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[Page S432]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
REMEMBERING RICHARD ``RICK'' GRAHAM HILL
Ms. BALDWIN. Mr. President, I rise today to honor the life and legacy
of Mr. Richard ``Rick'' Graham Hill, revered leader of the Oneida
Nation of Wisconsin, whose tireless work on behalf of all Native
peoples will be honored, admired, and emulated for generations to come.
Rick's work and accomplishments throughout his lifelong dedication to
Tribal service were as dynamic as Rick himself. Grandson of Dr. Lillie
Rosa Minoka-Hill--only the second indigenous female doctor in America--
Rick was destined to live an exceptional life.
Early on, Rick proved to be an elite athlete, earning the title of
West De Pere High School Athlete of the Year in 1971. In keeping with
Wisconsin tradition, his favorite sport was football. He would later
serve as executive producer of a film still in production, entitled
``Bright Path: The Story of Jim Thorpe,'' honoring the NFL Hall-of-
Famer and America's first Native athlete to win an Olympic Gold Medal.
His natural strength and enduring achievements in athletic competition
were precursors to the successes that would eventually define his true
legacy: his tireless, unbeatable, loving dedication to the advancement
of Native communities.
At age 23, influenced by his time spent attending Tribal meetings
with his father, Rick became the youngest person to serve on Oneida's
Tribal Council. He would serve two terms as chairman of the Oneida
Nation, from 1990 to 1993 and from 2008 to 2011. His first term brought
the first gaming compact between the Oneida Nation and the State of
Wisconsin, a major milestone that would reshape the economic future of
the Oneida. Gaming to Rick was more than a business venture or a path
to profit--the advancement of gaming was the continuation of the fight
for the sovereignty, empowerment, and advancement of all Native peoples
from coast to coast. Gaming brought revenue for healthcare, employment,
education, and a host of other basic services crucial to independence.
Not surprisingly, in 1993, while still serving as chairman of the
Oneida Nation, Rick became chairman of the National Indian Gaming
Association, NIGA, a position he would hold until 2001. Rick flourished
in this role: he rallied and unified other Native Tribes to the cause,
tirelessly traveling to promote Indian gaming both inside the courtroom
and in discussions with Governors and U.S. Senators.
Even outside of his official service in the Oneida Nation and the
NIGA, Rick's entrepreneurial efforts to lift up and diversify Native
economies made history. His unique ability to unify Tribes in pursuit
of common goals was best exemplified by the creation of Four Fires,
LLC. This four-Tribe partnership, the first inter-Tribal economic
undertaking of its kind in history, culminated in the creation of a $43
million development located a short walk from our Nation's Capitol and
only three blocks from the Smithsonian National Museum of the American
Indian. This is the first Tribally owned enterprise in Washington, DC.
Rick's memory will be kept alive by his three sons, Richard Graham
Lo'nikuhliyo'stu, Jr., aka Lotni; Sage McKinney Lolihwaka.te Hill; and
Dakota Grahame Tehokahtlu'.ni Hill, as well as the countless many whose
lives he touched in immeasurable ways. To all who knew him, Rick will
be remembered as a visionary, full of brilliance and fortitude, with
the resolve possessed by the few, true champions of our times. He will
also be remembered as a calm, quiet presence, generous with his
laughter and jokes, with a heart full of devotion to those he served. I
will be forever grateful that Rick's legacy will live on in the pride
of the Native peoples he championed and forever honored to call him my
friend.
____________________
