Irene (Medawis) Wesley"Grandma" Irene (Medawis) Wesley, a full-blooded Elder of the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of the Potawatomi Indian Tribe peacefully walked on from her home on the Pine Creek Indian Reservation early Wednesday morning, February 15, 2017. Grandma Wesley, the granddaughter of Chief Stephen Pamptopee and great granddaughter of Chief Phineas Pamptopee was born January 22, 1922 on the Pine Creek Indian Reservation.  Her parents Henry Medawis Sr. and Maryanne Pamptopee are both listed on the 1904 Taggart Roll.  Her birthplace was on the Reservation grounds where the old administration building (now the tribal court and police department) was constructed.  Grandma was the second oldest of ten children, including her sisters Dorothy, Leona, Daisy, Gladys, Suzy, Pauline, Marjorie, and Miriam (Mimi), and her brother Henry Jr. (Manny).  It is important to note that although she was born on US soil only 95 years ago, English was not her first language.  She grew up speaking only Bodwewadmi, and consequently, during her time in kindergarten, she had to focus primarily on learning the English language.  She was a highly gifted athlete, and excelled as both a youth and as an adult in all sports, but especially basketball, volleyball, softball, and track & field.  She lived nearly her entire life in Athens, Michigan, or on the Pine Creek Reservation.Grandma and her sisters performed in a traveling church choir group with their mother as the pianist.  With the early and premature deaths of her parents and grandparents, Grandma became the primary caregiver for her younger siblings at the age of 16.  Although she had to leave school at that time to go to work to support her family, she did manage to complete her high school diploma in 1985 at the age of 63.  Through her work at Fort Custer, Grandma Wesley met her husband Joe Wesley Sr., a citizen of the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Tribe of Chippewa Indians and World War II-era US Army Veteran, who was hospitalized there while he recovered from a land mine explosion.  They married on June 14, 1942 and had three children: Joe Jr., Laura, and Mary.  While raising her family, Grandma worked at the Denton Sleeping Garmet Mill in Centreville, MI, sewing pajamas and sweaters, and later worked at Jacobson's in Kalamazoo as a seamstress, retiring at age 75.Grandma loved attending traditional powwows, and regularly camped out on the powwow grounds with her family while attending them on weekends.  She took a lot of pride teaching American Indian traditions and customs, such as dancing and making crafts to all children who took an interest.  She and her family enjoyed camping, fishing, and most other outdoor activities.  She was a 4-H leader in Athens and taught young women how to cook, can, sew, knit, crochet, and garden and supervised their craft, carpentry, and animal 4-H projects.  She was a longtime member of the Athens Methodist Church, as well as the Athens Indian Church, where she was a church board member for years.  She was always passionate about children and taught the children's choir, planned their plays and other programs, designed and sewed their performance attire, and also organized and taught bible and Sunday school.  She also sang with the adult choir and as a soloist for special occasions.  She designed and made wedding gowns for her daughters and many local brides and bridesmaids.  Her daughter Mary noted that she could simply look at an article of clothing and make it from scratch.Grandma Wesley was Chair of the Tribe's Elders Committee when the Tribe re-obtained Federal Recognition from the US Department of Interior in 1995.  She also served as a longtime member of both the NHBP Culture and Cemetery Committees.  Her son Joe Wesley Jr. and grandson Nat Spurr served as elected NHBP Tribal Council members, and her daughter Laura Spurr was elected NHBP Tribal Chair by the Membership four times over an 11-year span while the Pine Creek Reservation was developed and taken into Federal Trust and the FireKeepers Casino was established.Grandma had been the last surviving child out of her family of twelve (nine siblings) and was preceded in death by her husband Joseph Wesley, her daughter Laura Wesley Spurr, her son Joe Wesley Jr., and her beloved granddaughter Sarah Joslyn.  She is survived by her daughter Mary Wesley, her son-in-law Stephen Spurr, her daughter-in-laws Terry Dowd and Sharon Gardner, her grandsons Todd Wesley, Robert and Bradley Potter, Joseph Wesley III, Nathaniel and Josiah Spurr, several great grandchildren, and many nephews and nieces.In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Athens Area Community Foundation.  P.O. Box 205, Athens, MI 49011, email: [email protected] will be held at the Community Center at the Pine Creek Indian Reservation.  Visitation will be held between 6-9pm on Tuesday, February, 21, and the Memorial Service will be held at 11am Wednesday morning. NHBP Pine Creek Reservation Community Center, 1485 Mno-Bmadzewen Way, Fulton, MI 49052. The family is being served by Lighthouse Funeral & Cremation in Union City. Please visit www.lighthousefuneral.com to share memories, pictures and videos with the family.