Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Chuck Hoskins Jr. was one of the speakers who addressed the crowd during the ribbon-cutting for the new Union Pacific Pocket Park in downtown Coffeyville this weekend.

Among the others who spoke were Mayor Ann Marie Vanoster and representatives from the Union Pacific Railroad.  The crowd was also entertained Saturday by Cherokee Musician and Composer Tommy Wildcat and the Back Roads Band.

Chief Hoskins says there are 13,000 Cherokee citizens living in Kansas, with the majority of them in southeast Kansas.  He says The Cherokee Tribe has a long history of working with the communities they serve.  The Union Pacific Railroad donated $25,000 to help build the Park.