By UKB Chief Joe Bunch
Si yo, ni ga da
Where did summer go? Kids are already back in school, so watch out for early morning and afternoon traffic as children load and unload from school buses in rural Oklahoma. Is your high school football team preparing for the upcoming season? Boy, it’s been hot.
Last month we had the opportunity to show who we are by hosting the Leadership Native Oklahoma Conference, and we just finished with the Oklahoma Intertribal Tax Association here at our venue and on our grounds. We thank both associations for allowing us to partner with them in their work to improve, inform, and bring Native America to the forefront. It is always a pleasure and honor to showcase our buildings and the history of who we are.
We just completed the Ecohta Behavioral Health outreach with the Goingsnake district; we hosted an elders’ event with food, program activities, and bingo. It is always great to see elders from the communities. Elder and language teacher John Chewey was on hand to explain and gather information from the elders while speaking in Cherokee; to hear all speak in Cherokee was good medicine as the words were familiar. It was difficult to understand all of the conversation.
We are still in serious negotiations with the Indian Health Service (IHS), and things are moving in our direction. By the time you read this message, we will have the resources to start a clinic for our tribal people — no more being denied or discriminated against because we are Keetoowah, no more suppression of medical services or using medical services as leverage to get our tribal members to switch tribes. Thank you, Lord, for answering my prayer for our own medical facility; you are most gracious. This administration and council have secured an opportunity to provide medical services to our tribal people, meaning we have laid the groundwork to have a clinic on our tribal grounds.
By the time you read this, we will be in full election mode, and as time goes on, the names of candidates will be listed. I need to tell you it has been a privilege and honor to serve the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians. I have worked in Indian Country for 41 years, 19 of those for the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians. I have always said working at Keetoowah is like coming home and working for Indian people. I have decided not to run for reelection; it has been my greatest honor to serve our tribe. If needed, I’ll be a phone call away. We have a strong team in place, and if all are reelected, we will and can lead and move our tribal government to the next level, generating services for our tribal members. Unfinished items like supplemental food distribution, solar or wind power generation, affordable housing, continued medical services, and a casino are in store; we have put a lot of initiatives in motion.
This is a historical time for the Keetoowahs.
Wa do, do da go hv i
Chief Joe Bunch
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