CLEVELAND — Native American Heritage Month celebrates the culture of Indigenous people. Keeping native traditions alive is something some members of these communities say can be challenging.

Philip Yenyo celebrated Native American heritage month by carving.

"Pipestone being one of our sacred stones is what we use to create our chanunpa," he said.

Yenyo comes from a Mēxihcah and Hungarian backgrounds and has lived in Ohio nearly all his life. He said he thought his people were extinct and now that he knows otherwise; he wants to keep his heritage alive.

That’s why Yenyo said he does his best to keep others educated on Native American heritage, from teaching the history at schools to even showing people how to carve. He said being a full-time handyman and home construction worker doesn't work to his advantage.

"Sometimes I don’t get to do as much as I’d like to do with a lot of my artwork," he said.

While Yenyo is carving, others like Robin Robinson are creating exhibits, but the goal is the same.

"I think that it would be nice to have a place in Cleveland where the information is present on a regular basis where people can actually come and learn about the Indigenous culture," she said.

Robinson is the Executive director of Sankofa Fine Art Plus and wants people to know Indigenous people are around.

"That people understand that Indigenous people are everywhere, all over the country, and Cleveland is part of that," she said.

A sentiment shared by Yenyo.

"We don’t walk around wearing feathers. We’re your next-door neighbors and we still exist. We’re still here," he said.