Day: June 27, 2020

“For many years, Hill served as both an organist and an interpreter for Episcopal services on the reservation. He believed that his serving as the sachem (chief) of his tribe and a member of church councils gave him a unique opportunity to bridge the gap between the tribe and the white community.  He also considered that by becoming a deacon, that bridge might become even stronger between the two cultures. He was ordained to the diaconate in 1895 (July 27), and in 1903 he was made a priest, the first of his people to be so consecrated.  Hill spoke his ordination vows in his native Oneida language.”