Meet The Team

Erik Oswalt

The son of NEST founder, Shirley Jackson Oswalt, Erik came to NEST in 2023 after serving the Cherokee Police Department for 25.5 years and retiring as a Lieutenant. Erik grew up hearing the Cherokee language in his home and is passionate about preserving the language and Cherokee traditions for future generations.

Jazlyn Ella Mcentire "wadulisi"

Jazlyn was spoken to only in the Cherokee language by her grandmother, NEST founder Shirley Jackson Oswalt, for the first five years of her life. Jazlyn attended NEST's summer language camps from ages 4-17 and graduated from the Adult Immersion Program in 2023. She wishes to continue learning as well as teaching to help preserve her Cherokee Language and Culture.

Gracie Webster

I am a teacher at the Cherokee language afterschool and summer camp programs. I started to learn the Cherokee language when I was 7 years old when I started at NEST's summer camp. I started teaching the Cherokee language at 17 and am in my third year. I enjoy every minute I have with the kids and the people I work with. I enjoy continuing and furthering my Cherokee language every day.

Joel Turner

Growing up without a dad in the home, I wqas influenced and spent a great deal of time with our Cherokee neighbors, two fo their named being Max and Shirley Oswalt. We spent many evenings together, went to many singings, and she also had a local Cherokee language class that I attended. She had a class in Tennessee, and it was there that she encouraged me to become an instructor/teacher. From there, I have worked for NEST, where she was the founder. As Shirley would say, "God brought us together."

jarrett bird

Growing up with nine siblings, we all were spoken to in the Cherokee language up until I went to public school and then the exposure to the language decreased because they spoke English to us in public school. When I got older, I had the desire to learn more of the Cherokee language so I could speak and have a full conversation with my mother and siblings in our traditional language. I have now become an assistant teacher here at NEST, and I continue to learn more every day. Still, being able to pass my knowledge down to future generations, I would consider to be one of my most important accomplishments.

Lou Jackson

I grew up in the Snowbird Community and attended Snowbird Day School for six years. I had three brothers and three sisters. I am a registered nurse (RN) and I have worked at Harris Regional Hospital and District Memorial as an emergency room nurse. I worked at Snowbird Health Clinic for 28 years, retiring in 2012. I then started teaching the Cherokee Language for the Snowbird Cherokee Language Traditions Corporation (now NEST) during the six week program and then began teaching in the afterschool program. During my free time, I enjoy playing basketball in the senior league. My goal for teaching future generations is to turn them into teachers who can pass on the language.

Lynsey adams

Growing up, I loved doing arts and crafts. I was homeschooled up until ninth grade and had a few private lessons learning the basics of Cherokee Language with my cousin, but it was no surprise when I took Cherokee Arts Class (taught by BJ Welch) in public school and fell in love with it! I loved every single craft that we did because each craft felt like it all had a powerful meaning and history that went along with it. While in high school, I worked on and off for the NEST afterschool program. I went from being a help and assistant teacher to becoming an arts and crafts teacher. I never thought I would find a job that I love so much. I research all the arts and crafts to find the stories and history of each one so I can pass on the knowledge of how to make these crafts and how each craft was used. The children's excitement about the history and being able to make the pieces by themselves gives me hope of the future of Cherokee History, Crafts, and Language.

Renee Gonzalez

I am the Cook and Helper at NEST. I always get to work before the children arrive in time to have the food prepared. I also help or step in if need be for other teachers, watch the children, help clean and pick up the bathrooms and classrooms, and try to listen and learn the language while I work. I am excited to see the children learn and progress over time and be able to pass the language on to themselves on day. The children enjoy learning and furthering their knowledge of the Cherokee langauge, just as I do myself. I enjoy the children and fellow employees as we learn and progress daily.

Leroy littlejohn

Leroy Littlejohn is an enrolled member of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians and lives in the Wolftown community in Cherokee, NC with his family. He is a fluent speaker of the Cherokee language with English being his second language and teaches Cherokee language at the Snowbird language camp in Robbinsville, NC. Mr. Littlejohn is a member of the Cherokee Speakers Council and the Cherokee Language Consortium whose purpose is to preserve, teach, translate and to add words to the Cherokee language. Each year, he is the “caller” at the Cherokee Indian Fair stick ball games, a popular traditional Cherokee game where he explains the game to large crowds and gives play by play commentary, often speaking in Cherokee which the crowd enjoys and learns from.

Kathy Jones

Coming Soon!

Angie Knight

I am a Robbinsville High School Class of 1985 graduate. After obtaining a Bachelors and Masters degree in teaching Exceptional Children and an Educational Leadership Specialist degree from Western Carolina University, I enjoyed a wonderful 35 year career with Graham County Schools. From my beginning as a teacher to completing my career as Superintendent for 11 years, I have loved building relationships with children, families and the community. I look forward to assisting in my new role here with grant writing, administrative assistance and hands-on activities with the students that enhance the preservation of Snowbird Cherokee language and traditions.