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GIDUWA CHEROKEE NEWS

December 2024

CNO passes resolution to withSTATEMENT FROM THE

draw from Cherokee Tri-council UNITED KEETOOWAH BAND

OF CHEROKEE INDIANS

An approved CNO resolution states that in practice, the Tri-Council no

longer achieves its “legitimate objectives,” but “serves as a forum for

the UKB to attack the sovereignty of [the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma]” and “falsely claim rights under Cherokee treaties.”

By: Troy Littledeer | @troylittledeer

TAHLEQUAH, OKLA., — The

Council of the Cherokee Nation

unanimously approved a resolution

at the Dec. 16, 2024, legislative

body’s monthly meeting formally

withdrawing from the annual Cherokee Tri-Council meeting which

included the United Keetoowah Band

of Cherokee Indians in Oklahoma,

the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians

based in Cherokee, North Carolina

and the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma.

“It’s unfortunate that the Council

of the Cherokee Nation has decided

to withdraw from the Tri-Council.

In their explanation, they made it

clear that they refuse to discuss the

difficult issues we face between our

tribes,” UKB Assistant Chief and

Chief-elect Jeff Wacoche said. “As

elected leaders of our respective

tribes, we have been entrusted with

defending the best interests of the

Cherokee people, whether they are

citizens of the Cherokee Nation or

members of the United Keetoowah

Band of Cherokees or EBCI. It's sad

to see that they refuse to cooperate

with us for the best interest of the

Cherokee people, instead choosing

to sign cooperative agreements with

non-native entities and relinquish

sovereign rights as a federally recognized tribe.”

UKB Chief Joe Bunch and EBCI Chief

Michell Hicks at the 2024 Tri-council

hosted by CNO (Photo by Lani Hansen).

The annual Tri-Council meetings

allowed the United Keetoowah Band

of Cherokee Indians in Oklahoma,

the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, and the Cherokee Nation of

Oklahoma to communicate, cooperate, support, and learn from each

tribe’s experience dealing with current pressing issues. Tri-Council has

brought the tribes together for nearly

10 years, since 2012. There was two

years they didn’t meet, because of

the pandemic. Another purpose of

the tri-council meeting is to show

unity and support in sovereignty and

Native American causes across the

board.



See TRI-COUNCIL, Page 2

Wednesday, December 18, 2024

By Staff Reports; Press Release

TAHLEQUAH, OKLA., – The UKB

is thrilled to finally have IHS funding for a purchase and referred care

program (PRC) program for our

members. The benefits of the UKB

Health System are numerous and obvious to anyone who is being honest

about the conditions in the region:

expanded access to care, improved

quality of services, increased overall

health funding in the region and the

creation of dozens of meaningful employment opportunities. This funding

is a great benefit to the whole of the

Oklahoma Cherokee Reservation,

benefiting all tribal members, not just

members of the UKB.

There is a need for the UKB to

expand access to care for our people.

Our tribal members want to receive

their health care in a UKB health care

facility for they are routinely denied

access to care by the CNO. Healthcare

is predicated on trust, and we must

ensure our members trust their providers and have trust in the process.

Our UKB members must know

that their care is not disrupted by this

‘announcement.’

- United Keetoowah Band of

Cherokee Indians

Chief Joe Bunch reflects on representing the tribe

By LANI HANSEN, Senior Reporter

TAHLEQUAH, Okla- As the United Keetoowah

Band of Cherokee Indians in Oklahoma will see a

new face for Chief in the upcoming year, Chief Joe

Bunch reflects on his term serving the tribe.

Bunch has served as the 11th UKB Tribal Chief

for ten years. He has always had this dream of

what it would be like to oversee five to ten thousand people. When he came into term as Chief the

number, he expected was not it, as there are more

than 14,000 enrolled tribal members.

Throughout his term, Bunch was able to bring

UKB Chief Joe Bunch at the National Museum of American Indian. Photo by Smithsonian Museum

Four UKB Tribal District reps and Chief attended the

2023 Cherokee Days. Photo by Lani Hansen

the unity of the tribal council back. He helped in

getting their voices heard, including tribal members. The Land in Trust was a major monumental

accomplishment, which Chief assisted in getting.

Another accomplishment in Chief’s term was receiving Indian Health Services Purchased and Referred Care Program for exclusive UKB members.

“This program with IHS is a David and Goliath

story,” Chief commented.

Chief Bunch also assisted in starting a Food

Distribution Program, which he stated the tribe

always wanted and needed.

“We are not there yet but working on it in

regard to the Local Food Purchase Program,” Chief

said.

As the end of his term is nearing, Chief Bunch

will miss working for the people, tribal members as

well as the elected officials and council.

“The people are what make our tribe, and we

certainly have good ones,” Chief stated.

Before his days as Chief come to an end Bunch

wants to thank the tribal members for allowing

him to represent the tribe for the last ten years.

“Pray for our tribe, leaders, our nation, all of

us,” Chief stated. “Until we see each other again.”

The 2023-2025 UKB Tribal District representatives and

the four officers at the 2023 inauguration.

Photo by Lani Hansen

Chief Bunch presented at the 2023 Cherokee Days in

Washington, D.C. Photo by Lani Hansen

Chief Joe Bunch, UKB Congressional Delegate Tori

Holland and UKB Assistant Chief Jeff Wacoche together

in Washington, D.C. (File Photo)

Brittany Cheater, IHS Oklahoma City Regional Director-Rear Admiral Travis Watts, UKB Treasurer Sonya

Gourd, UKB Chief Joe Bunch, IHS Director Roselyn Tso,

Assistant Chief Jeff Wacoche, Kathy Stafford, UKB

Secretary Joyce Hawk, UKB Advisor Brian Shade, UKB

Coporate Board Woody Anderson, Melissa Combs, UKB

Advisor Martha Ketcher. Photo by Troy Littledeer

GIDUWAH CHEROKEE NEWS

Assistant Chief

Jeff Wacoche

jwacoche@

ukb-nsn.gov

Secretary

Joyce

Fourkiller

jfourkiller@

ukb-nsn.gov

Treasurer

Sonja Gourd

sgourd@

ukb-nsn.gov

Canadian Dist.

Eddie Sacks

918-822-1957

Cooweescoowee

Dist.

Clifford

Wofford

918-822-1953

By: UKB Chief Joe Bunch

December 2024

Si yo,

I hope all is well and everyone

had a wonderful Christmas, My final

Newsletter, this administration has

seen record support from the federal

government due to covid epedimic,

and we are still recovering from the

virus fall out. We learned new ways

of distributing service to our tribal

members through curb side services.

No employee was sent home, some

worked from home, we didn’t have a

break in service to the tribal members.

We received record breaking funds

from the federal government. For the

first time we have contact with secretary of interior office through the

Assistant Secretary Bryan Newland,

and Secretary Roslyn Tso IHS. Our

channels to our Oklahoma elected officials have opend up and are in good

standing. President Biden nominated

Deb Highland as secretary and Bryan

Newland as assistant Secretary and

the selection of Roslyn Tso Secretary of Indian Health Indian country

scored big with their implementations

When I first came to office we had

to upgrade our our computer systems,

our systems were antinque, we over

came that and have never looked

back. We began reintroducing ourselves to the Oklahoma Delegation,

locally and in DC, we warded off two

attempts of rider bill that would give

cno ability to veto any land transaction or any gaining or implementation

of program funds or programs. We

built and purchased three apartment

coosa wati, going snake and the

upcoming veterans and elder park

project. We expanded with storm

shelter Henry Doublehead child care

Chief's

Corner

JOE BUNCH

Principal Chief

jbunch@ukb-nsn.gov

center, we relocated our court to the

wellness center, we began holding our

monthly council meetings in the newly

named UKB Justice building. We built

Housing warehouse, reroofed the

administration and title VI program

building we built a new maintance

building. With arrival of pandemic

money rwe purchased equipment and

personal safety devices, to manufacture cleaning detergent that is 100

more powerful than bleach to combact

the spread of the virus in addition to

facial masks, we continued our services through curb side service, our

elderly food program shut its doors

and continued service through curb

side pick up. For economic development we purchased rental property in

downtown Tahlequah and stilwell, we

initated 106 L lease programs space

for much of our federally funded

service programs. We build a new 70

child day care service in stilwell, we

purchased Oklahoma Station on lake

tenkiller, recently, we purchased diamond head floats on the Illionis river.

We built new court building and ICW

Building. We assisted tribal members

with general assistance 8, 500.00 and

provided additional program services

dollars, our major occomplishments

was our 76 acres land in trust, we

have attained IHS purchased and referred care program funding, we have

Local Food Purchase Program which

jumpstarts food production from the

local and disadvantaged farmers. We

have had visits from the Assistant Sec-

DECEMBER 2024

retary of Interior, Brian Newland, the

secretary of IHS Roslyand Tso senators

Lankford office and Senator Mullin

Office. We are in progress of building

a new tag office, council chamber and

putting the finished touch of a Smoke

shop. WE purchase 200 acres behind

the Echota RV park and we have purchased the old Marlyn Optical, built

Little Kansas community, purchased a

building in Stilwell to provide Echota

Behavioral Health service. We have

upgraded our aging fleet of service

vehicles and we will look at up grading our computers. We have served

and welcomed the tri council meeting

at lease three times during my administration. We have developed and

implemented our Keetoowah Cherokee Language revitalization program

we look forward to the graduates

and continuing our language. Educationally we have assisted at least 200

young people per year with vocational

and educational training and assistence.

Above the accomplishment mentioned above, the federal government

through government to government

couseltation are respecting and acknowledging our souverignty and

identy as a federally recognized tribe

of Indians.

More importantly, we need to rally

behind our newly elected officials

and continue our support and prayer

for them, our tribe and our nation to

succeed.

It has been my honor and privilege to server and work as the United

Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians

Chief, I look forward to visiting with

you, until we see each other again, do

da go hv i

Chief Joe Bunch

Riley Aimerson Honorable Mention at JOM Art Show

Flint Dist.

Frankie Still

918-507-1822

Goingsnake Dist.

Willie Christie

918-822-3803

Illinois Dist.

Peggy Girty

918-457-7067

Saline Dist.

Charles Smoke

918-457-7071

Sequoyah Dist.

Junior Catron

918-315-0970

Tahlequah Dist.

Terry "Pete"

Kingfisher

918-822-5703

The Johnson O’Malley funded

art show reception on December 17,

featured local schools with Native

American students. The program

recognized several Native students

that practice and excel in cultural arts

and crafts. One of these students was

Riley Aimerson, a 12-year-old student

at Cherokee Immersion School. Riley

is a member of the United Keetoowah

Band, who practices in several crafts.

This year at the JOM show, she created a turtle basket, utilizing skills she

learned from her grandma, Suzie Dick.

The basket was created with designs

passed from Suzie and won First place

in the 5-6 Grade Division and Honor-

​“Like the scripture says, ‘for as in

one body we have many members,

and the members do not all have the

same function,’” UKB Treasurer Sonja

Gourd said. “Tri-council was the one

week where we can join our brothers

and sisters in the EBCI and CNO to

come together, utilizing our individual functions to benefit the one body:

our people. I sincerely believe our

ancestors would be proud to see how

we bonded in fellowship, express our

support for each other—like with the

Moccasin Bend issue at this year’s

meeting—and how we displayed what

it means to be Ani'-Yun'wiya [principal

people].”

​Despite the feelings of unity felt

by UKB Treasurer and Council officer,

Gourd, The Cherokee Phoenix reported on December 20, that Speaker of

the Council of the Cherokee Nation,

Mike Shambaugh stated that Tri-Council has become “a platform for attack

against” the Cherokee Nation, its

sovereignty and even its name, often

cited as “Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma” by the UKB.

​Wacoche has stated Cherokee

sovereignty should unify instead of

splitting. “There are few people that

remain who know how or why this

feud began, but I know where it can

end: with us acting like true leaders,

sitting down together, and working

for the best interest of the Cherokee

people moving forward. That's true

Cherokee sovereignty,” Wacoche said.

able Mention of all the entries. Riley

plans to continue creating cultural art,

and has sold items to the John Hair

Cultural Center. Congratulations Riley!

TRI-COUNCIL

​The United Keetoowah Band are

scheduled to host the 2025 Cherokee

Tri-Council.

Statement from Joe Bunch,

Chief of the United Keetoowah

Band of Cherokee Indians

From broadband administration

and education funding, to sending a

Cherokee delegate to Congress, there

is opportunity after opportunity to

work together for the good of the

Cherokee people. And yet, the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma refuses

to work with the United Keetoowah

Band of Cherokee Indians to tackle

these issues common to both federally

recognized Indian tribes living side-byside in Northeastern Oklahoma. The

CNO announcement to withdraw from

Tri-Council is another ugly marker on

the CNO leadership’s misadventure

against the United Keetoowah Band

people.

To both CNO citizens and UKB

members, I beseech you to listen to

what our tribes are saying, and gauge

for yourselves the sincerity and intentions behind the statements being

made by both. Listen to our openness

and our honesty, with no hidden agenda and no delusions of dominance

over the affairs of our sister Cherokee

tribe in Oklahoma. And then listen

to the preemptive aggressor, whose

noisy and incendiary media apparatus

works to revise our shared history and

mislead its people. As UKB tribal leaders, we have implored the CNO to join

with us and only get attacked for it by

the very vocal and camera-loving CNO

principal chief.

Instead, Chuck Hoskin stokes

division, politicizes issues that should

never be political, and works to the

erasure of the United Keetoowah

Band and its people’s rich history. We

know that Chuck Hoskin’s actions are

no reflection of what is in the hearts

of the people of the Cherokee Nation

of Oklahoma. Our families live, work

and worship together, and this conflict

could end with the stroke of a pen by

the elected officials within the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma.

We will never apologize for the

historical fact that the CNO is not the

only federally recognized Cherokee

tribe and not the only successor in

interest in Oklahoma to the Cherokee

Treaties.

The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians and the United Keetoowah Band

of Cherokee Indians remain aligned

in our promise to our people and will

continue to collaborate productively to

ensure the long-term well-being and

prosperity of all Cherokee. Our tribes

will continue to collaborate through

the Tri-Council and welcome the

Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma to join

us – when CNO officials decide to do

what is right and just for the Cherokee

people.

DECEMBER 2024

GIDUWAH CHEROKEE NEWS

Keetoowah Museum Employees

Oaks Mission Schools

Show Appreciation for

receives early Christmas gifts

Lighthorse Employees

Two weeks before Christmas break, the Native American Missions and

Evangelism team brings “shoe box” ministry to the school.

LANI HANSEN, Senior Reporter

Museum employees with two Keetoowah Lighthorse members and their gift bags.

Lighthorse director, Charlie Dreadfulwater, security officer Trent Frailey, assistant museum director Barbara Girty Foster, and museum employees Kyndal Aimerson and Raelie Grayson. (not pictured are museum employees Ernestine Berry and Marilyn Craig

Keetoowah Lighthorse were given

appreciation gift bags for Christmas

by the John Hair Cultural Center and

Keetoowah Museum staff. The gift

bags contained a personalized ornament, Keetoowah coffee cup, homemade candy, Chex mix, a Starbucks

gift card and museum giveaway

items.

The handmade card read, “Keetoowah Lighthorse, you are each

worthy of our deepest respect and

we appreciate what you do for our

community. We are so thankful for

your service and wish you and your

families the very best holiday season.

From all of us at the John Hair Cultural Center and Keetoowah Muse-

um.

“With the recent attacks on our

Lighthorse from CNO, we wanted to

let them know how much we appreciate them,” said Barbara Girty Foster.

“We sometimes host other departments in appreciation for their work

and this time we wanted to recognize

Lighthorse,” she added.

OAKS, Okla- Christmastime is

upon us, and Oaks Mission School

was in for a big surprise when the

students received Christmas “Shoe

Boxes” filled with gifts, from the

Native American Missions and Evangelism (N.A.M.E.).

Oaks Mission School has a long

history of educating Native American children, which is why 85% of

the student population are Native

American with many of those being

UKB tribal members. Oaks is a school

providing education starting from

three-years-old to twelfth grade, with

150 students.

The “Shoe Box” ministry within

the N.A.M.E. organization goes back

25 years ago, taking little things like

hats, gloves and coats to the Sioux

tribes in North Dakota/South Dakota.

They also have taken this ministry to

New Mexico.

“This year was the first we have

branched out to the children at Oaks

Mission,” N.A.M.E. representative

and Oaks School Board member

Keith Marler said. “Which I do appreciate those who put the shoe boxes

together.”

Marler, who is an Oaks Mission

graduate and Pastor of Country

Baptist Church in Rose, OK said it

had been laid on his heart to bring

the ministry to the school. Two weeks

before school let out for Christmas

break, Marler and a group from his

Elders' Circle

Welcome to the new Keetoowah Elders’ Circle! This is a designated space for sharing information about the wisdom, knowledge, and experiences of our tribal elders. Please send

us your elder family member highlights. We can recognize elder members’ birthdays, anniversaries, share funny family stories about the old days and favorite recipes, post family

reunion announcements or new additions to the family. Send Elder stories and announcements to: media@ukb-nsn.gov.

Keith Marler speaks on behalf of NA.M.E.

with students at Oaks Mission Schools.

Photo by Lani Hansen

Members of Country Baptist Church help

hand out the “Shoe Box” gifts to students. Photo by Lani Hansen

church handed these gifts out to the

students.

“Seeing the kids get shoe boxes

were perfect for what we needed

at the time, so we appreciate that,”

Oaks Elementary School Principal

Holly Davis commented.

N.A.M.E. is a mission group made

up of individuals from different

churches, ranging from Arkansas,

Mississippi and Oklahoma.

Other Elder News:

Next Elder Committee Meeting will be held at

UKB Title VI-Jim Proctor Elder Nutrition Center

Tahlequah, OK

January 13 | 12:00 PM

Everyone Welcome!

Remembering an old time Christmas as a Child

By Lois Fuller

My best childhood memories

were living in a 3-room log house

with my 5 sisters and 5 brothers in

which I was number 10. As it got

closer to Christmas time, my older

siblings would go to the woods and

find a nice Christmas tree. Mom

would then trim the tree and put it

in a bucket with dirt to hold the tree

in. Mom watered the Christmas tree

daily. We also had a woodstove. I

don’t know how the Christmas tree

never burned up. The tree decorations were all homemade. The garland was made from popcorn and

mom made bells from egg carton and

foil. I remember the ladies from a

church always coming before Christmas with gently used clothing and

toys and small bags of candy. I stood

behind mom and watched. I didn’t

fully understand what was spoken in

English, but they were nice. English

was hardly spoken at home.

Mom cooked on a wood burning

cookstove which made all the food

taste so good. I don’t know when we

was home grown except the deer.

We also had pumpkin pie, raisin pie,

apple pie and dad’s favorite, pineapple upside down cake. I loved mom’s

apple pie because I could carry a slice

of pie in my hand, and it wouldn’t

crumble apart.​

We didn’t have electricity or running water. We had kerosene lamps

for light, the family would go out and

cut wood for heating and cooking

with while dad would go hunting for

squirrels. We had a water well a few

feet from house.

Oh, how I would like to go back

in time to have another Christmas

started having turkey or ham at our

like this. Now I’m an Elder, 6 of my

Christmas meals. Our Christmas meal siblings have passed on to be with

consisted of deer meat, fried Chicken, our mom and dad. I’m a grandmother

squirrel dumplings, chicken dressing, now, leaving memories that might

mashed potatoes, gravy, green beans someday be told by my grandchildren

and homemade biscuits. All the food of my old time Christmas as a child.

GIDUWAH CHEROKEE NEWS

DECEMBER 2024

Christmas Native Art Show and Sale a Successful Event

“We’d like to say a special, heartfelt thank you to our volunteers, who made the day a great success and were so much help. Their contributions

are numerous, and their impact is great,” said museum assistant museum director Barbara Girty Foster.

TAHLEQUAH - The Third Annual

John Hair Cultural Center and Keetoowah Museum’s Christmas Native

Art Show and Sale was a multigenerational fun event! Babies, kids, adults

of all ages, and moms, dads and

grandparents were in attendance.

Exhibitors displayed both original

paintings and prints, beadwork, jewelry, textiles, woodwork, Christmas

ornaments and decorations, cornhusk

dolls, baskets, ribbon skirts, pies,

breads, cakes, cookies, candy, and

jam. Two food vendors set up outside including Patti G ‘s Tacos and Ga

Du, who served corn soup, frybread,

beans, and Rezdogs.

Tradition Keepers participating in

the event with a booth for their original items included Marcella Foreman,

Tanisa Foreman, Lena Deere, Betty

Holcomb, Char Wolfe, Sharon Benoit,

and Roger Loftis. These folks, along

with Tradition Keepers Sammy Still

and Ernestine Berry, donated twenty-one items for the TK Raffle, which

was held at 4 pm on Saturday. The

drawing was live on Tradition Keeper

Char Wolfe’s Facebook page. Staff

contacted winners by phone, and

winners were asked to pick up their

items in the next 30 days.

2024 Tradition Keeper Roger Loftis sells his paintings, while his sister Faye Loftis

sells Kanuchi balls.

Betty Holcomb teaches a group how to

make Kanuchi.

This toddler had his first taste of Kanuchi.

There was a good stream of people throughout the two-day event.

Attendees were treated to holiday

refreshments including homemade

Christmas cookies, chocolate dipped

cookies, apple cider and coffee. The

room was decorated beautifully with

white lights and snowflakes hanging

from the ceiling and greenery, bright

lights, red bows and a fiberoptic

Christmas tree.

The Kanuchi making class and

demonstrations were popular, and the

museum ended up with quite a few

Kanuchi balls to put in the freezer

for future events. The 2024 Tradition

Keeper, Betty Holcomb, recognized

for Domestic Arts, conducted the

class.

“We’d like to say a special, heartfelt thank you to our volunteers,

who made the day a great success

and were so much help. Our volunteers and staff worked hard for the

past month decorating the museum

indoors and out, restocking the gift

shop and they also decorated Christmas cookies for a couple of days.

Their contributions are numerous,

and their impact is great,” said museum assistant museum director Barbara Girty Foster.

Daughters of 2024 Tradition Keeper Betty Holcomb’s daughters, Tonya Hudson and

Dondi Atkins, sell baked goods at their mother’s booth. Betty was outside doing

Kanuchi making demonstrations.

Yum, give me more Kanuchi, Mom!

This attendee came straight to the Keetoowah Native Art Show from her graduation from Northeastern State University.

Keetoowah Museum Hosts Tahlequah Chamber of Commerce Monthly Mingle

TAHLEQUAH – Over 80 people were in attendance when the John Hair Cultural Center and

Keetoowah Museum staff hosted the Tahlequah

Area Chamber of Commerce Monthly Mingle on

Friday, December 6. Monthly Mingle is a get-together of chamber members and is always held

from 8 to 9 am on the first Friday of the month.

A different Chamber member hosts this event

every month, and it is a place to network, and to

get to know other members or businesses/people

interested in becoming members. On top of networking, the monthly events are highlighted, and

newcomers get the chance to introduce themselves

and their businesses.

Thanks to many hours of hard work from

museum volunteers and staff, the museum gallery,

gift shop, classroom and hallway were decked out

in their Christmas splendor, with a roaring fire

on the tv screen as Christmas music played in the

background. Guests were served mini frybread

breakfast sandwiches, Kanuchi, pastries, coffee,

and juices.

“We loved hosting our chamber members and

it was a great opportunity to showcase our museum and gift shop,” said assistant museum director

Barbara Girty Foster. It was nice for our staff to

meet some of the folks that are part of the Chamber, and we enjoyed having them here,” she added.

How do you light up a room? Ask museum staff and

volunteers!

Christie Kirk, Kim Hair, Terry Kingfisher, Barbara Girty

Foster and Rolanda Aimerson.

Keetoowah employees host the Monthly Mingle. (front

row l to r) Ernestine Berry, Marilyn Craig, and Kyndal

Aimerson. (back row l to r)

Protect your home and weather the cold.

We are committed to sharing

knowledge and helping you

identify risks and remove

hazards.

Your safety is important to us

and prevention is key!

Visit and follow the United

Keetoowah Band Housing on

Facebook for more tips on:

• Freezing Pipe Safety

• Fireplace Safety

• Space Heater Safety

• Stay safe and keep warm!

DECEMBER 2024

GIDUWAH CHEROKEE NEWS

Tahlequah Christmas Parade of Trees

Wado to the Tahlequah Christmas Parade of Trees for having us! UKB represented well this evening, Chief Joe Bunch, Assistant Chief Jeff Wacoche, Jr. Miss Keetoowah Grayci Spradlin, Echota Behavioral Health, UKB Henry Lee Doublehead CDC and a few employees!

Photos: Lani Hansen

UKB Tag Agency awaits new facility Title VI Nutrition Program Christmas

The new Tag agency on the tribal complex is expected to be finished

between December 2024 and January 2025.

The Title VI Nutrition Program

hosted a Christmas dinner for the

elders on Tuesday, December 17. The

menu included baked ham, mashed

potatoes and gravy, green beans, hot

roll and apple cobbler, coffee, tea,

and milk. Elders also got to select

a Christmas gift, which was a hand

knitted beanie. These beanies were

donated by two sisters who crochet

and donate their work. The name of

their company is LENA. “We appreciate the generous donation from these

ladies. It was a great gift that our

elders loved,” said Rebecca Dreadfulwater, Title

Construction progression of the new UKB Tag Agency. Photo by Lani Hansen

TAHLEQUAH, Okla- The wait is

over for the Keetoowah Tag Agency and Tax Commission as the new

office building is being constructed, it

is expected to be completed between

December 2024 and January 2025.

It has been a couple of years ago,

since we announced the groundbreaking of this new facility and to

see it happening with four walls and

a roof, both Joyce Hawk and Sheila

Bluebird express their excitement.

Tribal Secretary and Tax Commission Chairman, Joyce Hawk said the

space of the current offices was small

for them and so in a meeting with the

Tax Commission they sent bids out

for the construction of a new building. It was one thing after another

when they received a bid and found

contractors willing to work with what

the Tax Commission wanted in the

new building.

“As long as I have been on the Tax

Commission, this is all I ever wanted for the staff in the tag agency is

to have their own building,” Hawk

said. “We are not federally funded;

we work off generated revenue. I feel

like that it should show that ARPA

and our revenue can sustain it and

that is how we got our tag office.”

The progression of the new facility began within the last few months

of 2024. The new Tag Agency will

be drive-thru but also customers will

still be able to walk in. This will also

include a waiting area, a walk-up

window where the tag office staff will

conduct business and a restroom. In

the back, staff will have a breakroom,

a file room, office space and a file

room.

Tag Agency Supervisor Sheila

Bluebird said, “I have been waiting a

long time for this new tag office. I’m

excited and can’t wait to move in.”

The UKB Tag Agency houses three

employees, Supervisor Sheila Bluebird, Tax Clerk Jamie Studie-Dick and

Tag Specialist Sunni Steeley.

Hours of operation are, 8:30 a.m.

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Title VI Nutrition coordinator Rebecca Dreadfulwater, (right) gives a beanie to tribal

elder Dorothy Ice.

GIDUWAH CHEROKEE NEWS

By: PRESS RELEASE

White House Tribal Nations Summit

Monday, December 9, 2024

The following fact sheet was released by

the White House on December 9, 2024.

Today President Biden will host the

fourth and final White House Tribal

Nations Summit of the Biden-Harris

Administration, reaffirming the Administration’s historic progress on

strengthening the Nation-to-Nation

relationships with Tribal Nations and

cementing its legacy as one of the most

supportive Administrations for Tribes

ever.

At the Summit, President Biden

will announce a new proclamation

establishing the Carlisle Federal Indian

Boarding School National Monument in

Carlisle, Pennsylvania. The new national monument will tell the story of

the oppression endured by thousands

of Native children and their families at

this site and the harmful legacy of the

broader Indian boarding school system

that the federal government operated

or supported across the country for

more than 150 years. This action builds

on President Biden’s historic Presidential apology and the leadership of

Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland

to establish and lead research and listening sessions with Tribes and Native

communities across the country as part

of the Federal Indian Boarding School

Initiative.

Respect for Tribal Nations is a

cornerstone of the Biden-Harris Administration’s policies for Indian Country

– policies that are highlighted at the

Summit. In addition to the new national monument designation, the Administration will announce a historic,

all-of-government strategy to preserve

and revitalize Native languages. The

strategy would expand access to immersion language programs in schools,

support community-led language

education efforts, and promote Native

language schools and programs. The

Administration will also showcase new

initiatives supporting Tribal sovereignty, self-determination, and the federal

trust responsibility, while bringing together Tribal leaders and senior administration officials to discuss priorities

for Indian Country.

Since taking office, President Biden

and Vice President Harris have delivered a record-breaking $45 billion in

investments in Indian Country through

the Investing in America agenda,

transforming infrastructure, expanding

healthcare, advancing education, and

addressing systemic and historic injustices. Landmark policies and federal

action, such as elevating Tribal consultation, investing in developing co-stewardship agreements, elevating the incorporation of Indigenous Knowledge,

and implementing government-wide

training on Tribal treaty rights and the

trust responsibility, have centered Native voices in federal decision-making.

From the protection of sacred lands

through national monument designations and the conservation of over

45 million acres of lands and waters,

to the historic Presidential apology

for Federal Indian boarding schools,

the Biden-Harris Administration has

affirmed its deep respect for Tribes and

Native communities.

During the Summit, the Biden-Harris Administration will also release a

comprehensive 2024 Progress Report

for Tribal Nations, which outlines historic progress the Administration has

made over the past year to deliver on

the President’s commitment to supporting Indian Country, and to address the

top concerns of Tribal communities.

New Administration-wide actions

include:

Healing from the Federal Indian

Boarding School Era

• Designating the Carlisle Federal Indian Boarding School National Monument. By establishing a new national

monument at the site of the former

Carlisle Federal Indian Industrial

School, President Biden is acknowledging the Federal Indian boarding

school era, advancing healing, and

commemorating the resilience of

Tribal Nations and Indigenous Peoples. For more than 150 years, the

Federal Government removed American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native

Hawaiian children from their families, Tribes, and homelands – often by

President Joe Biden delivers remarks at the White House Tribal Nations Summit in

Washington, D.C., on December 6, 2023. Photo by Adam Schultz / White House

force or coercion – and transported

Native languages across the lower

them to institutions that aimed to

48 states, Alaska, and Hawai’i. The

strip them of their languages, reliPlan lays out a long-term, all-of-govgions, and cultures.

ernment strategy that works with

Tribal Nations, the Native Hawaiian

From 1879 to when it ceased operCommunity, urban Native commuations in 1918, the Carlisle School subnities, Native language experts,

jected 7,800 children from more than

schools, community organizations,

140 Indian Tribes (including Alaska Naand the philanthropic sector for the

tive Villages) to its coercive education

protection, preservation, reclamation

program. The school served as a model

and revitalization of Native languagfor the Federal Indian boarding school

es. The Plan’s proposals would: 1)

system, which operated throughout the

expand access to immersion language

early 19th through mid-20th centuries

environments, 2) support commuand comprised over 400 other federnity-led revitalization efforts, and

ally-supported, off-reservation schools

3) develop, grow and sustain Native

across the United States, as well as

language support networks. The Plan

hundreds of similar institutions opalso recommends ways to address a

erated by religious organizations. At

chronic under-investment in Native

least 973 Native children died in these

language revitalization to date.

schools according to available federal

records, and the children who survived

Meeting the Federal Trust Reoften endured physical, emotional, and sponsibility

sexual abuse. At Carlisle, school offi• OMB Guidance on Unmet Federal

cials forced children to cut their hair,

Obligations. OMB’s guidance furthers

prohibited them from speaking their

the goals of Executive Order 14112,

Native languages, and subjected them

which seeks to reform Federal fundto harsh labor.

ing to be more consistent with Tribal

The new national monument will

self-determination and sovereignty.

be located in Carlisle, Pennsylvania

The new guidance supports a comon 24.5 acres of what is now the U.S.

prehensive effort to address chronic

Army’s Carlisle Barracks, one of the

underfunding of Tribal programs by

nation’s oldest military installations.

calculating unmet federal obligations

The monument boundary encompasses

and developing actionable recomthe historic buildings and structures

mendations for closing funding gaps.

that made up the campus of the Carlisle School – including School Road

Promoting Understanding of

Gateposts that were built by the labor

Tribal Consultation and Tribal Treaty

of Native American children and youth Rights and Reserved Rights

at the school. The gateposts still stand

• Trainings for Federal Employees

today as a marker of the removal and

on Tribal Consultation and Tribal

separation of children from their famiTreaty and Reserved Rights. The

lies, Tribes, and homelands. The monDepartment of the Interior, Office

ument will be cooperatively managed

of Personnel Management, and the

by the National Park Service and the

Office of Management and Budget, in

U.S. Army. The National Park Service,

coordination with the White House

in coordination with the Army, will

Council on Native American Affairs,

engage Tribal Nations and the Native

are releasing trainings available to

Hawaiian Community in development

Federal employees on Tribal consulof the management plan and ongoing

tation and Tribal Treaty and Reserved

management of the monument, and

Rights. These trainings reflect years

provide for Tribal consultation with

of Tribal leader input and will assist

any federally recognized Tribe with

federal employees across the governhistorical connections to any part of the

ment in understanding their role in

Federal Indian boarding school system

supporting Tribal consultation and

to help ensure the national monument

the federal trust responsibility to

tells the full story of this site, similar

Tribes.

institutions, and the broader federal

Indian boarding school era.

Reforming Federal Processes for

With the establishment of the new

Tribal Nations

national monument, the Army will

• FEMA Tribal Declarations Interim

now transfer administrative jurisdicGuidance. New guidance will streamtion over the gateposts to the National

line the process for Tribal Nations

Park Service, and the agencies will sign

seeking disaster declarations, ina memorandum of understanding to

cluding reducing minimum damage

guide their cooperative management

thresholds, enhancing cost-sharing

of the national monument. The Carlisle

adjustments, and expanding assisFederal Indian Boarding School Natance for Tribal members.

tional Monument is President Biden’s

• HHS Tribal Data Access Policy. The

twelfth use of the Antiquities Act.

new policy establishes clear guidelines and timelines for Tribes and

Promoting Native Languages

Tribal Epidemiology Centers (TECs)

• 10-Year Native Language Revitalto access critical health data, adization Plan. While there were once

vancing public health outcomes and

hundreds of thriving Native languagaddressing data disparities.

es in the U.S., over three quarters of

the remaining 190 languages spoken

Supporting Tribes and Other

today are now endangered. Studies

Communities Considering Voluntary

indicate fewer than 20 languages will Relocation

exist by 2050 if no action is taken.

• Opportunities for Federal Support

The Departments of the Interior,

of Community-Driven Relocation

Education, and Health and Human

Report. The Community-Driven ReloServices and the White House Councation Subcommittee of the National

cil on Native American Affairs are

Climate Task Force is releasing the

publishing a 10-year National Plan

Opportunities for Federal Support of

on Native Language Revitalization

Community-Driven Relocation report,

(Plan) that calls for strategic actions

which provides background on volto address the United States govuntary community-driven relocation

ernment’s historic role in the loss of

to avoid climate- and pollution-re-

DECEMBER 2024

lated hazards, an overview of the

current Federal legal and programmatic landscape, and next steps that

are available for Federal agencies to

support Tribes and other communities contemplating relocation due

to severe environmental impact and

hazards from climate change. The

report recognizes the disproportionate climate-related risks that Tribal

communities face and the leadership

that Tribal communities have already

demonstrated in relocating their communities and partnering with Federal,

State, and local governments as well

as other partners. An accompanying

resource guide will help Tribes and

communities identify specific Federal

agencies, and programs to support

their efforts.

These announcements build upon

historic actions by the Biden-Harris

Administration to support Tribal Nations and Native communities, which

include:

• Historic investments in Tribal

Nations, including $32 billion in the

American Rescue Plan, the largest

direct federal investment to Tribal

Nations in history; $13 billion in the

Bipartisan Infrastructure Law; and over

$700 million in the Inflation Reduction

Act.

• Signing two Presidential Memoranda directing federal agencies to

submit plans of action to implement

meaningful consultation with Tribal

Nations and establishing uniform standards for Tribal Consultation.

• Historic appointments of Native

Americans across the Administration,

including Secretary of the Interior Deb

Haaland and over 80 Native Americans

in senior Administration roles.

• Re-launching the Tribal Nations

Summit and re-establishing the White

House Council on Native American Affairs that serves to foster an all-of-government approach to coordinating and

developing Tribal policy.

• Signing an Executive Order to improve public safety and criminal justice

and address the crisis of Missing and

Murdered Indigenous People (MMIP)

by directing agencies to prioritize addressing this crisis and assessing what

more can be accomplished.

• Signing an Executive Order to

improve educational outcomes and

career opportunities for Native American students by focusing on systemic

barriers, increasing access to high-quality education, and fostering economic

empowerment.

• Securing the first-ever advance

appropriations for the Indian Health

Service, which provides long-overdue

funding stability and predictability for

IHS.

• Signing a Presidential Memorandum to Restore Healthy and Abundant

Native Fish Populations in the Columbia River, which supports cultural and

spiritual practices, commerce, and

economic growth for Tribes.

• Authoring the first-of-its-kind

government-wide Indigenous Knowledge guidance that assists federal

agencies in recognizing and including

Indigenous Knowledge in Federal research, policy, and decision making.

• Restoring protections for the

Grand Staircase-Escalante and Bear

Ears National Monuments in Utah and

designating and expanding the following national monuments that hold

significance to Tribal Nations: Avi Kwa

Ame in Nevada; Castner Range in Texas; Baaj Nwaavjo I’tah Kukveni Ancestral Footprints of the Grand Canyon in

Arizona; and Berryessa Snow Mountain

and San Gabriel Mountains National

Monuments in California.

• Increasing Tribal Co-Stewardship

of Lands and Waters through historic

co-stewardship agreements. During

the Biden-Harris Administration, the

Departments of the Interior, Agriculture and Commerce have signed 400

co-stewardship agreements with Tribes,

Alaska Native Corporations, and consortiums.

United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians in Oklahoma Chief Joe

Bunch, along with UKB Assistant Chief

Jeff Wacoche and UKB Treasurer Sonja

Gourd attended the White House’s Tribal

Nations Summit in Washington on December 9.

DECEMBER 2024

GIDUWAH CHEROKEE NEWS

A Lumbee Recognition Bill Passes U.S. House Again

make. They can protect the integrity of federal recognition, or they

For the third Congress in a

can pave the way for groups to

row, a House bill that would

claim tribal status without evigrant federal recognition to the

state-recognized Lumbee Tribe of dence. I am calling on the Senate

to do what is right. I urge them

North Carolina has passed. By a

to reject H.R. 1101 and direct the

vote of 311-96, the Lumbee FairLumbee group to seek recognition

ness Act (H.R. 1101) passed the

U.S. House of Representatives, in through the established process

at the Office of Federal Acknowlthe 118th Congress, on Tuesday,

edgment. This process exists for

Dec. 17, 2024.

a reason — to protect the soverThe bill was introduced on

Feb. 17, 2023 by Rep. David Rou- eignty, culture, and legacy of true

tribal nations.”

zer (R-N.C.) who said in a stateUgvwiyuhi Hicks added, “The

ment on Tuesday, “The Lumbee

Eastern

Band of Cherokee Indians

people are an integral part of our

southeastern North Carolina com- stands alongside the United Indian

Nations of Oklahoma, the Coamunity. They are our neighbors

and friends. We attend church to- lition of Large Tribes, the Great

gether. Our children go to school Plains Tribal Chairmen’s Association, the Affiliated Tribes of Northtogether. But, for generations,

the Lumbee Tribe has been denied west Indians, and tribal nations

full federal recognition and tribal across the country in calling for

fairness, transparency, and acsovereignty. Today, I am proud

the House of Representatives came countability in federal recognition

together to pass my bill, the Lum- decisions. The Senate must uphold

bee Fairness Act, and help ensure the standards that protect all tribal

the Lumbee people have the same nations from harm and injustice.”

rights and benefits as the other

This issue has been before

federally-recognized tribes across

Congress

before. Following are

the country.”

the results of Lumbee recognition

The Eastern Band of Cherobills from the past 10 Congresses

kee Indians (EBCI) has opposed

Lumbee recognition for years. In alone.

a statement on Tuesday night,

• The Lumbee Recognition Act

Ugvwiyuhi (Principal Chief) Mi(H.R. 2758), in the 117th

chell Hicks noted, “The passage

Congress, passed the House

of this bill is a serious blow to the

by a vote of 357-59 on Nov. 1,

integrity of federal tribal recogni2021.

tion. By suspending the rules and

•

The Lumbee Tribe of North

eliminating meaningful discusCarolina Recognition Act (H.R.

sion, Congress has chosen politi1964), in the 116th Congress,

cal expediency over the rigorous

passed the House by a voice

standards that have long protected

vote on Nov. 16, 2020.

tribal sovereignty and identity. If

•

The Lumbee Recognition Act

enacted, H.R. 1101 would create

(H.R. 2352), in the 115th Cona dangerous precedent — one that

gress, died in the House Suballows groups to achieve federal

committee on Indian, Insular

recognition without meeting the

and Alaska Native Affairs.

established requirements for his•

The Lumbee Recognition Act

torical, genealogical, and cultural

(H.R. 184), in the 114th Conevidence. Every other tribal nation

gress, died in the House Subthat has sought recognition has

committee on Indian, Insular

had to meet these standards.

and Alaska Native Affairs.

For decades, federally recog•

The Lumbee Recognition Act

nized tribes have fought to uphold

(H.R. 1803), in the 113th Conthe integrity of this process. The

gress, died in the House SubLumbee group has not met these

committee on Indian, Insular

standards. They cannot identify

and Alaska Native Affairs.

which historical tribe they descend

•

The Lumbee Recognition Act

from, and recent genealogical and

(H.R. 27), in the 112th Conhistorical research has exposed

gress, died in the House Subsignificant flaws in their claims.

committee on Indian, Insular

Federal recognition is not an

and Alaska Native Affairs.

entitlement. It is a status earned

•

The Lumbee Recognition Act

through evidence, not politics.”

(H.R. 31), in the 111th ConCherokee Nation Ugvwiyuhi

gress, passed the House by a

Chuck Hoskin Jr. joined Ugvwivote of 240-179 on June 3,

yuhi Hicks’ sentiment in a state2009.

ment. “Today, the U.S. House of

•

The Lumbee Recognition Act

Representatives chose stories over

(H.R. 65), in the 110th Conevidence and passed the Lumbee

gress, passed the House by a

Fairness Act. I hope the Senate

vote of 256-128 on June 7,

will again choose evidence over

2007.

stories and stand up against this

•

The Lumbee Recognition Act

latest attempt to circumvent and

(H.R. 21), in the 109th Conerode the established federal recgress, died in the House Comognition process.”

mittee on Resources.

Ugvwiyuhi Hicks said other

• The Lumbee Recognition

tribes have the same standpoint

Act (S.420), in the 108th

as the EBCI and the Cherokee

Congress, passed the Senate

Nation. “This is not just an issue

Committee on Indian Affairs

for the Eastern Band of Cherokee

on Nov. 24, 2003 but never

Indians — it is an Indian Counmade it to a vote in the Senate.

try issue. If Congress opens the

There was no House compandoor to recognition without eviion bill in that Congress.

dence, other groups will follow.

Congressman Chuck Edwards

Groups with no legitimate claims

(R-N.C.)

spoke of the floor of the

to tribal identity or sovereignty

will attempt to take advantage of U.S. House of Representatives on

Sept. 25 in opposition to the Lumthis shortcut. The floodgates will

bee Recognition Act and in favor

open, and the burden will fall on

every federally recognized tribe to of groups going through the OFA

defend their status, resources, and process.

“For over 40 years, the Departcultural heritage from encroachment

of the Interior has carried

ment.

out a merit-based process, as set

The Senate has a choice to

By: Cherokee One Feather Asst. Editor

out by Congress and administered

by the Office of Federal Acknowledgement (OFA), to make determinations on federal recognition

of tribes. If the administration or

Congress allows the Lumbee to

bypass the OFA, it sends a clear

message that other groups with

dubious claims for tribal recognition can also avoid the deliberation and scrutiny that the OFA

petition is designed to provide.”

His remarks continued, “If

there was actual merit behind the

Lumbee case for federal recognition, they’d go through the OFA

process as set out in the law. But,

as they know, it won’t hold up under a deliberative process, they’ve

instead sought to get special treatment through other avenues, all

in the face of credible opposition

by multiple federally recognized

tribes.”

The Office of Federal Acknowledgement (OFA) is located within

the Office of the Assistant Secretary – Indian Affairs. According

to information from the OFA, “By

applying anthropological, genealogical, and historical research

methods, OFA reviews, verifies,

and evaluates groups’ petitions for

federal acknowledgment as Indian

Tribes.”

As of Wednesday, Dec. 18,

2024, there are nine groups with

petitions going through the OFA

process including the following:

Tuskarora Nation of Moratoc

Indians (N.C.), Salinan Tribe of

Monterey and San Luis Obispo

Counties (Calif.), Tripanick Nansemond Family Indian Tribe (Kan.),

Chihene Nde Nation of New Mexico (N.M.), Fernandeno Tataviam

Band of Mission Indians (Calif.),

Butte Tribe of Bayou Bourbeaux

(La.), Schaghticoke Indian Tribe

(Conn.), Muscogee Nation of Florida (Fla.), and the Piro/Manso/

Tiwa Indian Tribe of the Pueblo of

San Juan de Guadalupe (N.M.).

Cards bearing the logo of the

United Indian Nations of Oklahoma (UINO) were distributed

during a General Assembly meeting at the 81st Annual National

Congress of American Indians

(NCAI) Convention and Marketplace on Tuesday, Oct. 29 and

caused a stir within the organization. The cards rebutted the

history and recognition efforts of

the state-recognized Lumbee Tribe

of North Carolina.

The card reads as follows:

“The Dangers of Legislative

Recognition for Lumbee

try

Shifting claims of tribal ances-

Claims to Native ancestry rely

on speculation, not historically or

genealogically verifiable information

Lumbee would be the only

group to receive recognition without identifying any specific tribe

from which they descend.

Lower recognition standards

will open doors for false groups

and have profound consequences

for legitimate tribes’ cultural resources, sacred places, and ancestral remains.”

The card distributed at NCAI

contains a QR Code linking to a

study on UINO’s website. The

study, by Jean M. Kelley, M.A., is

entitled “Analysis of Lumbee Historical and Genealogical Claims”.

In the 19-page report, Kelley

states, “The totality of Lumbee

claims lacks properly attributed

historical documentation and

relies on speculative connections

rather than verified facts.”

Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), who

introduced the Lumbee Fairness

Act (S.521) in the Senate, said

in a statement on Tuesday, “I

am dedicated to ensuring that

Congress fulfills its six-decadeold promise to grant full federal

recognition to the Lumbee people.

We are now closer than ever to

finally fulfilling that promise.”

Sen. Tillis has blocked legislation (S.2088 – Wounded Knee

Massacre Memorial and Sacred

Site Act) that would place around

40 acres of land on the Pine Ridge

Indian Reservation in South Dakota into restricted fee status for the

Oglala Sioux Tribe and Cheyenne

River Sioux Tribe.

Basically, when passed, the bill

would guarantee that no commercial development nor gaming

could occur at the site of a major atrocity where the U.S. Army

killed over 300 (numbers vary on

total killed) Lakota men, women,

and children on the icy morning of

Dec. 29, 1890, at Wounded Knee

Creek.

OJ Semans, executive director of C.O.L.T. (Coalition of Large

Tribes), wrote a commentary

along with his wife, Barb Semans,

which appears in Native News Online. They wrote, “As with many

other bills that purport to help Indian Country, Tillis blocked it from

proceeding, trying to force his

colleagues to address his Lumbee

recognition bill, circumventing the

Department of the Interior’s standard administrative tribal recognition process.

I do not believe Senator Tillis

contacted the Lumbee prior to

blocking the Wounded Knee legislation, but I would be interested in

the Lumbee leadership’s stance on

his actions. It is our descendants

who are negatively affected by

his actions. We believe the Lumbee need to respond in support or

opposition to Tillis’s use of their

issue – at the expense of another

Tribe – to meet his own political

agenda. The Lumbee’s silence is

tacit support.”

S.521 is currently going

through the Senate and is in the

Committee on Indian Affairs.

This story comes to Giduwa

Cherokee News from Scott McKie

B.P. through his reporting work

with CHEROKEE ONE FEATHER.

GIDUWAH CHEROKEE NEWS

DECEMBER 2024