AARP Oklahoma 2023 Native American Elder Honors

Oklahoma

15th Annual

Native American Elder Honors

AARP OKLAHOMA 2023 NATIVE AMERICAN ELDER HONORS |

Dear Friends, Welcome to the 15th annual AARP Oklahoma Native American Elder Honors.

The treasured elders we celebrate today are caring curators of our cultures, history, and communities. Through their wisdom and vast experiences, they connect and ground us to our past, keep us mindfully present and inspire future generation to become better curators of our community and cultures. We are privileged to share their inspiring stories and applaud their many achievements as they strengthen their communities and serve others.

These honored elders embody our AARP vision of a society in which all people live with dignity and purpose, and able to fulfill their goals and dreams. They embody AARP’s purpose to empower people to choose how they live as we age. It is through their example and leadership they motivate others to selflessly serve their communities.

Today, we honor these treasured elders whose influence and wisdom are both revered and respected. Individually, their accomplishments are remarkable. In totality, their impact is breathtaking throughout Indian Country and our nation.

Chief Tecumseh once said, “A single twig breaks, but a bundle of twigs is strong.” It is because of these honored elders our communities are strong.

To all of our 2023 AARP Oklahoma Native American Elder Honorees and past honorees: thank you for being extraordinary examples of the difference that we all can make in others’ lives and the well-being and vitality of our community.

We thank you and God bless.

Sean W. Voskuhl AARP Oklahoma State Director

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AARP Oklahoma

Native American Elder Honors Invocation Dr. Steven Pratt Luncheon Oklahoma Fancy Dancers Welcome Master of Ceremonies Sean Voskuhl, AARP Oklahoma State Director In Memoriam Rowe Kishketon Dr. John & Tewanna Edwards Leadership Award Carmelita Skeeter Intermission Presentation of the Medallions AARP OKLAHOMA 2023 NATIVE AMERICAN ELDER HONORS | 03

Dr. John and Tewanna Edwards Leadership Award Community Leadership of the Year,” presented by the Oklahoma Native American Business Development Center, 1998; an award for significant contributions in improving the health of American Indian and Alaska Natives presented by the National Indian Health Board, 1999; the national Council of Urban Indian Health “Outstanding Program of the Year” award, 2002; Maxine Cissel Horner Spirit of Community Excellence Award, 2003: a Women in Communication Annual Newsmaker, 2011; a Women of the Year Pinnacle Award winner; a YWCA 100 Women of Moxie, 2014; a Dan Allen Social Justice Award Winner, 2016; City of Tulsa “Carmelita Skeeter Day” Proclamation, 2019; Kenneth Anquoe Lifetime Achievement Dream Keeper Award, 2021 and is an AARP OK Native American Elder Honoree.

Carmelita Wamego Skeeter Chief Executive Officer Carmelita Skeeter began her career at Indian Health Resource Center (IHCRC) in 1976 when she helped survey residents to assess health needs of the local urban Indian population. Survey results showed medical needs of Tulsa’s Native Americans were not being met. When she was hired as one of IHCRC’s original four employees, the agency provided referral services only. Within a year, the first medical services were offered. During her tenure with IHCRC, she has worn many hats, including Clinic Administrator and, since 1989, Chief Executive Officer.

Skeeter has been recognized numerous times for her tireless efforts to ensure quality, accessible and comprehensive health care to Tulsa’s Indian people. During the past 45 years she has been the recipient of many awards, including “Outstanding

As a proud member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation, she speaks strongly in support of minority and Indian health needs. Skeeter has distinguished herself both locally and nationally with her advocacy and dedication to a wide range of critical health care issues. She is an activist and strong supporter of aiding underserved populations. She is not a person who sits down in the time of need; she is the one who coordinates the troops.

Skeeter’s dedication to the betterment of lives for the Native American population has been the focus of her professional life. Her legacy will be remembered as one who always stood up for those who couldn’t speak for themselves and who worked diligently to leave circumstances better than she found them.

Because of her political finesse, hard work and dedication, she has ensured the health care needs for Native Americans in Tulsa and the surrounding areas is not only better, but much better.

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About the Award Dr. John “Nikaani Kaapaa” Edwards (1935-2014) was a peacemaker for the Chickasaw Nation Supreme Court, an arbitrator for the U.S. Department of Interior, former governor of the Absentee Shawnee Tribe and a pastor of the Fellowship of American Indians Church of Oklahoma.

Tewanna Edwards serves as a Chickasaw Nation peacemaker for the Chickasaw Nation Supreme Court and has dedicated her life to serving others.

Dr. and Mrs. Edwards have dedicated their lives for the betterment of others throughout Indian Country through volunteerism, advocacy and education. Their service with AARP includes positions on the AARP Oklahoma Executive Council and helped establish the AARP Oklahoma Indian Elder Honors program, now known as AARP Oklahoma Native American Elder Honors.

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Evelyn Kay Anderson Delaware Tribe Evelyn Kay Anderson was born in the Indian Health Service’s Claremore Indian Hospital and raised in the area of Dewey, Oklahoma, and Coffeyville, Kansas. She is the oldest of eight siblings, which included four boys and four girls.

Growing up, Anderson’s family did its own gardening and farming, and her siblings each had their own chores to do before and after school. Her family moved a block away from the Delaware Center when Chief Henry Secondine hired her as a secretary aide. Shortly after, Anderson became a tribal judge.

She was also the first cook in the kitchen at the new complex at 5100 Tuxedo Blvd. in Bartlesville for the Delaware Tribe of Indians. Anderson also volunteered to

deliver lunches to homebound elders.

Cooking has always been a passion for Anderson, and she did so for Lenapeowsi – a nonprofit group for Delaware youth – and many other organizations. Her involvement with the Delaware Tribe extends from the Delaware War Mothers, Veterans Committee, Trust Board, Community Services, Cultural Preservation to the Education and Elder Committee.

With 23 great-grandkids, Anderson keeps busy trying to keep up with her large family and is proud to teach them the Delaware language and traditions. But she said probably her biggest footprint was starting the Veterans Honor Wall in the tribe’s Forsythe Hall. She takes pride in pictures of veterans being added annually.

Rick Barnes Delaware Tribe Rick Barnes was raised in Ochelata, Oklahoma, by parents who were dedicated to the Delaware Tribe of Indians.

After graduation from Ochelata High School, he served in the United States Army spending time in Vietnam.

Upon Barnes’ return from service duties, he attended Northeastern State College (now known as Northeastern State University) in Tahlequah. After graduation, Barnes spent 35 years working in Texas for Ford Motor Company. After retiring,

he returned to Ochelata, but knew his years of service were not over. Having been raised to serve the Delaware people, in December 2018 Barnes was named a judge on the Delaware Tribal Judiciary and currently serves as an appellate judge.

Additionally, Bar represented the Delaware Tribe on the board of Grand Gateway Foundation, which provides aid in meeting the fundamental needs and improving the quality of life for all citizens in northeast Oklahoma.

Barnes has not only served his

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tribe, but also has contributed 10 years as a member of the Ochelata City Council. He is still involved with the Delaware Tribe and his respect for the Delaware people is unwavering.

Ron Barnett Thlopthlocco Tribal Town Ron Barnett was born Oct. 1, 1956.

Upon graduation from Enid High School, he attended the University of Oklahoma where he studied engineering and chemistry as his pre-med majors.

Barnett worked for the Rock Island Railroad as a switchman, brakeman and foreman. Afterwards, he became the health planner for the Muscogee (Creek) Nation (MCN). In 1984, he wrote and published the 544-page MCN Comprehensive Tribal Specific Plan.

Thereafter, Barnett returned to college at East Central University in Ada to complete his undergraduate studies in biology and chemistry. He then completed his graduate studies at Boston University School of Medicine.

Barnett was then selected as a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Scholar to work as a visiting fellow on the joint HarvardMIT project of collaboration that involved development and analysis of learning interfaces from the prestigious multi-year Framingham Heart Study.

As a result of this work, Barnett was accepted into the Yale School of Medicine, Class of 1995. In March 2004, Barnett began working for the Thlopthlocco Tribal Town. Although he began in the enrollment department, he was soon promoted to tribal administrator. Then, in 2007, Barnett was elected by the membership to treasurer.

Currently, he serves as an advisor on the Thlopthlocco Tribal Town Business Committee.

Peggy Big Eagle Sac and Fox Nation Sac and Fox Nation member Peggy Big Eagle remains active well into her retirement. A member of the Thunder Clan, she currently serves on the tribe’s Housing Authority and the Elders Advisory Committee.

Big Eagle has previously served on the Business Committee as tribal secretary. She was also a member of the New Mexico Bar Association and clerked for the New Mexico Supreme Court before returning to Oklahoma and becoming a member of the Oklahoma Bar Association.

Big Eagle is the first tribal member

to be elected as Sac and Fox Nation tribal attorney and was the first chief justice of the Supreme Court for the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribe.

She was also the first employee of Oklahomans for Indian Opportunity, which in turn was the first statewide Indian organization in Oklahoma.

She also served as administrator, high school teacher, bus driver and janitor at the first Indian-controlled school in Oklahoma, Institute of the Southern Plains, in Hammon. Along the way she worked at DeganawidaQuetzalcoatl University in Davis,

California; Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington; and was special assistant to the president at South Oklahoma City Junior College (now Oklahoma City Community College).

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Dwight W. Birdwell Cherokee Nation

Dwight W. Birdwell, an attorney and former chief justice of the Cherokee Nation Judicial Appeals Tribunal, is also a decorated soldier with a published biography.

Birdwell served as a member of the Judicial Appeals Tribunal (now Supreme Court) of the Cherokee Nation from 1987 to 1999 and was the court’s chief justice from

Dominic Bramante Otoe-Missouria Tribe Dominic Bramante has more than 20 years of football coaching under his belt, including back-to-back Champions Indoor Football titles in 2018 and 2019 with the Duke City Gladiators, a team based in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Along with being the first Native American head coach in indoor football history, Bramante has a résumé that covers high school, college, arena league and the NFL.

1995 to 1996 and 1998 to 1999.

He now practices in Oklahoma City, specializing in energy, natural resources, and Indian law.

A proud Vietnam War veteran, Birdwell earned two Silver Stars, a Bronze Star for meritorious service and two Purple Hearts.

He received the first Silver Star for heroism on Jan. 31, 1968, when his unit raced to defend Tan Son Nhut Air Base, which was under attack during the Tet Offensive. On the night of July 4, 1968, he risked his life to rescue many Americans, some of them wounded, who were stranded in a battle zone in an enemy-occupied village. Seeing a damaged Army personnel carrier, he exposed himself to heavy enemy fire while

He spent four years with the Baltimore Ravens as a line coach in organized team activities, training camp and several games. Bramante was also a consultant with the New Jersey Red Dogs, an assistant coach with the South Georgia Wildcats, Florida Firecats and Tennessee Valley Vipers arena teams.

Bramante ran his own American Indian All-Star games in 2002, 2003 and 2006, inviting players from every state and tribe. He was selected to coach in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl in 2004, the first Native person

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loading all the wounded and evacuating them to safety. He then went back into the village to rescue more Americans, for which he was awarded his second Silver Star for bravery.

In 1997, Birdwell’s biography, written with Keith William Nolan, noted Vietnam War historian, was published. The book, A Hundred Miles of Bad Road; An Armored Cavalryman in Vietnam 1967-68, recounts Birdwell’s experiences as a 19-year-old soldier assigned to Troop C, 3rd Squadron, 4th Cavalry, 25th Infantry Division.

Birdwell was presented with the Medal of Honor by United States President Joe Biden at the White House in Washington, D.C., on July 5, 2022.

to earn that honor. He played college football at the University of Colorado.

He retired in 2022.

Patricia Bread Comanche Nation

Patricia Bread was the Comanche Nation Princess in 1957 and has consistently promoted the Comanche language and culture. She currently works for the Comanche Nation Language Department where she teaches the Comanche language.

Bread also works with children of the Comanche Charter School, teaching them how to say the Pledge of Allegiance in Comanche, and has helped create books for them to read in the Comanche language. She has also translated the Comanche language to English for many television shows and movies.

She is a full-blood Comanche and the daughter of Hope Martinez and Willis Yackeschi, who was a Comanche Code Talker in World War II and a recipient of the Congressional Gold Medal, the highest civilian award in the United States alongside the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

English is her second language with Comanche being her first. Her late husband Darrell Bread served as the vice-chairman of the Comanche Nation. Bread is a member of the Catholic Church and has a twin sister named Bethena Yackeschi.

Beverly Brownfield Osage Nation Beverly Brownfield is a member of the Osage Nation and Prairie Band Potawatomie Tribe. She is from the Governor Joe of Pah Sue Lee and Eagle Clan.

Brownfield grew up in Fairfax, then after graduating, she attended Pittman Business College in Dallas. She then took real estate courses at Pioneer Technology Center in Ponca City.

She worked for Conoco Oil Company for 24 years as a senior title assistant in real property administration. It included oversight of petroleum legal documentation along with legal oil and gas contracts and accounting for the Bulk Plants divisions. Currently,

Brownfield is serving on the Osage Nation Tax Commission Board as vicechairman. She has been a dedicated member to the Tax Commission Board for more than 20 years.

Brownfield is also serving on the United Community Action Program in the Pawnee District and is part of the Osage County region. She is the president of the Pah Sue Lee Womans Club, member of the United Indian Nations of Oklahoma, Kansas and Texas and a member of the Osage Shareholders Association.

She is married, with three children, two grandchildren and three greatgrandchildren.

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Governor Beverly Edwina Butler-Wolfe Absentee Shawnee Tribe Beverly Edwina Butler-Wolfe has accomplished what no other woman has achieved in the history of the Absentee Shawnee Tribe of Indians of Oklahoma. She has the distinction of being not only the only woman to serve as tribal governor, but also the only governor to be elected and serve three consecutive terms. As governor, she signed the first memorandum of understanding between the tribe and the American Red Cross, ensuring emergency response support for the tribe if there was ever a need. Butler-Wolfe has also been an active member of the National Congress of American Indians and served as vice president of the United Tribes of Oklahoma.

Chelena Deer Otoe-Missouria Tribe Chelena Deer was born in Ponca City to the late Delilah Grant White

Today, Butler-Wolfe is an appointed member of the Oklahoma Advisory Council on Indian Education and works as education director for the Sac and Fox Nation, where she provides support and service to Sac and Fox youth as well as higher education and job training assistance for adults.

Butler-Wolfe is known for working diligently and tirelessly for students throughout her career, which spans 15 years with North Rock Creek school as the Title VII Coordinator and two years as a coach. She’s helped countless students with their studies, obtained resources and is there as support for everyday life – in school and out.

and late Pershing White.

She grew up in Red Rock, which is home to the Otoe-Missouria Tribe of Oklahoma.

Deer served as the Otoe-Missouria Tribal Princess in 1965. She attended nursing school in San Diego, where she resided for several years.

Afterwards, she returned home upon using the Native American Relocation program to move to Oklahoma City and worked for Tinker Air Force Base for 27 years. She met and married her husband of 53 years in Oklahoma City and raised three children in Moore.

She is also a grandmother to three

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One of her goals is to not let any student be left behind and she has used her own time and money to that end, ensuring her students have every possible opportunity to be successful. Her dedication and hard work have been instrumental in creating a better future for Indigenous youth.

grandchildren.

Deer has also served as the housing commissioner for many years for the Otoe-Missouria Tribe, improving accountability and fairness in the process of the housing programs. And her influence improved the housing program overall.

Deer also helps with traditional/ cultural guidance and assistance and is the go-to person for cultural knowledge regarding kinship and tribal practices. Deer has stepped up within her family to be the matriarch and leads with cultural knowledge for tribal traditions.

Francis Richard Deer Jr. Iowa Tribe Francis Richard Deer Jr. is Ioway, being born and raised in the Shawnee area. He moved to the Cheyenne and Arapaho communities after he and his wife, Irene Redbird, married. They taught their two sons the traditional ways of the Ioway and Cheyenne and Arapaho people.

He can be found regularly amidst the tribes – assisting, teaching the younger ones and helping to carry on the cultural ways.

Living in the Cheyenne and Arapaho communities his entire adult life, they accepted him, and Deer learned their ways an avid participant in their events and activities. He also took responsibility of how to conduct certain ceremonies they allowed him to take part in.

Deer helped preserve their ways, learning from his in-laws and other Cheyenne and Arapaho leaders and individuals.

Today, his sons, who learned from him, contribute their learned cultural traditions to their tribes and communities.

The Deer family belongs to the Native American Church, in which “Chief” has held the position of Road Man, where he leads the tribal church meetings. He brought his wife, sons and grandchildren into the tipi, and the entire family are avid participants of the Sundance Lodge. His sons contribute their talents around both drums and have been taught the songs of the tipi, sundance lodge and the songs of the powwow circle.

By taking his role as a father and as a spiritual leader, Deer has made tremendous contributions to the Cheyenne and Arapaho community and to Ioway Country.

Dr. Phil R. Dupoint Kiowa Tribe Dr. Phil “Joe Fish” Dupoint is a fullblood Kiowa from Carnegie. He works at the Kiowa Tribe Museum as the curator director and handles its historian and cultural aspects.

Dupoint was raised in a Kiowa home by his grandparents who instilled in him their knowledge of history, culture and songs. He grew up around elders and heard them pray in Kiowa and share their memories of what their grandparents left them.

Dupoint is an established craftsman in Native arts, including beadwork, feather work, dance apparel, music and dance.

He is also an accomplished singer in Kiowa song and sings in the Kiowa Rabbit Society as “Grandpa Rabbit.”

Dupoint serves as the vice president

of the Kiowa Gourd Clan, a society of the Kiowa Tribe, and has been given the honor by the Kiowa Black Leggings Society to take care of the drum and singing during its annual ceremony.

Dupoint also has a repertoire of Kiowa Native American church songs, Kiowa church hymns, 49 songs, hand game songs, war dance, brush dance, round dance, Ohomah and other Kiowa songs.

During his travels he served as head staff and head singer in international drum contests. In 1996, he won the Southern Singing World Championship at the Manshantucket Green Corn Celebration in Connecticut.

In 2020, Dupoint was awarded an honorary doctorate of humane letters degree from Bacone College for Lifelong

Contribution and Spiritual Health and Well-Being of the Indian People. In 2023, he was awarded the 2023 Vocational Rehabilitation Client of the Year for Oklahoma.

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Sharon Fife Mouss Muscogee Nation Sharon Fife Mouss was born to James and Carmen Fife of Dustin, Oklahoma. She is Muscogee (Creek) and is of the Racoon Clan. Raised in Dustin, she attended Graham Public School and Chilocco Indian School.

After high school, she attended Oklahoma State University and earned a bachelor’s degree in English.

After OSU, Mouss began her employment with the Social Security Administration in Tulsa and later transferred to Tinker Airforce Base.

Soon after, she married Edward Mouss and moved to Henryetta.

In 1976, Mouss and her sisters created The Fife Collection, a contemporary fashion house based

Betty Gaedtke Quapaw Nation Betty Gaedtke has made a positive impact to her tribal nation and community of Quapaw. She has served in several positions of leadership as a former member of the Quapaw Nation Business

on Native design and motifs. While her sisters were the designers, she ran the business side of the company and the showroom.

Raised with the value of education, Mouss has spent her life and career pursuing it, teaching and helping students receive the education they desire. In 1982, she became a faculty member of Oklahoma State University Institute of Technology where she taught English composition and technical writing. She also furthered her education and earned a master’s degree in technical and industrial education from OSU. After teaching for 25 years, Mouss retired in 2006. In 2004, she was selected to serve on the inaugural Board of Regents for the College of the Muscogee Nation. She has been

an officer on it from the college’s inception to today.

Mouss was inducted into the Chilocco Indian School’s Hall of Fame in 2014. Throughout her life, Mouss has been an active member of the Creek Nation, working on tribal campaigns and lent her services as a speech writer.

Committee, current Culture Committee member and accomplished artist.

From 2013-17, Gaedtke served three terms on the Business Committee, the governing body of the Quapaw Nation responsible for administering services and programs for nearly 6,000 tribal citizens. As a member, she advocated for and enacted many laws on behalf of the Quapaw people, resulting in growth of the Quapaw Nation.

Gaedtke has also been creating authentic Quapaw and Mississippian pottery for more than a decade, and in 2012, she began her own company, TeMi-Zhi-Ka Pottery. She preserves Quapaw culture by embracing the traditions of her ancestors who were renowned for their pottery.

Gaedtke’s work can be viewed at places such as Downstream Casino Resort, the flagship property of the Quapaw Nation; Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, Arkansas; Historical Arkansas Museum in Little Rock, Arkansas; Gilcrease Museum in Tulsa, Oklahoma; and the Carnegie Museum of Natural History in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Gaedtke’s most impressive and comprehensive collection is on display at the Saracen Casino Resort in Pine Bluff, Arkansas. Gaedtke shares her cultural knowledge by teaching community classes for pottery, sewing and traditional dresses to all ages. As a member of the Cultural Committee, she advises on programming and special cultural events of the tribe.

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John Garrett Cherokee Nation John C. Garrett, chief justice of the Cherokee Nation Supreme Court, has one of the most astute legal minds in terms of his knowledge of Indian law.

Garrett was born and raised in

Stilwell, Oklahoma. After graduating from Stilwell High School in 1960, he attended the University of Oklahoma earning a bachelor’s degree in business administration in 1965. He then worked in the corporate world for the next five years.

Following his completion of law school at the University of Tulsa in 1973, Garrett worked in a private practice in Muskogee. He was first appointed to the bench in 1975 as a municipal judge for Muskogee and elected as associate judge of Adair County in 1980. Garrett then resumed private practice in Stilwell until his 1995 appointment to the district judge bench for Adair, Muskogee, Wagoner, Cherokee and Sequoyah

Rev. Pat Gonzales Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes Rev. Pat Gonzales served Oklahoma by serving on trauma teams at all major hospitals, as well as in rural Watonga where she worked as an emergency room nurse for 32 years. She also served the state’s Natives communities in Cheyenne and Arapaho country as a nurse for Indian Health Service for 39 years.

Gonzales became a registered nurse after graduating with an associate degree in nursing from Redlands Community College in 1980. In 1994, she graduated from Southwestern Oklahoma State University with her bachelor’s degree in nursing. In 1997, she was accepted into the nurse

counties. He served in that role until 2006, the same year he was appointed as the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians’ Supreme Court chief justice, a role he served in until 2011.

In May 2012, then-Principal Chief Bill John Baker nominated Garrett to serve on the Supreme Court of the Cherokee Nation. His appointment was confirmed by the Tribal Council in June 2012. He was reappointed the Cherokee Nation Supreme Court in 2018 for a 10-year term. During his time with the court, Chief Justice Garrett has helped the Cherokee Nation respond rapidly to the legal rigors of some of the most historic Indian law cases.

practitioner program at the University of Oklahoma.

She also was the first Native American to serve on the Watonga Public Schools School Board from 1996-2012, and was a National Indian Education Association member during that time. Gonzales also served as a member of the American Red Cross and aided as an on-site first response nurse during the 1995 bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City.

Five years prior to her 2019 retirement from Indian Health Service, Gonzales attended seminary school on the weekends for three years through the Episcopal Church in Houston. Gonzales graduated from the school in 2014 and became an ordained deacon. She currently presides over the Whirlwind Mission in Watonga.

Gonzales now enjoys retirement and spending time with her grand and great-grandchildren. She has served as a voice and beacon in the medical community for all people, a voice for Indian education and ministers to her community.

Gonzales has served on national committees in the medical community and broke down those barriers when Native American representation was not present.

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Concetta Gragg Choctaw Nation Concetta Gragg, a Choctaw Nation citizen, was born in the historic Albert Pike Hospital in McAlester. Her family

Sue Harjo Cherokee Nation Sue Harjo is a sterling example of the Cherokee tradition of Gadugi (working together) as an active community leader in the Central Oklahoma Cherokee Alliance, an organization representing more than 10,000 Cherokee Citizens in the Greater Oklahoma City Metro Area.

Harjo serves the Alliance’s scholarship committee and annual food bank distribution. She also helps to organize bi-monthly meetings to showcase culture, history and language of the Cherokee people and assists with connecting Cherokee citizens with available tribal resources. She is an integral part of activity planning for the community, from arranging heritage bus

taught her the value of hard work, family and being a good neighbor.

Although active in sports and school activities, Gragg graduated high school and began college a month later at the Oklahoma College for Women in Chickasha. The school is now known as the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma, but from 1912 to 1965, it was the Oklahoma College for Women. She graduated from the college at age 19.

Gragg then began teaching first grade in Wichita, Kansas, a profession she would stay in for 23 years.

She then transitioned to the role of elementary principal for seven years.

Although not in a public classroom, Gragg began teaching at age 16.

tours to coordinating with Red Earth on its annual TreeFest, a showcase for Oklahoma tribes to display their culture through handmade ornaments.

Harjo also volunteers alongside her husband Bobby, a citizen of the Seminole Nation. Together, they are tirelessly active in the service of Native veterans.

Together they serve in the Kiowa Black Leggings Warrior Society Auxiliary and participate in various Veterans of Foreign Wars Auxiliary support activities.

The Harjos continue the tribal tradition of service to others.

Before relocating to Oklahoma, Harjo had a successful career with the University of Texas Medical Center in Dallas. She worked as a grants specialist, chief administrator in the Department of Biochemistry, executive assistant to the dean of the medical

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She taught Sunday school and is still teaching at the Crowder First Baptist Church where she has also led music for 34 years.

During the years, Gragg has also organized and taught Native American heritage and culture. For the last five years, she has taught children Native heritage and culture at the Crowder Choctaw Community Center. Along with serving as president of the Crowder Choctaw Senior Center, Gragg also serves on the governing Board of the Choctaw Nation Health Services Authority. She also likes to decorate the Crowder Choctaw Center and Crowder First Baptist Church for events and activities.

school, and director of Graduate and Postdoctoral Affairs.

Harjo holds a master’s degree in public health from the University of California, Berkeley, and a bachelor’s degree in science from the University of Maryland, College Park. She worked at the Dallas Intertribal Center and the Baltimore American Indian Center’s urban social services center during her earlier career.

Margaret L. Hernasy-Morgan Comanche Nation Margaret Hernasy-Morgan graduated in 1966 from the Oklahoma College for Women in Chickasha with a home economics degree. Her career began as an extension home economist with the Oklahoma State University Indian Programs. She taught nutrition education classes for Native families in Kay, Payne, Noble and Pawnee counties, emphasizing special diets for those with diabetes and hypertension.

Hernasy-Morgan then was a home economist with the Five Civilized Tribes Foundation and the Choctaw Nation, where she taught nutrition emphasizing commodity foods families received to improve their diets. She was also the nutritionist and supervisor of community health workers for the Oklahoma City Indian Clinic.

Jerry Holderby Cherokee Nation Chief Chuck Hoskin, Jr. describes Jerry Holberby’s leadership of the Cherokee Nation Business Board of Directors as “second to none” and

Hernasy-Morgan also spent time as a home economist/nutritionist with the Oklahoma Department of Human Services Family Support Services Division. She worked with families receiving food stamps, teaching them to purchase healthy foods.

She also worked with the 39 Indian nations in Oklahoma teaching nutrition and public health requirements for the federal Title III nutrition feeding programs, and she taught federal food stamp guidelines and policy to the food stamp eligibility workers in the state’s 77 counties.

Hernasy-Morgan retired from the state in 2000 with 24 years of service. She is a lifetime member of the Oklahoma City Powwow Club and served in office positions. As an enrolled Comanche said his “astute financial knowledge and wisdom have helped save the tribe millions of dollars throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.”

Holderby helped Cherokee Nation Businesses navigate the uncertainty the pandemic caused, and assisted with improving the dividend Cherokee Nation Businesses provides to Cherokee Nation. Serving one of the largest tribes in the United States, Cherokee Nation Businesses’ mission is to grow and strengthen Cherokee Nation’s economy through innovation, diversification and job creation. It employs more than 10,000 people worldwide, working with 45 companies to generate nearly $2 billion in annual revenue.

Nation member, she served as treasurer of the Elders Counsel and was appointed as a board member of the Comanche Assisted Living Center.

Hernasy-Morgan was also a Tribal Historic Preservation Office board member, traveling to states to identify Comanche artifacts in museums.

Presently, she serves on the Oklahoma Choctaw Tribal Alliance board.

Prior to leading the Cherokee Nation Businesses Board of Directors, Holderby served as the chief executive officer of Cherokee Nation Enterprises, which eventually became Cherokee Nation Businesses, from February 1997 to December 2001.

Holderby also served as vice president of Bank of Cherokee County in Tahlequah. Throughout his time at the bank, he developed relationships and learned to be a steward of financial resources for many people throughout northeastern Oklahoma. Before joining Bank of Cherokee County, he was the vice president of First Bank of Trust in Tahlequah from May 1978 to February 1997 before leaving to lead Cherokee Nation Enterprises.

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Carol Jared Delaware Nation After graduating Anadarko High School in 1971, Carol Jared, an enrolled member and elder in the Delaware Nation, started working

Bernard Kahrahrah Comanche Nation Bernard Kahrahrah was in the Air Force, received a doctorate from Oklahoma State University in education, helped form the Internal Medicine Residency Program program to get Natives into medicine and is a former Comanche Nation chairman.

Kahrahrah left an indelible mark on the Comanche Nation and through his dedication and service.

Born in Lawton, Kahrahrah is a member of the Penatuhka Band and Wasape Clan. Throughout his life, he exhibited a commitment to the preservation and advancement of Comanche culture and values.

Kahrahrah served in the Air Force from 1958 to 1962, rising to Airman First Class and serving as an aircraft control and

full-time and never looked back. “I’m blessed to still be working today,” she said. “Not everyone takes the opportunity to attend college and that’s OK, as you can still set goals to learn from great employers who vest time with training opportunities for personal growth. Set your goals to climb ladders and always surround yourself with positive people.”

For the past 27 years, Jared has been employed as director of the Wichita, Caddo, Delaware Enterprises Inc.’s Women, Infants, Children program, and she credits her “great team of people” to offer service to the program’s 4,400-plus enrolled participants.

For the past 15-plus years, Jared has served on the Successful

warning systems specialist, watching for Soviet aircraft flying to North America from the North Pole.

In his early years, Kahrahrah was a champion fancy war dancer and straight dancer. He was involved in the Comanche War Dance Society from the 1970s through the 1990s. He was elected as Comanche Nation chairman and served from 1984 to 1987. His tenure modernized the tribe’s infrastructure and spearheaded initiatives that promoted economic development, education and cultural preservation. Karahrah’s advocacy at state and national levels ensured that Comanche people were heard. He was one of the last remaining Comanches to have knowledge of the Comanche Big Horse Society and was an advisor on the Comanche “thuwee” Black Knife Warrior Society.

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Partners in Reaching Innovative Technology (SPIRIT) Consortium Executive Steering Committee that represents 17 state and tribal WIC programs across the country.

Jared is also a member of National WIC Association and National Indigenous and Native American WIC Coalition. Over the years, Jared has served on Delaware Nation Executive Board, the Delaware Nation Gaming Commission and was instrumental in bringing gaming to the Delaware Nation.

“I couldn’t do any of this without support from my husband Marc, two grown children, Matt and Steph, their spouses and five loving grandchildren,” Jared said.

Kahrahrah has also been a lifelong member of the 1918 Comanche Chapter of the Native American Church. He was also the founder of the Spirit of the Plains cultural event in the early 2000s. He also served the tribe’s Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act Board.

Jeanette Kemp Choctaw Nation Jeanette Kemp is a Choctaw Nation citizen and a lifelong resident of Oklahoma City, graduating from Classen High School. She is an administrative assistant in the Behavioral Health Department at the Oklahoma City Indian Clinic (OKCIC) and has worked there for

Gregorio Kishketon Kickapoo Tribe

Gregorio Kishketon has served his country in the Office of the Assistant Deputy Undersecretary for Health and Health Informatics; the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee. He now serves as a staff advisor in the

39 years.

Kemp has dedicated her life to helping Native American people. She has worked in many OKCIC departments during the years, including optometry and registration, and has provided relief services to other positions when needed. Her duties have included data entry, appointment scheduling, billing, chart updates and more. However, the most important thing that Kemp does is help Native people. She has received numerous awards during the years, the most recent being the embodiment of OKCIC’s core values of putting people first and professionalism. Kemp has also been honored with the Oklahoma City Area Indian Health Service Length of Service Award.

“Jeanette Kemp routinely displays selflessness and compassion and expects nothing in return,” a colleague said. “Recently, a stranded Kiowa woman was presented to the clinic, lost and terrified. Jeanette offered the woman her own lunch. She warmed it up and served her before referring the woman for an assessment. She is a very proud, independent and strong Indian woman and does not get nearly the recognition she deserves. She doesn’t seek the limelight, but those around her know she’s deserving of recognition.”

Kemp is also a loving grandmother, and raising her grandchildren keeps her busy. She provides a loving home and makes sure her grandchildren participate in school or extracurricular activities.

Office of the Secretary of the Veteran Affairs as the Native American/ Alaskan Native liaison at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Central Office, Center for Minority Veterans.

Kishketon serves on the PACT Act and Strong Act committees and the White House Committee on Native American Affairs. He has served as a minority veterans program coordinator in both the Veterans Health Administration and National Cemetery Association.

Kishketon previously worked in Washington, D.C., with the Bureau of Indian Affairs and Bureau of Indian Education for the assistant secretary for Indian Affairs and served as a contracting officer with the U.S. Department of Interior. He

has received from the Office of the Assistant Deputy Under Secretary for Health a Substantial Contribution Award and a commendation from the Department of Justice for “Improvement for IT for VA.” Kishketon has also worked for the National Cemetery Administration in the field and at VA Central Offices in the Office of the Undersecretary for Memorial Affairs. Kishketon has also worked in the field for North Texas Healthcare System and the VA Valley Coastal Bend Healthcare System.

Lastly, Kishketon has worked for several years for the U.S. Postal Service in management serving as a supervisor of delivery services and window services and officer in charge/ postmaster and postal operations administrator.

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Rev. Eddie Lindsey Muscogee Nation Faith, family and culture. These are three words that mean much to many cultures, tribes and people, and Rev. Eddie Lindsey is one of those people.

Lindsey has always fostered

positive relationships and respect for the people of his spiritual community, cultural community and familial community. He is always eager to provide advice and direction to guide Native and non-Native people alike to feel loved and connected.

Lindsey was born and raised in Butner Community, which is eight miles north of Wewoka. He attended grade school and high school at Butner School, which is now located in Cromwell.

In 1963, Lindsey joined the United States Navy. Following four years of service, he was discharged in 1967. A few years after later he went to Okmulgee Tech, from which he graduated with three degrees in electronics.

After hearing a sermon on “If you want God to use you, make yourself usable,” Lindsey decided to get his bachelor’s degree from Oklahoma Baptist University in Shawnee. He graduated OBU in 1992 before attending Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas.

With his wife, Gretchen, they have three grown children as well as grandchildren. They have served with Oklahoma Baptist Convention and North American Mission Board as missionaries and Church Plan.

They also served four years as Native missionaries in Alaska before retiring in 2013. They currently serve as pastors of Indian Community Church in Oklahoma City.

Gary McAdams Wichita and Affiliated Tribes Gary McAdams graduated from Gracemont Public School in 1973 and attended Southwestern Oklahoma State University in Weatherford for two years majoring in English with a minor in political science. He then trained as a mason at the Indian Action Team Trade School in Apache. Afterward, he worked as a masonry sub-contractor for 10 years.

McAdams began his career in tribal service in 1986 when elected to the Wichita and Affiliated Tribes’ governing body and then hired as the Wichita gaming commissioner. In 1988, he was elected the tribe’s vice president, and in 1990 he became president and remained in office until 2008.

In 1992, McAdams began his association with the tribe’s language preservation when he learned to read and write the language. It was also at this time he became immersed in the tribe’s culture and history.

In 2009, McAdams returned to the tribe to transcribe audio samples of the language and assist with language classes. In 2010, he was hired as the tribe’s Cultural Program planner. He

also serves as the tribe’s Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act representative and chairman of the Wichita Tax Commission.

From 2018, McAdams served as the tribe’s representative in the development of the exhibits for the Wichita Tribal History Center. His duties are to teach or facilitate language and other cultural education classes, provide language transcription services, give lectures on Wichita history, facilitate requests for academic studies and research related to the ancestral Wichita, respond to inquiries concerning Wichita history and culture and to consult on matters related to cultural resource protection laws.

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Robert Miller Eastern Shawnee Tribe Robert J. Miller has been a professor at the Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law at Arizona State University since 2013. He is also the inaugural director of the Rosette LLP American Indian Economic Development Program and the Willard H. Pedrick Distinguished Research Scholar at Arizona State University.

Miller was elected to the American Law Institute in 2012 and the American Philosophical Society in 2014, which has elected only 5,506 members from 1743 to 2014.

Miller graduated in 1991 from Lewis & Clark Law School in Portland, Oregon, and then clerked for the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. Miller worked

Marcus Milligan Chickasaw Nation Marcus Milligan is passionate about the Chickasaw Nation and its people and has devoted his career to serving his tribe and community. He most recently celebrated 15 years of service.

for two law firms from 1992 to 1999, and was then a full-time professor at Lewis & Clark Law School from 1999 to 2013.

Miller is also the chief justice for the Pascua Yaqui Tribe Court of Appeals in Tucson, Arizona, and an appellate judge for other tribes. He has written more than 50 books, book chapters, articles and editorials on Indian law issues, and spoken at conferences in more than 31 states as well as in Australia, Canada, England, India and New Zealand.

Miller is also the author and coauthor of five books, including “Native America, Discovered and Conquered: Thomas Jefferson, Lewis & Clark and Manifest Destiny” (Praeger 2006) and “Discovering Indigenous Lands: The

Doctrine of Discovery in the English Colonies” (Oxford University Press 2010). His latest book is “A Promise Kept: The Muscogee (Creek) Nation and McGirt v. Oklahoma” (University of Oklahoma Press 2023).

After attending the Institute for American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, New Mexico, Milligan has advocated for the preservation of culture to ensure that the traditions, art, stories and history continue to thrive. Chickasaw Nation Gov. Bill Anoatubby has described Milligan as someone who understands that art, “in all its forms and expressions is the fabric of our heritage and culture.” He added that Milligan’s “commitment to preserving, promoting, and sharing First American art and to fulfilling our mission to enhance the quality of life of the Chickasaw people makes him qualified to serve in the Chickasaw Nation” as executive officer of Arts and Humanities.

Those who work with Milligan know him for his devotion to helping

and providing mentorship of artists of any age. An example of his desire to serve his community would be his ability to build a network of Chickasaw and First American artists in the creation of the annual Artisan Arts Market in Sulphur. It celebrated its 10th anniversary this year. He also oversees the Southeastern Art Market in Tishomingo; the Chickasaw Nation Arts Academy in Ada; the Dynamic Women of the Chickasaw Nation Conference in Sulphur; the Anoli Creative Writing Contest in Ada; and many other events, services and art galleries designed to enrich and provide opportunities regarding art and culture to the Chickasaw Nation, other First American tribes and the community.

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Raymond W. Red Corn Osage Nation Raymond W. Red Corn served as assistant principal chief of the Osage Nation from 2014 to 2022. He was personally responsible for specific property development projects within the Osage Nation such as Bird Creek Farms, now Harvestland, the first Osage tribal agricultural effort now in its sixth year.

Redcorn also handled direct communications in a $74 million acquisition of 43,000-acre ranch in Osage County while coordinating efforts with the Osage Congress.

Redcorn facilitated negotiations with Indian Health Service officials as the Osage Nation assumed control of the Pawhuska Clinic. He provided direct negotiation as necessary during successful effort to reclaim

Pat Riley Reeder Cherokee Nation Growing up in a Cherokee home in Nowata County, Pat Riley Reeder learned the value of storytelling at an

former railroad depot right-of-way in Pawhuska. Redcorn also worked cooperatively with the Oklahoma Department of Commerce to designate an Osage County Census Tract as an Opportunity Zone. And, he led a cooperative effort with OSU to establish Skyway36, the rebranding and repurposing of the Tulsa Airpark with a focus on Unmanned Aerial Systems.

Along with serving more than 80 days as acting principal chief by order of Chief Standing Bear, Red Corn also served in the Osage Nation Congress from 2006 to 2014. During that time, he wrote and sponsored foundational legislation including codes for elections, open records, employee freedom of speech, tribal corporations,

administrative procedures and key chapters of the Osage Uniform Commercial Code. Redcorn held the position of second speaker from 2010 to 2012 and speaker of the Congress from 2012 to 2014.

Prior to serving the Osage Nation, he was a commercial property developer in Pawhuska from 2002 to 2006, buying and renovating historic buildings and helping to establish investment in adaptive reuse that continues today.

early age – an experience that led her into a lifelong journalism career.

She is known for her commitment to free speech and as an advocate for freedom of the press in Indian Country.

When the Cherokee Nation passed its Independent Press Act of 2000, Riley was honored to be the first person appointed by then Principal Chief Chad Smith to the Editorial Board of the tribe’s official newspaper, the Cherokee Phoenix and Indian Advocate.

Reeder’s commitment to free speech and the free press is ongoing.

Reeder served nearly four decades as managing editor of the Claremore Daily Progress, her hometown newspaper,

and later as the executive editor.

She was inducted into the Oklahoma Journalism Hall of Fame in 2022 and is a recipient of the Cherokee Nation Lifetime Achievement Award.

Today, Reeder continues her career as a storyteller. Reeder works as public relations director for the Will Rogers Memorial Museum in Claremore where she tirelessly promotes the life and wit of the museum’s namesake, Will Rogers, arguably one of history’s most famous Cherokees.

Reeder’s advice, as she expressed in an interview with the Cherokee Phoenix upon her nomination to the Hall of Fame, is regardless of your age, “follow your heart.”

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Larry Roman Nose Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes Larry Roman Nose is recognized as a peace chief of the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes. He is known to travel near and far to minister to those in need, offering prayers in both Cheyenne and English, and to share encouraging words.

He’s also well-known for leading traditional ceremonial sweat lodges for the sick and for providing comfort to families and communities who are mourning the loss of a loved one. Roman Nose is a popular speaker, storyteller and singer as well as a United State Marine Corps veteran and gourd dancer.

Roman Nose was also featured in the PBS Craft in America series “Meet the Cheyenne and Arapaho Peace Chiefs.”

Roman Nose lives in Watonga but is well-respected

Rev. Roger Scott Choctaw Nation Rev. Roger Scott is a Choctaw citizen, who has been a minister of more than 30 years. He is also a man devoted to his Choctaw culture. He helped build camp houses around the Coal Creek Cumberland Presbyterian Church north of Atoka and

throughout the Cheyenne and Arapaho community.

He has established a good rapport among many elders, children, adults and even appointed government officials.

He is recognized by the First Native American Museum where his digital photo and biography are displayed.

However, with the various accolades, Roman Nose is known as a humble, spiritual man who has never wanted the spotlight.

helped feed people during church meetings.

Scott graduated from Tushka Public Schools near Atoka and attended Southeastern State University in Durant. Scott also served his country in the U.S. Army in 1976 as a Specialist E-4 in engineer training and combat.

Scott currently attends New Beginnings Indian Church and enjoys teaching Choctaw gospel hymns and is a lead vocalist in gospel singing. Scott is a member of the Yellow Hill Gourd Clan and participates in Gourd dancing at various powwows. He is an active member and elder of our Choctaw Nation and continues to teach Choctaw hymns to younger people. Scott is also asked to speak and sing at many Choctaw citizens’ funerals.

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Wayne Shaw Seminole Nation Wayne Shaw is a member of the Seminole Nation and the Alligator Clan. He is a current Tribal Council member from the Rewalke Band.

Shaw has served on the Council for 40 years.

Shaw grew up in the Vamoosa area where he met his wife of 57 years, Annie. They have six children. He served in the U.S. Navy as part of the medical corps during the Vietnam War and is a disabled war veteran.

After 23 years of service to the state of Oklahoma, Shaw retired from the Oklahoma Department of

Judith Shores-Carson Iowa Tribe Judith Shores-Carson is an Iowa Tribe of Oklahoma member who has served her people for 13 years on the Iowa Tribe’s Business Committee as tribal treasurer and is known for helping implement educational incentives, especially for high school seniors.

Shores-Carson is responsible for the acknowledgement of an Iowa youth educational merit program – recognizing all Iowa students at the end of each school. The program calls for all Iowa graduating high school seniors to be awarded special incentives for their accomplishments – a special gift

of an eagle feather from the tribes’ Eagle Aviary – and a Pendleton blanket with each student’s name embroidered across it.

Shores-Carson and her daughters, Phoebe, April and Samara, stay involved with the educational programs of the Iowa Tribe, in which they are all members.

Shores-Carson is a member of the Iowa Native American Church chapter where she and her late husband, Joe Carson, were supporters and members. Although semi-retired, she and her family are strong supporters of Iowa traditional ways and teachings, giving of their time and helping in tribal ceremonies and being there in time of need.

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Corrections. As a fluent speaker of the Seminole language, he supports traditional Seminole culture, and mentors younger tribal citizens in their efforts to learn more about the culture.

As a servant leader in the Seminole Nation, Shaw’s proudest accomplishment is being part of a decades-long fight to secure a judgment fund on behalf of the Seminole people by testifying before the U.S. Congress. His dedication, sacrifice and love for the Seminole people is well-known and respected in the tribal community.

She is descendant of the Ioway Small and Kent families.

Linda Standing Sac and Fox Nation Linda Standing is an enrolled member of the Sac and Fox Nation of Oklahoma and is of Kickapoo Tribe of Oklahoma descent. She has served the Sac and Fox Nation in various capacities through the years such as tribal secretary, a member of the Sauk Enterprise Board and as a commissioner for the Sac and Fox Housing Authority.

Standing graduated from Harrah High School and attended Central State University in Edmond where she met her late husband Freddie Standing. The two had three children and moved with them to Denver. It was

during this time that she was involved in the Denver Native American Center, organizing local powwows and a youth dance troupe as well as working with National Indian Health board.

As her children grew, Standing moved back to Oklahoma and became a parent sponsor for the Anadarko High School Native American Club, assisting in fundraising, sponsoring pow-wows and chaperoning field trips. It was through these activities that she met and grew her family through adopting and taking in several children into her home.

Standing became “mom” to numerous children throughout her life, many of whom still call her that.

She is a respected tribal elder and an active member in the tribal community

events. Standing is an accomplished seamstress in ribbon work applique and beading. Standing strives to instill the traditional teachings and values to her children, grandchildren and the tribal community.

Dorothy Sullivan Cherokee Nation Dorothy Sullivan was named a Cherokee National Treasure in 2020 for her accomplishments in painting and her work in art education. Her classic images depict Cherokee culture and history and have appeared not only in works commissioned by the National Parks Service and the Trail of Tears Association, but in several children’s books and tribal publications.

“What is truly remarkable about Dorothy’s art is her ability to bring history to life. With every stroke of her brush, she puts meaning and intent into her work – creating

not just works of art, but pieces of history,” Krystan Moser, Cherokee Nation cultural collections and exhibits manager, said of Sullivan’s work in her 2021 exhibit, Art In Its Meaning. “Her work is renowned not only for its skillful rendering, but for its thoughtful, respectful depiction of Cherokee people. Through her art, you get a sense of her personal connection to her subjects, her history and her heritage,” Moser said.

Sullivan’s honors include being named an Honored One at the 1999 Red Earth Festival, designated a

Cherokee Master Artist by the Five Civilized Tribes Museum in 2001 and for receiving a 2008 Spirit of Oklahoma Award from the Five Civilized Tribes Museum.

Three of Sullivan’s pieces have been reproduced at historic Trail of Tears sites with the originals on permanent loan to the Cherokee Heritage Center in Park Hill.

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Kugee Supernaw Osage Nation Kugee Supernaw has been the owner and operator of Supernaw Indian Supply in Skiatook for almost 50 years. Thousands of indigenous people have purchased supplies for their tribal regalia from Supernaw,

keeping their Native culture alive and thriving.

Through his business, Supernaw has traveled extensively. Starting in the 1970s, for nearly 20 years, every year, he traveled to New Mexico, Arizona, Philadelphia, Mississippi and Florida. He visited reservations, tribal headquarters, attended dances and powwows.

Supernaw served three terms as an Osage Congress member and helped shape the current Osage Constitution. He was the youngest Skiatook Chamber of Commerce member and served as Osage County Democratic Party chair.

Supernaw serves as one of three Quapaw Nation Grievance Committee members charged with oversight of Quapaw Nation elected Business Committee members. He

is also a talented Native painter, silversmith, potter and woodworker.

He served his country in the National Guard, was treasurer of the Tulsa Powwow Club, charter member of the Ki He Keh Steh Powwow Club and invited member of the Kiowa Gourd Clan.

Supernaw’s Quapaw name is Ga.Neesh.E.Gah, which translates to Little Thunder. But he never used that name in his artwork because there was a well-established Cheyenne artist named Little Thunder and he didn’t want people to think he was copying him.

Supernaw has three surviving children, many grandchildren as well as great grandchildren. He and his wife Phyllis reside in Skiatook.

Gwen Butler-Switch Sac and Fox Nation Gwen Butler-Switch is a Sac and Fox Nation of Oklahoma member and a descendant of the Absentee Shawnee Tribe. She was born and raised in the northeastern part of Shawnee, Oklahoma.

Butler-Switch is wellknown for her artistic talent in traditional Native American attire applique work, making powwow dance competition attire for men and women.

Butler-Switch also designed

and made shawls and vests for the Tinker Air Force Base’s Tinker Inter-Tribal Council in Oklahoma City.

She has contributed her traditional Native American talent and skill to the Sac and Fox Nation of Oklahoma Education Department and the University of Oklahoma Indian Alumni Society by creating Native American student graduation stoles.

Butler-Switch has also

made several handcrafted “Quilts of Valor,” which are awarded to an armed forces member or veteran who have been touched by war.

She was also involved in tribal affairs as a former Sac and Fox Housing Authority Board member. She spent 27 years at Tinker Air Force Base, where she retired as a B-52 sheet metal mechanic.

Butler-Switch values family, endurance, traditions and

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Native American culture. She is an elder who is loved and respected by everyone who meets her.

Sue Donna Tanequoot Kiowa Tribe Sue Donna Tanequoot was born in Lawton in 1939 to Yale and Mary SpottedBird (Tanequoot). A full-blood from the Kiowa Tribe of Oklahoma, her Kiowa name is Koye-Mah (Kiowa Woman).

Tanequoot attended school in Hobart and later graduated from Lawton High School in 1957 before moving to Los Angeles in 1958 on the U.S. Native American Relocation Program.

There, Tanequoot attended night school at Los Angeles City College and Sawyers Business School. She worked as a secretary at several businesses from 1959 to 1968 before working for a law firm, eventually advancing to legal secretary.

Virginia Thomas Muscogee Nation Virginia Thomas has devoted many hours into making her community better. She became chair of the Okmulgee Indian Community (OIC) in 2020 and still serves as such today.

Under her leadership, the OIC has

After working at several law firms, Tanequoot decided to see the world and applied as a secretary with the U.S. Department of State, Foreign Service.

Hired in 1969, she was sent to the U.S. Embassy in Beirut, Lebanon, where she served for two years before working in many American embassies, including Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Saigon, South Vietnam, Brussels, Belgium, Tel Aviv Israel, Mexico City, and Rome, Italy.

Tanequoot retired in 1997 after 28 years of service with the U.S. Department of State, Foreign Service and moved to Tulsa where she currently lives. She served with the American Baptist Indian Caucus for eight years representing our Native American churches of the

American Baptist Churches in the United States. Tanequoot attends the All Tribes Community Church of Tulsa where she is an active member and was ordained in 2017. She has also served as ordained associate pastor for the past six years.

almost tripled in membership with weekly programs, activities and events. Thanks to her, there is a resurgence of the Creek language and culture, healthy lifestyle through exercise programs and youth and elder involvement in the community.

Her dream was to teach the Creek language, culture and government to students so they would “know who they are, where they came from and where they are going.”

Thomas is also recognized on multiple levels for Indian education.

She has been appointed to the National Advisory Council for Indian Education by Presidents Bush, Obama, Trump and Biden, and serves as the longest-seated councilor to date. Her most recent recognition was one of five 2023 Living Legends by the Muscogee Creek Nation (MCN).

As founder of the MCN Challenge Bowl, Thomas organized the Challenge Bowl Committee in 2000.

In 2001, Thomas helped establish a MCN language program, and in 2003, she reorganized the MCN Pageant and chaired the committee for eight years. She has also been in the field of education for more than 50 years. Her teaching credential was in elementary education and is known as a specialized expert for the JohnsonO’Malley Program. The program received statewide and national recognition of excellence. She is a founding member of the National Johnson O’Malley Association and served as the president for 16 years.

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Winston C. Ulrey Ottawa Nation Winston C. “Cap” Ulrey was born in Miami, Oklahoma, to parents who served in the military during World War II. His mother was in the Women’s Army Corps, and his father

was in the Navy and Air Force.

Ulrey served in the Navy and Air Force for nearly 15 years before settling in Quapaw and is a proud member of the Ottawa Tribe and was on the Grievance Committee for years.

Through his 20 years as an Ottawa/ Peoria Housing commissioner, Ulrey has helped tribal members buy or rehabilitate their homes. Ulrey is a member of the Disabled American Veterans and is a Mason and a Shriner. He is also a member of the Masonic Indian Degree Team – a group of Indian Masons that travel spreading the Freemason principles.

Ulrey and his family have attended powwows in Kansas, Missouri and Oklahoma where he has served as

Gary WhiteCloud Otoe-Missouria Tribe Gary WhiteCloud is a United States Army and Vietnam War veteran. His veteran status and his knowledge of traditional ways means he is often called upon to conduct various ceremonies within the tribe. WhiteCloud is also a longtime member of the Native American Church.

He is considered one of the leaders of the Otoe-Missouria Bear Clan and is held in great regard and respect by his people.

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head singer, head dancer, head gourd dancer or arena director. Although not as active in powwows anymore, he takes pride in having mentored many singers, dancers and arena directors actively participating today.

Ulrey enjoys beading and for years kept his family outfitted in everything they needed for their dance outfits.

He was afraid chemo and neuropathy had robbed him of the ability to bead. But through determination, stubbornness and love for traditional ways, he’s returned to beading.

Ulrey appreciates his health and knows every day is a blessing. He enjoys spending time with family, the Indian community and wide circle of friends.

Carrie V. Wilson Quapaw Nation Carrie V. Wilson is an enrolled member of the Quapaw Nation, Eastern Shawnee and Peoria (Wea).

She has served in nearly every position of leadership possible for the Quapaw Nation. She is currently serving on the Business Committee, which is the governing body of the tribe, and serves as the Native America Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) director and chair of the Cultural Committee.

As the NAGPRA director, Wilson has been instrumental in repatriating Quapaw ancestors and funerary objects from multiple sites in the tribe’s ancestral homelands. Her

work requires her to engage and collaborate with higher educational institutions and universities, museums, federal agencies and other tribal nations.

Wilson is often requested to give lectures and participate in panels for her work in Mississippian era culture and scholarship. As chair of the Culture Committee, she is responsible for community programming, tribal events and cultural classes offered to people throughout the year.

Her commitment to preserving, revitalizing and sharing the traditions and culture of the Quapaw Nation is steadfast.

Edward Wilson Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes Edward Wilson, an enrolled citizen of the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes, served as the Cheyenne and Arapaho chairman in the 1980s, advocating to Washington, D.C., for the return of Fort Reno land, an endeavor that continues today for the tribe.

Wilson is a U.S. Army veteran who served from February 1965 to December 1967 in the Vietnam War. While stationed in Fort Bragg, North Carolina, Wilson volunteered to deploy. “I was a medic, which was a very interesting job. I chose the Army because of my family history, my uncles, my brothers, they all served,” he said.

Upon being discharged, Wilson

enrolled in school, but in a short time found himself angry without knowing why. Years later, he said it became clear to him – the military then had no transition program for veterans and didn’t know what to do with them.

“You know you are in the service one day, and then they cut you loose and you’re expected to be a productive member of society ... it just doesn’t work that way,” he told the Cheyenne & Arapaho Tribune.

“Nowadays they have all these programs. Before you exit the service, you can have an exit strategy, some kind of transition preparation, but we didn’t have anything like that and there were a lot of us coming out at

that time. All of us probably suffered from PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder), but that wasn’t even a word we heard back then.”

The 80-year-old now serves on the tribes’ Veteran Affairs Board and American Legion 401 Post, advocating for veterans and veteran rights and benefits.

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Teresa Wilson is a member of the Teresa Wilson Wyandotte Tribe and works for the Wyandotte Wyandotte Nation

Nation Cultural Center and Museum. She was born in Miami, Oklahoma, but now lives in Wyandotte and has collectively dedicated more than 20 years to the Wyandotte Tribe working in different departments.

Before working for the Wyandotte Nation Cultural Center and Museum, Wilson worked for Title VI providing nutrition for elder members. When the pandemic was in full force, Wilson continued to volunteer her time helping to serve tribal members when she was able to, including on her lunch break, during holidays and anytime a hand was needed. Over her years with the Wyandotte

Tribe, Wilson attended Wyandotte Days at the River Raisin Battlefield in Michigan, had the honor of attending the ceremony when the tribe was given the deed back to its historic Wyandot Mission Church in Upper Sandusky, Ohio, as well as trips through the years with her beloved elder members.

Wilson continues to further her knowledge of tribal history and traditions by helping organize and attending classes aimed at teaching traditional Wyandotte artwork, jewelry and regalia. Wilson’s devotion to her tribe is a crucial part of the success of the Wyandotte cultural center and maintaining traditions.

John J. Andele Worthington Kiowa/Caddo/Delaware Many tribes have been given the opportunity to keep their cultural and traditional lands and sacred grounds protected and identified through the efforts of John J. Andele Worthington.

Worthington started work for the U.S. Department of Agriculture where he helped the Colorado tribes in their efforts of tribal land and natural resources preservation and protection. As a wildland firefighter, his archaeology and anthropology knowledge aided California tribes in finding, identifying and keeping their scared lands and sites protected from harm’s way of heavy equipment used in firefighting suppression.

The work Worthington performs for the Bureau of Indian Affairs as a regional official allows him the opportunity to work the many Native American tribes, including tribal members in Oklahoma, Kansas, Texas and Arkansas,on the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act. Worthington’s knowledge of Native American sacred sites and cultural provenance of ancient Native American land, graves and sacred sites protection is an asset to many people in Indian County by helping traditional generations ensure cultural inheritance for their children. He teaches Southern Plains straight dance and Kiowa songs to any student who wishes to learn.

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About AARP Oklahoma Native American Elder Honors The AARP Oklahoma Native American Elder Honors awards were established in 2009 to celebrate Native American elders who have positively impacted their community, family, tribal nation and nation.

This honor celebrates a lifetime of service by distinguished Native American elders who exhibit a love of family, dedication to culture and respect for all people.

Since its inception, the AARP Oklahoma Native American Elder Honors has recognized nearly 700 elders from Oklahoma’s 39 tribal nations. Past honorees include teachers, veterans, artists, tribal leaders, culture preservationists and everyday community heroes.

About AARP Oklahoma With 400,000 members in Oklahoma and nearly 38 million members nationwide, AARP is dedicated to empowering Americans 50 and older to choose how they live as they age. As the nation’s largest nonprofit, nonpartisan organization, AARP works to strengthen communities and advocate for what matters most to families with a focus on health security, financial stability, and personal fulfillment.

AARP Oklahoma State Office Sean Voskuhl State Director Melissa Brown Operations Associate Melanie Henry Sr. Associate State Director Communications & Outreach Joy McGill Associate State Director Advocacy & Outreach Mashell Sourjohn Sr. Associate State Director Outreach

AARP Oklahoma Executive Council Jim Randall State President Modina Allen Tom Anderson Ethel Broiles Pam Kiser Kendra Orcutt Sabra Tucker

AARP OKLAHOMA 2023 NATIVE AMERICAN ELDER HONORS | 29

Past Recipients Absentee Shawnee Tribe

Ms. Johnnie Mae Bettelyoun Ms. Mary Birdtail Mr. George Blanchard Ms. Redena Blanchard Miller Ms. Wynona Coon Mrs. Charlene Edwards-Whittington Mr. Walter L. Larney Mrs. Twila Parker Ms. Jenifer Sloan Ms. Esteline Sloan Schulenberg Mr. Larry Spybuck Mr. Melpherd Switch Ms. Dara Thorpe Ms. Meredith Wahpekeche Ms. Pauline White Wahpepah Mr. Alvin Wilson Ms. Reta Marie Wilson-Harjo

Alabama-Quassarte Tribal Town

Mrs. Sinah Manley BirdCreek Mr. F.B. Fish Chief Nelson Scott Harjo Sr. Mrs. Evelyn McLemore Ms. Diana Moppin Mr. Turner Scott Mrs. Lucinda Lou Tiger Mr. Jack Yargee Mekko Robert L.Yargee Chief Tarpie Yargee Ms. Winey Yargee

Apache Tribe

Mr. William “Bill’ F. Tennyson Berry Mr. Harry Kaudlekaule Mr. Gregg Klinekole Jr. Mr. Nathan “Jumbo” Tselee

Caddo Nation

Col. Louis “Buddy” Bedoka Dr. Guyneth Bedoka Cardwell

Dr. Dolores Subia BigFoot Mr. Phillip Cross Ms. Gayle Cussen Satepauhoodle Ms. Mary Lou Davis Mr. Randlett Edmonds Mr. Joeseph “Joe” Exendine Mrs. Margaret Francis-Rico Mrs. Billie Ruth Hoff Mr. John Wayne Kionut Ms Ann Louis Bedoka Donaghey Mr. Dwight Pickering Ms. Jereldine “Jeri” Redcorn Ms. Carol Ross Ms. Janie Tartsah Mrs. Jennifer Wilson Ms. Charlene Wright

Cherokee Nation

Dr. Richard Allen Mr. Buel Anglen Mr. Jack Baker Ms. Dianne Barker Harrold Mr. Justin Bolen Mrs. Karyn Braswell Dr. Thomas Carlile Ms. Rosa Carter Mr. John Wayne Cloud Ms. Beverly Cowan Ret. SFC Norman Crowe Ms. Carol “Jane” Davis Ms. Sharon Dawes Mr. J. C. Elliot Mrs. Mae Dean Erb Mr. Gary Farris Dr. John Farris Mr. Bill Glass Jr. Mr. Joe Grayson Dr. Charles Grim Mrs. Winnie Guess-Perdue Mr. James Franklin Hail Mr. Dennis “Jay” Hannah Mrs. Nancy Hansen Edwards Mr. Bill Horton

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Dr. Pamela Jumper Thurman Mr. John Ketcher Mrs. Marsha Lamb Mrs. Doris “Coke” Lane Meyer Rev. D.J. McCarter Ms. Carolyn McClellan Ms. Rebecca “Becky” Meyer Mr. Eddie Morrison Mrs. Marcella Morton Mr. Ira M. Phillips Ms. Frances Ramsey Ms. Mary Rector Aitson Mr. Jimmy L. Reeder Ms. Lucinda Robbins Ms. Fan Robinson Mr. Calvin Rock Mr. Mark Rogers Dr. Mary “Katie” Sigler Mr. Crosslin Fields Smith Mr. Henry Smoke Mr. Curtis Snell Mr. Charlie Soap Mr. Chris Soap Mr. Bud Andrew Squirrel Mr. Hickory Starr Ms. Ollie Starr Ms. Betty Starr-Barker Ms. Ida Sue Stopp Mr. Ross Swimmer Mr. Joe T. Thornton Mr. Jack Townsend Mr. Raymond Vann Mrs. Ronda Williams

Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes Ms. Erma Jean Brown Col. Ralph Dru Mr. Darrell G. Flyingman Mr. Albert GreyEagle Ms. Irene D. Hamilton Mr. Matheson Hamilton Chief Lawrence Hart Dr. Henrietta Mann

Mr. Harvey Phillip Pratt Mr. Charles Pratt Mr. Quinton Roman Nose Mr. Moses Starr Jr. Mr. Raymond “Red” Stone Calf Traditional Chief Allen Sutton Mrs. Viola Sutton-Hatch Mr. William Tall Bear Sr. Ms. Wanda Whiteman Ms. Gail Williams Mr. Richard Dean Williams Mr. Robert Wilson

Chickasaw Nation

Mr. James “Jim” Anderson Mr. John Edwin Anderson Mr. William “Bill” Bomboy Mr. Kennedy Brown Mrs. Jeraldine “Jerry” Brown Mrs. Christie Byars-Chavez Ms. Pauline Carpenter-Brown Mr. Robert Larkin Cole Mr. Thomas W. Cooper Ms. Irene Digby Mr. Bill Duckworth Ms. Tewanna Edwards Mrs. Ramona Eyachabbe Ms. Carolyn Sue Fish Ms. Glenda Galvan Ms. Mary Jo Green Mr. Don Hayes Mr. Ron Hayes Mr. Melvin Imotichey Ms. Rose Jefferson Hon. Mary Jane Lowery Rep. Neal McCaleb Mrs. Dean McManus Admiral Kevin Meeks Ms. Merry Monroe Mr. Levi Orphan Mr. Ron Parker Mr. Michael Reed Ms. Thelma Lucile “Chincie” Ross Ms. Lucy Belle Schultz

Mrs. Sue Simmons Ms. Barbara Smith Ms. Mary Smith Mr. Stanley Smith Ms.Towana Spivey Ms. Margie Testerman Ms. Joyce Vinyard Mr. Stephen Wall Mr. Bennett “Ben” Clark White Ms. Patricia Ann Woods

Choctaw Nation

Mr. Jack Austin Sr. Mrs. Carole Ayers Mrs. Lorene Blaine Rev. Bertram Bobb Mrs. Doretha Bowen Ms. Mary Ann Brittan Mr. Gilbert Mike “Choc” Charleston Mr. Delton Cox Mr. Thomas J. Dry Mrs. Sue Folsom Dr. Jacque Gray Mr. Ernest Hooser Ms. Nellie Hunter Mr. Sylvester Moore Ms. Mona Lea Perry Mr. Walter Phelps Ms. Norma Price Mrs. Gloria Sirmans Ms. Linda Skinner Mr. Leo Smallwood Ms. Marcie Smith Mr. Claude Sumner Mrs. Rosa Taylor Gilmore Ms. Harriet Tehauno Ms. Betty War Ms. Linda Watson Chaplain Olin Williams Rev. Donald Eugene “Gene” Wilson Ms. Evangeline Wilson Ms. Pauline “Paula” Wilson-Carney Mrs. Robin Woodley Ms. Loyce Wright

Citizen Potawatomi Nation Mr. David Barrett Chairman John “Rocky” Barrett Ms. Loretta Barrett-Oden Vice Chairwoman Linda Capps Mr. Leon Cross Ms. Mary Deathrage Ms. Beverly Hughes Mr. Alan Kelly Mr. Joe Miller Mr. William Nadean Ms. Mary Ann Powell Ms. Annamaria Simpson Mrs. Carmelita Skeeter Mr. Doyle Morton Thompson Ms. Darla Tsotaddle Ms. Margaret Zientek Mr. Tim Zientek

Comanche Nation

Mr. George Briscoe II Chaplain Jimmy Ray Caddo Chairman Wallace Coffey Mr. Kenneth Coosewoon Mrs. Rita Coosewoon Mr. Conrad Galey Ms. Barbara Goodin Ms. LaDonna Harris Mr. Leon Hawzipta Jr. Mr. Barthell Little Chief Ms. Martha “Adele” Mihesuah Ms. Josephine Myers-Wapp Ms. Juanita Pahdopony Dr. Cornel Pewewardy Rev. Donna Pewo Ms. Cornelia Quoetone-Karty Mr. Bill Shoemate Mr. Jack Shoemate Ms. Sherry Smith Mr. Milton Sovo Mrs. Anna Wockmetooah Tahmahkera Mr. Thurman Ray Tahsuda Mrs. Deloris R. Twohatchet Mr. Joe Wahnee Jr.

AARP OKLAHOMA 2023 NATIVE AMERICAN ELDER HONORS | 31

Dr. Robbie Wahnee Dr. Linda Sue Warner Rev. Videll Yackeschi

Delaware Nation

Ms. Kelly Flow Ms. Georgia Gallegos Mr. Tom Holder Mr. Frank Osborne Jr. Ms. Linda Sue Poolaw Ms. Mary Dean Rice Mr. Jim VanDeman Ms. Gladys Yackeyonny

Delaware Tribe

Mr. Allan R. Barnes Mr. Howard Barnes Chief Chester “Chet” Brooks Councilman Larry “Joe” Brooks Mr. Kenny Brown Mr. Raymond M. Cline Chief Jerry Douglas Assistant Chief Bonnie Jo Griffith Mrs. Annette Ketchum Mr. Dee Ketchum Mr. Lewis Ketchum Mr. Charles Randall Mrs. Bonnie Thaxton Ms. Barbara Jean Falleaf Anna Wallace Ms. Mary Watters Ret. Chief Curtis Zunigha

Eastern Shawnee Tribe

Mr. Alistair Bane Mr. John Daughtery Jr. Mr. Laurence “Larry” Dushane Mr. Charles Enyart Ms. Virginia Fanning Ms. Beverly Sue Hauser Rendel Mrs. Norma Kraus Chief Glenna Wallace

Euchee (Yuchi) Tribe

Mrs. Vada Foster Tiger Nichwander

Dr. Richard A. Grounds Mr. Arthur K. James Ms. Amy Sue Jones Yargee Ms. Maxine Wildcat Barnett

Fort Sill Apache Tribe Mr. Leland Michael Darrow Mr. Lupe A. Gooday Sr. Mr. Benedict Kawaykla Mr. Michael Pratt Kawaykla

Iowa Tribe

Mr. Eugene Big Soldier Ms. Linda Big Soldier Ms. JoAnn Big Soldier Mayes Ms. Joyce Big Soldier-Miller Mr. Jacob “Jake” Big Solider Jr. Ms. Kathryn Josie Springer Gashwazrah Mrs. Ruby Nell Gibson Logan Ms. E. Bernadette Huber Councilwoman Renee Lincoln Mr. Franklin “Frank” Murray Mr. Victor Roubidoux Ms. Janice Rowe-Kurak Ms. Mae Sine Ms. Jackie Sine Young Ms. Emma Louise Smith Mrs. Rachel Lynn Walkup

Kaw Nation

Sgt. Roy Ball Mr. Kennis Bellmard Ms. Mary Butler Mr. Charles “Sonny” Holloway Mr. Curtis Kekahbah Mr. Guy Munroe Ms. Eva Munroe-Jones Commissioner Clark Pepper Mr. Luther Pepper Mr. James Pepper Henry Mrs. Phyllis Prickett Chairwoman Jacque Secodine-Hensley Chairwoman Wanda Stone Ms. Tahagena “Gena” Warren

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Chairwoman Lynn Williams

Kialegee Tribal Town

Ms. Jennie Anderson-Lillard Ms. Leola Barnett Ms. June Fixico Mekko Mary Givens Rev. Bill Hobia Ms. Brenda Leftwich Ms. Susie Martinez Mekko Lowell Wesley

Kickapoo Tribe

Mr. Clarence Deer Ms. Judy Deer-Coser Ms. Jenell Downs Ms. Juanita Johnson Ms. Emma Murdock Mr. Cecil Wahpekeche Mr. Cecil Wahpekeche Mr. Lawrence Wahpepah Ms. Francena Wahweah Wahpepah Mr. Bob White

Kiowa Tribe

Ms. Sharron Ahtone-Harjo Mr. James Anquoe Ms. Arlene Sue Bates Caesar Mr. Nelson BigBow Mr. Jerry C. Bread Ms. Theresa Carter Ms. Frances Harried “Della” Doyebi Mr. Parker Emhoolah Mrs. Delores Harragarra Ms. Darlene Hovakah-Wolf Mr. Gary Kodaseet Ms.Cornelia “Pat” Kopepassah Hon. Philip LuJan Dr. N. Scott Momaday Rep. Anita Onco-Johnson Mr. Dixon Palmer Mr. Lyndreth “Tugger” Palmer Ms. Georgette “G.G.” Palmer-Smith Mr. Burt Patadal

Mr. John Pinezaddleby Dr. Everett Rhoades Mr. Bobby Saunkeah Mr. Luke Toyebo Sr. Mr. Gene E. Tsatoke Mr. Duke Tsoodle Mr. George “Chuck” Tsoodle Mr. Vernon Tsoodle Ms. Modina Waters Mr. Matthew “Mac” Whitehorse Ms. Dorothy Whitehorse-DeLaune Ms. Julian Q. Whorton Dr. Diane Willis Ms. Francine Worthington

Miami Tribe

Mr. James Battese Mr. Royce Carter Ms. Judy C. Davis Mr. Tim LaFalier Mr. Jerry Lankford Mr. Frank Leonard Mr. Nadine Mayfield Mr. Wilbur “Webb” Tipton Ms. Mildred Walker Mayor Neal Watson

Modoc Nation

Ms. Judy Cobb Mr. Phil Follis Mr. Ted McCullum Ms. Ramona Rosiere Mr. Jack W. Shadwick

Muscogee Nation

Mr. Fredo “Chubby” Anderson Ms. Jeanetta Anderson Ms. Mary Arkeketa Mr. Bill Barnett Mr. Turner Bear Jr. Mr. Gene Bible Ms. Johnnie Brasuell Mr. John “John John” Brown Mr. Allan Colbert

Mr. Phillip Coon Mr. George Coser Dr. Peter G. Coser Mr. Bill J. Davis Ms. Myrtle Denney Mrs. DeLois Louise Dunzy Roulston Principal Chief A.D. Ellis Chief Bill Fife Ms. Leona Fish Principal Chief James Floyd Mrs. Margaret Floyd Ret. Tsgt. Jess “Mick” Freeman Jr. Ms. Sandra “Sandi” Golden Ms. Glenda Graham-Byrd Ms. Pauline Haney Mr. Eugene Harjo Mrs. Joy Harjo-Sapulpa Justice Leah Harjo-Ware Mr. Eugene Herrod Ms. Nancy John Mr. Keeper Johnson Ms. Matilda King Mrs. Candy Fish Klumpp Ms. Rebecca Lindsey Mrs. Mona “KoKo” Lowe Ms. Rosalee “Rose” Marshall Mr. William Moore Ms. Susie “Sue” Morgan Mr. Edward F. Mouss Mr. Scott Roberts Dr. Lahoma Schultz Mrs. Augusta “Gus” Smith Justice George Thompson Mr. George Phillp Tiger Mr. Jon Mark Tiger Ms. Anne Townsend-Edwards Ms. Mickey White Mr. Richard Ray Whitman Mr. Benjamin Yahola Former Speaker Thomas Leroy Yahola

Osage Nation

Mr. Darrell Boulanger Ms. Jerri Jean Branstetter Ms. Anita Fields

Ms. Margo Gray Ms. Mary Gray-Bighorse Mr. Charles Eugene “Chuck” Hessert Ms. Denise Keene Ms. Nancy Keil Mr. H. Mongraine Lookout Mr. Charles Lookout Ms. Anita Lookout-West Capt. Richard Luttrell Sr. Mrs. Sheri Mashburn Mr. Bill Mashunkashey Cpl. John Henry Mashunkashey Mr. Archie Mason Mr. Franklin McKinley Cmdr. James Norris Dr. Steven Pratt Councilwoman Kathryn Red Corn Mr. Charles Harold Red Corn Ms. Nicki Revard-Lorenzo Ms. Mary Elizabeth Ricketts Mr. Romaine Shackelford Mr. George A. Shannon Mr. Ronald Blaine Shaw Mr. Jerry Shaw Mrs. Roberta Sue Slinkard Ms. Martha Spotted Bear Mr. Marvin Stepson Jr. Ms. Cecelia Irene Tallchief Mr. George E. Tallchief Mr. Tim Tallchief Ms. Candy Thomas Mrs. Judith “Judy” Mary Tiger Mr. John Williams Ms. Julia Wilson Ms. Rosemary Wood

Otoe-Missouria Tribe

Ms. Joan Aitson Mr. Abe Sylvester Alley Attorney General Susan Arkeketa Ms. Kim Arkeketa-McHenry Ms. Annette Arkeketa-Rendon Mr. Don Childs Mr. Hank Childs Mrs. Barbara Childs Walton

AARP OKLAHOMA 2023 NATIVE AMERICAN ELDER HONORS | 33

Mr. Joseph “Joe” Dent Ms. Lorena DeRoin Dr. Aaron Gawhega Ms. Cornelia Mae Gosney Mr. Ted Grant Ms. Freida Homeratha Ms. Dorcas Kent Williams Ms. Arkeketa LeClair Mr. Alvin Moore Sr. Mr. Baptiste Shunatona Ms. Virginia Thomas Ms. Billie Ann Tohee Mr. Randall Whitehorn

Ponca Tribe

Ottawa Tribe

Quapaw Nation

Mr. Larry Angelo Chief Ethel Cook Mrs. Charla Dawes Ms. Sharon Den Hoed Ms. Coweta Ulrey

Pawnee Nation

Mr. Alva James “Jimmy” Atkins Mr. Neill Bayhylle Mr. Bruce Caesar Mr. Henry Chapman Stoneroad Ms. Cordelia Clapp Mr. John E. Echo-Hawk Mrs. Deb Echo-Hawk Mr. Marshall R.Gover Mrs. Dawna “Riding In” Hare Mr. George Elton Howell Mr. Charles A. Lone Chief Jr. Mr. Duane Pratt Sr. Mr. Richard Tilden Mr. Roy Weeks Taylor

Peoria Tribe

Ms. Annette Black Mr. Wayne Blalock Mr. Emmett “Bud” Ellis Chief John P. Froman Ms. Carolyn Garren-Ritchey Ms. Alice Roberta Hedges-Lindsley

Mr. Tony Arkeketa Ms. Therese Buffalohead Mrs. Casey Camp-Horinek Mr. Louis Headman Mr. John Lee Kemble Mr. Christopher Lee LittleCook Mrs. Deborah Margerum Mr. Steve Pensoneau Mr. Jim Sherron Ms. Barbara Warner Ms. Evona “Eve” Williams Ms. Maxine Williams-Thompson Chief John Berrey Mr. Lloyd Buffalo Ms. JoKay Dowell Ms. Grace Goodeagle Mr. Jim Greenfeather Ms. Barbara Kyser-Collier Ms. Jean Ann Lambert Mrs. Charlene Leading Fox Button Mr. Henry McNeer Ellick Ms. Ardina Revard Moore Ms. Risë Supernaw Proctor Ms. Rhonda Weaver Ms. Florence Whitecrow Matthews

Sac and Fox Nation

Ms. Peggy Acoya Ms. Judy Crain Baggett Mr. Elvis E. Ellis Ms. Mary “Spooner” Ellis Dr. Rev. Emerson Falls Mr. Keith Franklin Ret. MGySgt. Delphine Hamilton Mr. Henry Buck McClellan Mr. Wallace “Bud” McClellan Ms. Mary Frances McCormick Mr. Zack Morris Mr. Sam Morris Ms. Nancy Nullake Ms. Stella M. Nullake-Nanaeto

34 | AARP OKLAHOMA 2023 NATIVE AMERICAN ELDER HONORS

Ms. Lena “Ellis” Pennock Clark Principal Chief Elizabeth Rhoads Mr. John R. “Jack” Thorpe Mr. William Thorpe Ret. Medic Curtis Wakolee Ms. Stella Wilson Mr. Freeland Wood

Seminole Nation

Ms. Diana Autaubo Ms. Velma Coker Assistant Chief Ella Colman Mr. Joe Coon Ms. Gracie Dailey Ms. Eula Doonkeen Mr. Kotcha Doonkeen Mr. Curtis Lee Douglas Mrs. Mary Ann Emarthle Ms. Nancy Fixico Ms. Anna Givens Mr. Enoch Kelly Haney Mr. Jerry Haney Mrs. Terri Denise Haney Ms. Greta Haney Ruminer Ms. Fannie Harjo Councilman Jeffery Harjo Chief Leonard Harjo Mrs. Darlene Henneha Councilman Charlie Hill Chief Lewis Johnson Ms. Marilyn Jumper Mrs. June Lee Mrs. Sheila Little-Harjo Mrs. Jane McGiesey Ms. Priscilla Ann Palmer Johnson Ms. Joanna Palmer-Morris Sgt. Danny Tiger Ms. Dena Tiger-Kloehr Mrs. Juanita Nokomis Tiger-Scott Ms. Shirley Walker Ms. Susie Walker-Harjo Mrs. Cynthia Yerby

Seneca-Cayuga Nation

Mr. Charles Diebold Ms. Vestena “Foxie” Emerson Ms. Nadine Hilliard Chief Leroy Howard Mr. Wayne Smith

Shawnee Tribe

Ms. Ruthe Blalock Jones Mr. Tony Booth Ms. Roberta Janell Coombes Mr. Freddie Halfmoon Ms. Georgie Honey Ms. Patsy Lorene Johnson Mr. Doyle Barry Kerr Mr. Scott Secondine Ms. Carolyn Smith Chairman James Squirrel

Thlopthlocco Tribal Town Ms. Rosalie Bateman Mekko Grace Bunner Ms. Dorothy Burden Mr. Joe Kinsley Canard Ms. Nora Cheek Mr. Charles Coleman Ms. Billie Curry Mr. Chebon Dacon Ms. Sandra Dacon-Medrano Mrs. Nellie Fixico Ms. Melinda Ann Gibson

Wichita and Affiliated Tribes

Mr. Wilbert Lowe Ms. Elsie Mae Martin Ms. VaRene Martin Mrs. Elizabeth Trickey

Tonkawa Tribe Ms. Barbara Allen Mr. Don Patterson Mr. Jim Schreen

United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians

Ms. Ernestine Berry Chief Joe Bunch Mr. John William Cornsilk Ms. Rebecca Dreadfulwater Mr. Sequoyah Guess Mr. John Hair Mr. Woody Hansen Mr. Howard Hansen Sr. Mr. Jim Henson Ms. Dorothy Ice Mr. Jacob Littledave Cmdr. Norman “Hominy” Littledave Dr. Ricky Robinson Mr. Albert Shade Councilman Frankie Still Mr. Sammy Still Chief George Wickliffe

Ms. Shirley Davilla Mr. Clark Inkanish Mrs. Elfreida Irving Ms. Doris Jean Lamar McLemore Mrs. Thedis Mitchell Mr. Stuart Owings Mrs. Rose Roberson Ms. Marsha Rose Mr. James “Bunny” Ross Ms. Betty Jo Rowland-Wolfe Mr. Myles Stephenson Sr. Ms. Mary Louise Stevenson Tselee Mr. Franklin Dale Swift Mrs. Rochelle Swift Ms. Vanessa Vance Ms. Gladys Walker Mr. Stratford Williams

Wyandotte Nation

Mr. Leaford Bearskin Ms. Sherri Clemons Chief Billy Friend Mr. Larry Wayne Hamilton Mr. Norman B. Hildebrand Jr. Mr. David Keffer Mr. Tom D. Keffer Ms. Juanita Long McQuiston Mr. Ted Nesvold Mr. Walter Watts

Dr. John and Tewanna Edwards Leadership Award Recipients 2014 Chief Gregory Pyle | Choctaw Nation

2018 Dr. Judy Goforth Parker | Chickasaw Nation

2015 Dr. Tom Anderson | Cherokee Nation

2019 Mr. Wes Studi | Cherokee Nation

2016 Bishop Dr. David Wilson | Choctaw Nation

2021 Mrs.Tewanna Edwards | Chickasaw Nation

2017 Dr. Henrietta Mann | Cheyenne & Arapaho Tribes

2023 Mrs. Carmelita Skeeter | Citizen Potawatomi Nation

AARP OKLAHOMA 2023 NATIVE AMERICAN ELDER HONORS | 35

126 N. Bryant Ave. Edmond, OK 73034 866-295-7277 aarp.org/ok aarp.org/nativeorigins facebook.com/AARPOK X: @AARPOklahoma

36 | AARP OKLAHOMA 2023 NATIVE AMERICAN ELDER HONORS