Grady County Neighbors OHCA Club, as part of the activities and celebration of OHCA week,planted a maple tree in honor of Te Ata..
Mary Frances Thompson (December 3, 1895 – October 25, 1995), best known as Te Ata, was an actress and citizen of the Chickasaw Nation known for telling Native American stories. She performed as a representative of Native Americans at state dinners before President Franklin D. Roosevelt in the 1930s.
She was inducted into the Oklahoma Hall of Fame in 1957 and was named Oklahoma’s first State Treasure in 1987.
Born Mary Frances Thompson. Te Ata meant “Bearer of the Morning” a childhood nickname given to her by a relative. In the fall of 1915, Te Ata began college at the Oklahoma College for Women in ChickAsha. She graduated in 1919.
Using tribal drums, rattles, music and dance, Te Ata shared Native American culture with audiences all over the world, including US President Franklin D. Roosevelt, European royalty and indigenous people.
Grady County OHCE Resource Management committee felt privileged to honor this outstanding Native American woman and graduate of what is now USAO.
Dr. John Feaver, USAO President gave a talk about Te Ata and some history of the building where a Fiery Red Maple was planted in honor of Te Ata..
Feaver told the group that Austin Hall, where the tree was planted, that in the early 1920’s was the Home Economics building which made the presentation even more memorable because two of the OHCE ladies had been Home Economic teachers. (Joyce Stockton and Mary Parrish).
Those present for the honoring of Te Ata at the USAO campus were: USAO President Dr. John Feaver, Mike Coponiti, Vice President of Business and Finance, OHCE members from Rural Neighbors club, Rosalie Bush, Joyce Stockton, Mary Parrish, Pat Reeves, and Jyme Tiner who is Grady county OHCE chair of the Resource Management committee that had this project as one of our state goals to honor outstanding women from Chickasha.
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