Synopses & Reviews
When eleven-year-old Tommy Thompson arrived at a government-run Indian boarding school in 1915, it seemed a last resort for the youngster. Instead, it turned out to be the first step toward a life dedicated to helping others. Thompson went on to become a star athlete and football coachandmdash;a Cherokee legend whose story is remembered by many and is now finally told for a wider audience.
Following gridiron fame at Northeastern State College, Thompson returned to Sequoyah Vocational School in 1947 as Boysandrsquo; Coach and Advisor. More than a thousand boys attended the boarding school during the eleven years he coached there. Writing for readers old and young, Patti Dickinson tells the inspiring story of how this one man made a difference in the lives of a generation of Indian youth.
Through football, Thompson taught his boys the skills and values they would need to succeed in life, and twice led his team to the state finals. Dickinson describes the success of that program, including one epic, rain-soaked championship game. She paints compelling portraits of Thompsonandrsquo;s boysandmdash;the men whose firsthand stories and reminiscences form the basis of the narrativeandmdash;and re-creates daily life at the school.
To his boys, Thompson was Ah-sky-uh, andldquo;the man,andrdquo; a Cherokee term of respect. Half a century after his death, Sequoyah High School still reveres his memory. This book secures his place in history as it opens a new window on the boarding school experience.
Synopsis
How one man made a difference to a generation of Cherokee youth
Synopsis
When eleven-year-old Tommy Thompson arrived at a government-run Indian boarding school in 1915, it seemed a last resort for the youngster. Instead, it turned out to be the first step toward a life dedicated to helping others. Thompson went on to become a star athlete and football coachandmdash;a Cherokee legend whose story is remembered by many and is now finally told for a wider audience.
About the Author
Patti Dickinson is the author of Hollywood the Hard Way: A Cowboy's Journey. A native Oklahoman of Cherokee ancestry, Patti graduated from California State University Fresno with a BA in History and a minor in Economics. She currently resides in Santa Maria, California.
The Cherokee people elected Chadwick "Corntassel" Smith as Principal Chief in 1999. Principal Chief Smith has a rich family history of service to the Cherokee people. He is the great-grandson of Redbird Smith, a Cherokee patriot who fought against allotment of Cherokee lands at the time of the Dawes rolls. His grandmother, Rachel Quinton, was a life-long advocate for the Cherokee people. His father, the late Nelson Smith, was a respected industrial manager and his mother, Pauline Smith, still lives in Colcord. Smith?s late uncle, William Lee Smith, led the Keetoowah Society at the Stokes Stomp Grounds since the 50s.
Smith holds a bachelor's degree in education from the University of Georgia; master's degree in public administration from the University of Wisconsin and a Juris Doctorate, Law, from the University of Tulsa.
Prior to his service as Principal Chief, Smith taught Indian law at Dartmouth College, Northeastern State University and Rogers State University, worked as a Cherokee Nation prosecutor and as an administrator of Cherokee Nation Tax Commission. Smith has also worked as a prosecutor in Creek County, a public defender in Tulsa County and operated his own law practice.