People

She is tall, witty, and has a great sense of humor. She loves people, old and young. She has great presence. All
these things make up the visual presence of Dolores Santha. Yet she is also known as Grandmother Coyote.
Grandmother Coyote is not a book (at least not this time) or a rock star, etc. but she is involved in one of the
most appreciated Native American Indian pastimes, storytelling. In addition when it comes to storytelling,
Dolores is a natural. Indian storytelling goes back thousands of years. The subject matter for storytelling is
endless. Such stories often include animals or events with mythical figures. Sometimes there is a dialog, which
lends itself to laughter spanning a wide range of humor. the storyteller often delivers a message, which may also
yield a lasting lesson in life. And then there is the much requested “Ghost Story”.

Dolores had a good foundation as a person of wisdom. Much credit is due to the teachings of her father, Martin
One Eagle. He was born and lived within the most challenging times in these United States, where the turn of the
century had a great number of changes blooming in the wings, especially for Native Americans from the west.
One Eagle, a Comanche, grew from a child to a young man spanning an era, which existed within his times, the
most famous Comanche Chief Quanah Parker is Noble Chief was fighting government troops only a few years
before One Eagle was born. One Eagle was a boy when this great chief made peace with the government.
He was born around 1885 and was thirty-one (31) years old when Quanah Parker died in 1911. He lived through
the rise and fall of the Buffalo Bill Wild West shows and during the closing era of the west. He was a World War
I veteran, as well as a structural iron-worker. One Eagle was an outstanding father for Dolores.

When you think of his life and all the stories he passed on to Dolores, it is not so difficult to see why he lived to
be one hundred one (101) years old. But keep in mind the fact that he accompanied his daughter to her speaking
engagements up until the time of his death in 1986. I heard a couple of Elders say that Grandmother Coyote is a
“Master Storyteller”. Well then, when you hear or read about her father, you come to expect only the best from
Dolores. However, this does not take away from the love and devotion she received from her mother, who was a
nurse of Seneca descent. One Eagle married Hazel Williams after he met her while she was still in nursing
school. It seems as though One Eagle received much encouragement from his wife, Hazel, who also taught him
to read. Perhaps it could be that One Eagle received his inspiration from Hazel, and Dolores in turn received her
inspirational base from him. It is known from the words of old chiefs and warriors that we are all connected.
.erefore, the connection is from Dolores’ mom to her father, to Dolores herself, which gives us Grandmother
Coyote. .is family also is a core of Christians. It is the spiritual thread of Christianity which breathes within the
family of Dolores Santha.

It may be apparent by now that when you speak of Dolores Santha you are speaking of Grandmother Coyote.
Yet, there are some things that need to be said anyway in order to reinforce an understanding. After all, despite
the fact that everybody knows that Clark Kent and Superman are one and the same, there is Grandmother
Coyote. Yet there is a need to express a reminder. When you think of the endless work for humanity and giving
to the less fortunate, Dolores has rendered it hard to believe. This Grandmother Coyote is much like the coyote
animal in many ways. It is the coyote’s cunningness which is surprising.

I find that everyone is aware of Grandmother Coyote’s storytelling, but her dimensions are many, including her
tireless work with Indian men and women incarcerated within the penal system. I do not believe that most of the
American population is even slightly aware of the various conditions which these inmates have to endure. .is in
itself is another subject of its own. I say this because I am fairly familiar with system in general, because Drums
Along the Ohio receives many letters from a cross-section of inmates. Dolores is a tireless leader who is well
respected. One such show of respect is reflected in the mutual admiration which exists between Dolores and
Leonard Peltier. Perhaps, Peltier is the most famous Native American prisoner in the United States.

Dolores has a colorful background and a variety of experiences. At the age of eleven, she attended Owendale
Indian School in the upper peninsula of Michigan. Later her family moved to Youngstown, Ohio, where she
attended public school. She attended Haskell Indian Institute, Youngstown State University, and Ohio State
University. She was employed by the Youngstown Police Department. She served as Director for the
Youngstown North American Indian Cultural Center (NAICC) and was a Board member from 1979-1983.
Dolores Santha’s experience in the art of beading, making masks, as well as silversmithing is all a part of her
creative skill. She is chaperone for the Annual Miss Indian USA. A regular invited storyteller for the American
Festival of West Logan, Utah. .e list of colleges, universities, dance groups, and theater companies which were
graced with her presence are too many to list.

Perhaps it is well that we draw this article to a close on a remarkable and talented teacher, community leader
and storyteller: Dolores Tapia Santha (Grandmother Coyote).

SOMETHING OF VALUE by Cliff Clay

Mrs. Katherine McMillan is an elder who was raised in Mississippi when
times were hard. But this is nothing new for almost everyone living is
the south in those early years. Most people who were in the south in the
late 20’s, 30’s and 40’s can tell you how things were them. Most people
were field workers. Picking or chopping cotton was one of the most
common. She remembers when she and many Indians were working the
fields. Mrs. McMillan need not remind us that this was long before the
casinos came to be. But she was brought up on her fathers farms. All of
her siblings had some farm work to do. They raised pigs, chickens and
cows. She had two sisters: Odiemay and Bernice. “My oldest sister
Odiemay died from at an early age of 18.”

“Most of us were brought up in or around Neshoba county. Neshoba
county was where my grand mother was brought up. This was the same
county the school was located. My grandfather Boyd Issac was a Baptist
preacher. My husband and I moved to Cleveland under the Relocation
Program in 1958. Like most Indians who came from the south, we had to
get use to living conditions here”. Mrs. McMillan has three children. One
daughter and two sons. She lives in Cleveland with her daughter Dianne.
Her son Arnold (Sonny) lives in Akron, Ohio, and her other son Randy
lives in Mississippi.

She has not been back to Mississippi in more than 10 years. But she
speaks well of the former chief of the Mississippi Choctaw Indians, Philip
Martin who was the chief for 48 years, and one of the most outstanding
Native Americans leaders in modern times.
Chief Phillip is a second cousin to Mrs. McMillan’s late father. Mrs.
McMillan and the Choctaw Indians as well as most of the people in those
days witness hard times. But all have come a long ways. And it take
those who have lived to be fortunate enough to witness the hard times
as well as being able to compare where we are at the present, and
appreciate our progress. Mrs. McMillan does and she is greatful.