Rediscovering Our Family History

Pemmican Patty Food Company is a family business. It is owned and operated by my brother, Mike, his son, Micah, and me, Patt Mabin. Together we share a beautiful blend of experience, wonder, resilience, and hope.

Micah is our adventuresome soul. He contributes to the richness of our family and partnership with his vast knowledge of nature, geography, history, culture and so much more.

Micah has been exploring Turtle Island for the past few years. We “travel” with him through “on the road” conversations as well as the highly anticipated family slide shows that we enjoy upon his return.

Micah headed east this time and visited the Hjemkomst Center in Moorhead, MN . There, he discovered a section that told the history of the fur trade and the Metis’ people in the Cass County area. To his surprise, Micah began reading about Old Wild Rice and Chief Little Thunder (Joseph Gourneau Sr.) and their roles in the development of the region.

We are descendants of Chief Little Thunder (Joseph Gourneau), and his father before him, Old Wild Rice. Old Wild Rice is one of the earliest recorded Chiefs of the Pembina/Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians.

As he shared what he had discovered, we talked of buffalo hunts and Red River carts. We recalled stories of our ancestral grandparents. Once again, Micah brought history to life for our family. He has connected yet another generation to our heritage and confirmed that we are still here.