The Oneida Police are treating the investigation of an Oneida couples death as a homicide tonight. On Wednesday morning the bodies of Harry Brown Bear and his wife Lorraine were discovered in their home and tonight the community they lived in is honoring them in their traditional way.
The unexpected deaths of the Brown Bears who are referred to as Cookie and Brown Bear by friends, caught this community off guard.
"Yeah this is all just so shocking," says family friend of the Brown Bears Jessica.
But as is custom, the Oneida nation and folks that did and didn't know them, honored them tonight in their own way with a ceremonial fire in their honor.
"The fire is a community fire to honor the memory of a community member. It's a part of tradition," says Artley Skenandore of the Oneida Nation.
Representatives from the Oneida nation made it clear that it would not be appropriate for members of the media to be present at tonight’s ceremonial fire in honor of the Brown Bears. But they also wanted to make sure that everyone knows how this community honors and remembers the loss of two of their own.
"The fire itself is a moment of respect for those loved ones because they're loved ones of the community. This has been impactful for our community, to have such a horrific event occur and it's at these moments we say that's also an opportunity for us to grow closer together," adds Skenandore.
And while investigators remain tight lipped about what happened to the Brown Bears likely early this week, tonight a community simply remembers them and tries to honor their elders one more time.
