Native America Calling: Native in the Spotlight with Tina Kuckkahn

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Native America Calling: Native in the Spotlight with Tina Kuckkahn

Tuesday, September 30, 2025

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Native in the Spotlight: Tina Kuckkahn

For more than three decades, Tina Kuckkahn has centered her work on supporting Native culture and the arts.

The Lac du Flambeau Ojibwe citizen is the new head of the Native artist non-profit organization, the First Peoples Fund. She previously directed s’gʷi gʷi ʔ altxʷ: House of Welcome (The Evergreen State College Longhouse) and most recently helped NDN Collective build the organization’s philanthropic infrastructure and grantmaking programs.

Kuckkahn is in the process of organizing a canoe journey through the Great Lakes, retracing her ancestors’ historic migration. She joins us as this month’s Native in the Spotlight to talk about the state of Native art, Ojibwe culture, and motorcycles.

Also, a look back at the life of Indian Gaming Association chairman Ernie Stevens Jr., who just walked on.

Guests on Native America Calling

Tina Kuckkahn (Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa), president and CEO of the First Peoples Fund

Brandon Yellowbird-Stevens (Oneida Nation of Wisconsin), Oneida Nation of Wisconsin Intergovernmental Affairs Department strategist

Jason Giles (Muscogee), executive director of the Indian Gaming Association

Levi Rickert (Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation), publisher and editor of Native News Online and Tribal Business News

Statement: NAFSA mourns passing of Ernie Stevens, Jr.

With great sadness, NAFSA reflects on the life of Indian Gaming Association Chairman Ernie Stevens, Jr., who history will remember as a relentless giant and a tireless champion for all of Indian Country.

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Statement: National Congress of American Indians mourns passing of Ernie Stevens, Jr.

“We lost a warrior today,” said NCAI President Mark Macarro.

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Statement: United National Indian Tribal Youth mourns passing of Ernie Stevens, Jr.

“We will forever be grateful for Chairman Stevens’ leadership, support, and involvement, and for the way he set a true example of stewardship for our Native youth,” UNITY said.

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Statement: Gun Lake Tribe mourns passing of Ernie Stevens, Jr.

“Indian Country has lost a great relative, friend and warrior,” Chairman Emeritus D.K. Sprague said on behalf of the Match-E-Be-Nash-She-Wish Band of Pottawatomi.

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Statement: Cherokee Nation chief statement on passing of Ernie Stevens, Jr.

“Indian Country, and his many friends and loved ones, are better for Ernie having lived and dedicated his life in service to Indian Country,” said Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr..

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Statement: Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community mourns passing of Ernie Stevens, Jr.

“Ernie was a tireless advocate for Tribal Nations, tribal sovereignty, and the ability of Tribes to improve their economies, their governments, and the lives of their people through lawful gaming enterprises,” the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community said.

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Statement: Seneca Nation mourns passing of Ernie Stevens, Jr.

“Ernie was a warrior, a leader and a friend,” said Seneca Nation President J. Conrad Seneca.

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Statement: NAFOA mourns passing of Ernie Stevens, Jr.

“Ernie was more than a colleague. He was a true friend to NAFOA and to me personally,” said NAFOA Board President Rodney Butler.

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Press Release: Indian Gaming Association announces passing of Ernie Stevens, Jr.

“Ernie Stevens, Jr. was more than a chairman; he was a warrior, a statesman, and a champion for all of Indian Country,” said IGA Executive Director Jason Giles.

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