Troy Sia

[kuljamu]

Does anyone have background info on this person
http://comancheeagle.org/Bio_Html/troy_bio.html which says
Kwihnia makwetsoi okweetunia:  a.k.a.   TROY:
Co-founder of Sia and adopted member of the Ohnononuh band of Numunuh by Eviyah, Numu huutsi (maternal grandmother).  Troy has nearly three decades of hands on experience with native and non-native eagle and raptor field studies as well as captive behavioral and artificial propagation research.  Troy brings to Sia a well rounded global understanding of holistic medicine and indigenous spirituality of multi-cultural persuasions.  This unique background is vital in the ethno-botanical and ethno-ornithological perspective that is key to the indigenous cultural aspect of Sia research and historic documentation.  Troy brings his life experience in pre-school teaching to his special approach to sharing the message of the eagle with our younger audiences.
Thank you in advance for any and all replies

[Piff]

SIA, Inc. is the name of the nonprofit in Oklahoma https://www.sos.ok.gov/corp/corpInformation.aspx?id=2112030051

Apparently Troy goes by only the name Troy, no surname.

Longtime friend and co-founder Troy, who goes by only one name, has worked with Voelker for many years.

http://newsok.com/article/3421440

Hopefully we can find out Troy's surname.

The founder Bill Voelkner is said to be "A member of the Comanche Nation".

[kuljamu]

thank you Piff-all info would be very appreciated

[Piff]

He does go by Troy Sia on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/troy.sia.1 , as he has to use a surname of some sort. A friend commented "I like the use of Sia for the required last name but you'll always just be Troy to me."

On his Facebook he says he is from Kapaa, Hawaii, now living in Cyril, Oklahoma. Co-Founder/Co-Director at Sia: The Comanche Nation Ethno-Ornithological Initiative.

He did something on Comanche Moon, the prequel to Lonesome Dove. At least he has photos of himself on the set. I assume he was with William Voelker (founder of Sia: The Comanche Nation Ethno-Ornithological Initiative), who is listed as an advisor. I don't see our Troy listed in credits http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0783328/fullcredits#cast

I hoped his full name was listed on incorporation records, but it is not. This info doesn't have a link, there is a $ charge for the info:

Filing Number:
2112030051
Entity Name:
SIA, INC.
Status:
In Existence
Entity Type:
Domestic Not For Profit Corporation
Jurisdiction:
Oklahoma
Original Filing Date:
Feb 17 2004
Duration:
Perpetual
Entity Address:
N/A

Name:
WILLIAM C VOELKER 
Effective:
Oct 16 2006
Address:
106 TEXAS AVE
BOX 341
City,State,ZipCode:
CYRIL   OK   73029 

PRINCIPALS
Name   Title
WILLIAM C KELLOUGH   INCORPORATOR
TERESA M BURKETT   INCORPORATOR
STEPHEN A SCHULLER   INCORPORATOR

[tkavanagh]

Haa,
I am a long-time lurker. This is my first posting.
Troy Sia is legit, as is Bill Voelker.
Troy is non-native -- to my knowledge he has never claimed to be otherwise -- from Hawai'i. Bill is Numunuu, of the Wahkinney family.
Sia, the Comanche Nation Etho-Ornithologial Initiative  (http://www.comancheeagle.org/intro.html) is an NGO, with some, albeit infrequent, funding from the Comanche Nation. [Sia is the Numutekwa word for 'feather'.] They are the only Native-owned eagle repository. They work with many other nations and individuals providing support and training.
What they need is support, not rumor.
Sincerely,
Thomas Kavanagh (author: Comanche Political History [aka The Comanches]; Comanche Ethnography; editor: The Life of Ten Bears. All U Nebraska Press.)

[Piff]

Recently Sia was defunded, don't know what their current status is.

Eagle Breeding Facility Endangered After Tribe Stops Funding Program
Feb 13, 2017

http://www.news9.com/story/34492616/eagle-breeding-facility-endangered-after-tribe-stops-funding-program


CYRIL, Oklahoma - They've worked with everyone from National Geographic to Johnny Depp, but now a Oklahoma Eagle Breeding facility is in trouble. The Comanche tribe recently voted to stop funding the program.
Sia, the name for the Comanche Nation Ethno-Ornithological Initiative, has the largest eagle collection in North America. It's also one of the most successful breeding programs in the world. The facility was the first to artificially inseminate bald eagles decades ago. All total, Sia has bred and released 400 bald and golden eagles into the wild.

"A lot of eagles that you see are from birds we released," said Troy

But the birds aren't the only ones who are now endangered. In the most recent election, Comanche Tribe members voted to stop funding to the eagle program.

"We're in crisis, part of the facility has been shut down," said Troy, one of the founders of Sia.

Sia, which means "feather" in the Comanche language, would take the birds to schools to teach about Native American Culture. That has stopped as has tours of the facility.

"This is not the norm that you see in a small town and I don't want to see it go," said Brad Alexander, the town's mayor.

The Tribal Chairman would only say the tribe votes on funding for ALL programs once a year. Troy says the issue was decided by only 20 votes. He says the tribe has voted to discontinue funding in past elections, but they had time to find alternative revenue. This time they don't.

"This is their culture and for them to let this die or fall to the wayside, shame on them," said Alexander.

Troy says they haven't heard from the tribe and are now turning to the community to keep them aloft.

"We'll go on, but it's hard to understand what exactly the make up of that will be," said Troy.

[Piff]

Kuljama, could you tell us if there are specific concerns about Troy?

[Piff]

Haa,
I am a long-time lurker. This is my first posting.
Troy Sia is legit, as is Bill Voelker.
Troy is non-native -- to my knowledge he has never claimed to be otherwise -- from Hawai'i. Bill is Numunuu, of the Wahkinney family.
Sia, the Comanche Nation Etho-Ornithologial Initiative  (http://www.comancheeagle.org/intro.html) is an NGO, with some, albeit infrequent, funding from the Comanche Nation. [Sia is the Numutekwa word for 'feather'.] They are the only Native-owned eagle repository. They work with many other nations and individuals providing support and training.
What they need is support, not rumor.
Sincerely,
Thomas Kavanagh (author: Comanche Political History [aka The Comanches]; Comanche Ethnography; editor: The Life of Ten Bears. All U Nebraska Press.)

Hello Thomas Kavanagh, thank you for joining us.

Kuljamu asked if we have background on Troy. That is perfectly fine to do here, this is the research part of the forum.

Before choosing whether or not to support a person or group, researching them thoroughly is a wise practice.

[kuljamu]

He was involved for a short time at Sundance when the so called Doc-The Eagle Huntress was making its rounds around the different film festivals. The movie has been proven to be a fraud and not a true doc. The exploitation of the indigenous family from Mongolia has been documented and Sony Pictures/Otto Bell (filmmaker) are out censoring any person that is exposing the truth about this film. The film was bought and now being made into an animation by the creators of Blue Sky Studio (Robots-Ice Age-Rio) .So here we go again with the merchandising of indigenous people with the new upcoming animation and all the merchandise spin-offs that they can produce. Was just wondering if Troy (with all of the Hollywood credits as advisor for The Lone Ranger,etc) is a good guy or if his ties to the Hollywood industry should be checked out. I know SIA is legit but have seen photos of Troy with NDN clothing on which makes me suspicious-Is he a wannabe or a real good guy?

[tkavanagh]

All:
For the sake of full disclosure, I should note that I am on Sia's Council of Advisors. (http://comancheeagle.org/advisors2.html)

Yes, like it or not (I'm not sure I do) Bill and Troy act as "advisors" to Hollywood. [And the new AMC show "The Son" has Numu advisors as well, altho not Sia.] With the withdrawal of tribal funding, that is one source of income to continue their work.

Troy is a not a wannabe. He is a participating member of the community.

Thomas Kavanagh, PhD

[kuljamu]

thank you Thomas-it puts my mind at rest