Second grader preserves rare art form while navigating loss

    Minnesota (WCCO) -- A North Branch, Minnesota second grader is in the national spotlight. He's preserving a rare art form and gaining accolades as he navigates loss.

When Mattias Big Bear was just a toddler, his grandpa Joe introduced him to the rare Native art of hoop dance. He says there are only about 20 hoop dancers in the state.

"He'd wake up with a hoop and he'd go to sleep with a hoop. All day long he would dance with it," Joe Big Bear said. "Dance is wonderful itself because it affects you spiritually, mentally, emotionally, physically and if you're grieving especially — you go through so much just getting out into that circle of dance."

Grief is something Mattias Big Bear knows well. His dad died in 2022.

"I just miss him," he said. "We're not dancing for ourselves, we're dancing for the people that passed away."

His selfless act is getting major attention. Mattias Big Bear just performed at the World Championship Hoop Dancing Contest in Arizona.

"Thinking of his dad, helping him heal. Thinking that he's learning and he was out there trying and he wasn't afraid," Joe Big Bear said.

Mattias Big Bear started with one hoop and now he dances with 23 at once, creating shapes like a flower or a turtle. He says his goal is to get to 30 hoops.

So he'll keep pushing because whether he can see them or not, he knows people are watching.

"Like he's always watching under me," Mattias said about his dad.

There is a weekly hoop dance class at the American Indian Center from 6-7:30 p.m. on Wednesdays.