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We said good-bye to our dear friend Rod “Smokey” Gwoompi on Dec. 5. Smokey was 68-years-old and a proud member of the Kiowa Nation. Smokey had a smile and a kind word for everyone he met. He will be sorely missed.

Aho Smokey. We thank you for your smile, kind words and all your prayers for children of all ages.

The following story was originally printed in the Native Times Powwow Guide earlier this year.

Always smiling…
Kiowa elder remains in the circle

TAHLEQUAH, Okla. – A smiling, familiar face around eastern Oklahoma powwows is that of Kiowa elder Roderick ‘Smokey’ Gwoompi who can be seen, now in a wheelchair, still in the dance circle acknowledging and welcoming all those within.
Gwoompi, 68 years young, said his first memories of Indian dances, ceremonial or social, come from Carnegie, Oklahoma, a Kiowa community where his grandfather, Tonemah, and uncle, Scott Tonemah, took him into the arena and performed a ‘roaching’ ceremony to honor his introduction into the dance circle.
He was reared along with three brothers in that small western town by his grandmother, Adelaide Tonemah Littlechief. But, even as a young man Gwoompi knew times were tough for his grandmother taking care of four grandsons alone. So, when Gwoompi was 17, he joined the Marines and spent four years in military service, stationed at San Diego, Calif.
Upon discharge, he returned to school and earned an associate machinist degree from Haskell Institute, and attended Southwestern Oklahoma State University for a time before moving to Dallas, Texas, where he married. But Dallas, even in the late 1960s was too rough, Gwoompi decided, when a bullet pierced the front door of his apartment.
He and his wife packed up and moved to Muskogee where he heard that Sequoyah High School, in Tahlequah, was hiring. He interviewed there and stayed for ten years as a recreational specialist before going to Job Corps which was then sited at the Northeastern State University Tahlequah campus.
A single man for many years now, Gwoompi is accustomed to taking care of himself. But, in 2002, a fall sent him to the hospital where a broken leg went undiagnosed for several days, in which time gangrene set up. To save his life, surgeons removed his leg from the knee down. During his recovery, he was fitted twice with a prosthetic; but, because of discomfort and pain, decided those devices were not for him.
Angry at not being able to seek justice for such life-changing negligence, but refusing to become bitter, the good-natured Kiowa elder focused on what he did have: a supportive circle of extended family and friends, the drum and songs to keep alive, and the healing nature of the dance circle.
“That’s what makes me feel good. It’s healing; it’s comforting, those songs, the drum, and seeing everyone out there,” he said.
He especially enjoys seeing the children in the arena, whom Gwoompi always acknowledges with a handshake and a smile.
“They’re our future. I know it sounds corny but it’s better to have them in that circle than to be out drinking someplace or getting into trouble.”
Gwoompi loves the powwow circle and missed it during his time of recovery. But, always conscious of others’ need and comfort, he was apprehensive about entering the dance arena in a wheelchair, possibly getting in the way.
He spoke of his desire to ‘dance’ and his concerns for others’ reactions to his good friend and Kiowa relative now deceased, Jake Chanate.
“Jake told me, ‘You’re Kiowa. Those are our ways. You go out there and if anyone says anything to you, send them to me.’”
Of course, as Indian people do, those accustomed to the dance arena welcomed him. Several years ago, he was asked to be ‘taken into’ the Cherokee Gourd Society.
“I wasn’t sure at first, having come from the Kiowas, I know that gourd dance is not their (Cherokee) traditional way.”
Though the origin is debated, the dance comes from the Plains Nations but has been adopted by tribes across Oklahoma.
“So I watched and liked what I saw. I finally agreed.”
Today, that’s where he can be found most weekends, in the place where he’s happiest: the powwow arena, doing what makes him happiest: dancing.