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Portland, Ore. — Pendleton Woolen Mills has created an exclusive blanket to benefit the American Indian College Fund.
Naskan Saddle Blanket is part of the collaboration between Pendleton and the College Fund “to honor and reawaken a vital part of Native history,” noted the domestic manufacturer of home textiles and apparel items, which in now in its sixth generation of family ownership.
The new design joins a collection of 10 blankets designed by Native artists specifically for the American Indian College Fund. A portion of the proceeds from the sale of College Fund blankets provides scholarships for Native students to attend tribal colleges and universities.
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The Naskan Saddle Blanket derives its mountain pattern and name from sacred Navajo blankets. The design tells the story of Johano-ai, the Navajo sun god, who begins his day in the east and rides one of his five horses across the sky to his post in the west while dragging his shining, golden orb – the sun. As his horse gallops across the sky, gorgeous hides and ornately woven blankets, known as naskan, lie beneath its hooves.
“Just as this blanket represents a path taken by a sacred being across the sky, our students also take a journey toward realizing their dreams by walking a sacred path toward success,” said Cheryl Crazy Bull (Sicangu Lakota), American Indian College Fund president and ceo.
