extremely proud of her heritage. I inherited this pride and interest from her. My father's father divorced my grandmother when she was pregnant with my father. She never saw him again. Despite looking for him over the decades, my father never met his father.
I have 3 grown children, Ron, Heidi & Sarah (I started VERY early). There are pictures of them on the "photo" page, if you are interested.
There have been a wide variety of jobs since I started working at age 11.
Some of my jobs have been:
I have had a fairly good education, attending public schools in Houston and Pasadena, Texas. My undergraduate college work was at San Jacinto Jr. College (Pasadena), Rice University (Houston), and San Diego State University in California. Financial problems forced me to leave Rice in 1977. I finally got my B.A. at San Diego State in 1991 (I was a senior for 14 years - I don't recommend waiting that long to go back). Some of my educational honors were the "Dean's List" a couple of times, and "Who's Who among Students at American Universities and Colleges in 1977 (Rice) and 1991 (SDSU).
With a personal library of over 3,000 volumns, I am a voracious reader. In the 1970s, I served on the Library Board in Pasadena. We built a new library while I was on the board. Thus my name appears on the dedication plaque attached to the front of the building.
I have traveled through much of the western and southern United States, and a large part of Mexico.
Just for info, I get a bit irritated whenever I hear the phrase "Native American" to describe the ancestors of the indigenous people of this continent. When it comes to words to describe this part of my background, I prefer just about ANY other term: American Indian, Indian, Aboriginal American, First American, First People, First Nation, etc., etc.
I have talked with thousands of people about this. I have only encountered a few American Indians who prefer the NA term. Most older Indians only use the term when someone else brings it up first. It is fine with me if people want to called themselves NA. That is their choice and I respect their right to do this. More younger people are using this term, as they have heard it all of their lives.
By far, most American Indians prefer to be called by their given name (Phil, for example). Most would also prefer the use of their tribal name (Cherokee, for example) over any other phrase.
I realize American Indians are not from India, thus American Indian is an inaccurate term. In my mind though, anyone born in the Americas (North and South) is a native American. For example, if your name is Fujiyama or Schmidt, and you are born in Bolivia, by definition, you are a "native American" since you were born in the Americas. I am "politically correct" in many ways, but not this one.
Lecture over......
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