Conner Prairie Receives $2.5 Million Grant to Advance Lenape Storytelling and Community Engagement
Tuesday, January 7, 2025 (INDIANAPOLIS, Ind.) – Conner Prairie is honored to receive a $2.5 million grant through Lilly Endowment Inc.’s Religion and Cultural Institutions Initiative in support of the Lenape Connection & Kinship on the White River project. The new project will reimagine storytelling and community engagement surrounding the Lenape people and their traditions.
“This generous grant enables us to deepen our partnerships with Indigenous communities and bring their stories to the forefront in meaningful ways,” said Norman Burns, president, and CEO of Conner Prairie. “We are committed to creating a space where the Lenape and other Indigenous peoples can share their histories and traditions, fostering understanding and connection for all.”
Thanks to the Lilly Endowment grant, Conner Prairie will:
- Implement a new outdoor exhibit space scheduled to open in 2029 with immersive, modern, and interactive elements that educate guests on the Lenape traditions of the past and present.
- Repurpose the two existing historic cabins on the property.
- Hire a Community Curator.
- Conduct site visits to Lenape communities.
- Host Lenape representatives at Conner Prairie.
- Refine curriculum for school groups to better connect the past with the present and future, through the lens of food, faith, family and fellowship.
- Establish this new framework for storytelling and curation as a centerpiece for future exhibit development at Conner Prairie and in the museum field.
The project lays the groundwork for a new Lenape exhibit at Conner Prairie, strengthening existing partnerships and cultivating new ones with other Indigenous groups historically connected to the White River. While the Delaware people continue to share their histories within their communities, this initiative seeks to reconnect those stories to the lands they historically inhabited, enriching understanding for both museum visitors and Indigenous communities.
By amplifying the voices of the Lenape and honoring their cultural heritage, Conner Prairie reinforces its commitment to inclusive storytelling. The Lenape Connection & Kinship project ensures the histories and traditions of the Lenape and other Indigenous peoples remain a vital part of the narrative shared with present and future generations.
In 2019, Lilly Endowment launched the Religion and Cultural Institutions Initiative. Its aim is to support museums and other cultural organizations as they strengthen their capacity to provide fair, accurate, and balanced portrayals of the role religion has played, and continues to play, in the United States and around the world. Conner Prairie received a planning and implementation grant through the initiative’s first round of funding in 2019 and 2020 in support of the Promise Land as Proving Ground exhibition.
“The United States is widely considered to be one of the most religiously diverse nations today,” said Christopher L. Coble, Lilly Endowment’s vice president for religion. “Many individuals and families trust museums and other cultural institutions and visit them to learn about their communities and the world. We are excited to support these organizations as they continue to develop their capacities to help visitors understand and appreciate the diverse religious beliefs, practices and perspectives of their neighbors and others in communities around the globe.”
Lilly Endowment Inc. is an Indianapolis-based private foundation created in 1937 by J.K. Lilly, Sr. and his sons Eli and J.K. Jr. through gifts of stock in their pharmaceutical business, Eli Lilly and Company. Although the gifts of stock remain a financial bedrock of the Endowment, it is a separate entity from the company, with a distinct governing board, staff and location. In keeping with the founders’ wishes, the Endowment supports the causes of community development, education and religion. Although the Endowment maintains a special commitment to its founders’ hometown, Indianapolis, and home state, Indiana, it also funds programs throughout the United States, especially in the field of religion. While the primary aim of its religion grantmaking focuses on strengthening the leadership and vitality of Christian congregations in the United States, the Endowment also seeks to foster public understanding about religion and lift up in fair, accurate and balanced ways the contributions that people of all faiths and diverse religious communities make to our greater civic well-being.
About Conner Prairie
Spanning more than 1,000 wooded acres in Central Indiana, Conner Prairie welcomes more than 400,000 visitors of all ages annually. As Indiana’s first Smithsonian affiliate, Conner Prairie offers various outdoor, historically themed encounters and indoor experiential learning spaces that combine history and art with science, technology, engineering, and math to offer an authentic look into history that shapes society today. Conner Prairie is a 501(c)3, nonprofit organization – accredited by the American Alliance of Museums – that relies on grants and philanthropic donations from individuals, corporations, and foundations for sustainability and growth. For more information visit ConnerPrairie.org.
Media Contact:
Hyacinth Rucker
Senior Manager of Public Relations and Communications
rucker@connerprairie.org
(512) 826-3836
Holly Pasquinelli
Director of Marketing and Guest Experience
pasquinelli@connerprairie.org
(765) 729-3323