fbpx
 

On Saturday, October 16, Alexie Heline Echo-Hawk died in a head-on car collision in western Kansas while traveling to the Pawnee Nation of Oklahoma with her father, Bunky Echo-Hawk, to attend a ceremony.

The driver, 38-year-old Christina Satana from Pueblo, Colo., was driving in the wrong direction on I-70 and hit the vehicle Alexie and her father were ridng in. The accident took place just before 1 a.m. Saturday, east of Park in Gove County, killing two people and injuring four. Alexie was 15 years old. 

Want more Native News? Get the free daily newsletter today.

Bunky sustained multiple serious injuries to his eye, knee, chest and foot and was released from the hospital on Sunday with a long road ahead with needed surgery and months of recovery according to his doctors. 

Bunky Echo-Hawk is an American Indian artist and poet who is known for his acrylic paintings about Native American topics and hip-hop culture. He’s an enrolled member of the Yakama Nation in Washington. He attended the Institute of American Indian Arts in the 1990s. He is an internationally known visual artist, with exhibits in major museums and galleries throughout the United States and overseas.

Bunky is the son of Walter Echo-Hawk, who is the current president of the Pawnee Nation Business Counci and an American Indian legal scholar. 

His family arranged a GoFundMe on Monday and as of press time has raised more than $107,000. Due to Bunky's injuries, he is scheduled to have surgery next week and will have at least 3 or more months of recovery, according to family. 

“At this time, we are asking Bunky's many relatives, friends and supporters across Indian Country to support him and his family,” said his GoFundMe. “Funds raised through GoFundMe will go towards funeral expenses, the memorial service, Bunky's medical bills and living costs, for it will be many months before he is able to fully work again.”

The funeral service for Alexie is scheduled for Thursday, October 21, 2021 at the Roam Chief Building at the Pawnee Nation in Pawnee, Oklahoma. A prayer service and wake will be Wednesday evening. A memorial service for Alexie Echo-Hawk will be held at Sangre de Cristo school in Mosca, CO, on Sunday, November 7th at 2:00 p.m. 

Alexie's Yakama name is Tikáynút and her Pawnee name is Pahuks. She grew up in both Pawnee, Oklahoma, and Mosca, Colorado. She was a beloved daughter, sister, and relative. She is survived by her mom Crista Newmyer-Olsen, her father Bunky Echo-Hawk, her stepdad Sam Olsen, her stepmom Jasha Lyons-Echo-Hawk, her siblings Jonathan, Khaiya, Leo and Amelia Olsen, Rhiannon Elizabeth McCaughey, Ayo Pahaat Lyons Echo-Hawk, Puyvfekcv Tiwaku Lyons Echo-Hawk and Feather Echo-Hawk; her maternal grandparents H. Ray Newmyer and Catherine Rice-Gallegos; her paternal grandparents Walter and Pauline Echo-Hawk; and many aunts, uncles and cousins.

 

More Stories Like This

MMIP Red Dress Installation Vandalized in Alaska
NCAI Mid Year Underway on Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Homelands
Native News Weekly (June 3, 2023): D.C. Briefs
House Passes Bipartisan Debt Ceiling Deal; How Native American Members of Congress Voted
History Made as First Navajo Appointed U.S. Federal Judge in California

Native News is free to read.

We hope you enjoyed the story you've just read. For the past dozen years, we’ve covered the most important news stories that are usually overlooked by other media. From the protests at Standing Rock and the rise of the American Indian Movement (AIM), to the ongoing epidemic of Murdered and Missing Indigenous People (MMIP) and the past-due reckoning related to assimilation, cultural genocide and Indian Boarding Schools.

Our news is free for everyone to read, but it is not free to produce. That’s why we’re asking you to make a donation to help support our efforts. Any contribution — big or small — helps.  Most readers donate between $10 and $25 to help us cover the costs of salaries, travel and maintaining our digital platforms. If you’re in a position to do so, we ask you to consider making a recurring donation of $12 per month to join the Founder's Circle. All donations help us remain a force for change in Indian Country and tell the stories that are so often ignored, erased or overlooked.

Donate to Native News Online today and support independent Indigenous journalism. Thank you. 

About The Author
Author: Darren ThompsonEmail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Darren Thompson (Lac du Flambeau Ojibwe) is a staff reporter for Native News Online who is based in the Twin Cities of Minnesota. Thompson has reported on political unrest, tribal sovereignty, and Indigenous issues for the Aboriginal Peoples Television Network, Indian Country Today, Native News Online, Powwows.com and Unicorn Riot. He has contributed to the New York Times, the Washington Post, and Voice of America on various Indigenous issues in international conversation. He has a bachelor’s degree in Criminology & Law Studies from Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.