Thane Gopher, heir to the 13 star Ojibway Peace Flag & Legacy Dies

Unified Statement of Glenn Gopher, Blair Gopher, Miranda Gopher, Melinda Gopher and Mary Gopher

Today at shortly after 10 am, we the five siblings of Thane Gopher lost our beloved brother.  Thane expired after battling for his life exactly one week.  He has recently been diagnosed with terminal cancer in the lungs.  He was found unresponsive at approximately 9:30 am Saturday, May 24 at a residence he was visiting in Browning due to a cardiac event.  He was revived and taken by life flight to Kalispell Regional Medical Center.  He never regained consciousness and family members were told he would not survive the substantial loss of brain function.

The family is on the brink of finalizing two-year-old litigation regarding the estate of our late mother Dorothy Gopher, where the sole asset is the 13 star Ojibway flag bundle handed down in Gophers lineage for over 200 years.  Thane Gopher stood with his five siblings with what he saw as the vision and path forward for the Ojibway people; and for the flag.  Although he was in declining health, he platted a vision of a future in phone conversations with his siblings, throughout his final weeks.  He was very much involved in shaping ideas to address all issues and had hoped that the story of the flag was a catalyst for changing the plight of Ojibway dispossession.

The family has been attempting to forge ahead with projects and in these past two years; we have refused to allow ourselves to be bogged down in what we perceive to be frivolous litigation.  Thane Gopher was an avid and self taught student of history, in part drawing from his admiration of the flag.  Thane Gopher, as the son of Robert Gopher; was a talented singer in the cultural life of all plains tribes, having traveled extensively throughout his singing career that spanned over 40 years.

Thane supported the Gopher family attempts to obtain an Obama Administration executive order that would recognize the historic treaty flag, and extend recognition to the Little Shell Band, and clarify and restore recognition to the original Rocky Boy Band of Chippewa, which Thane Gopher was a descendant.  Thane Gopher was also an enrolled member of the Blackfeet Tribe; the Gopher's beloved grandfather was Bill Old Rock.  He was a fixture in the loud and noisy Gopher household on Hill 57.

The loss of Thane Gopher is tragic at a time when the family is now beginning to make strides in long held and mutually sought-after social, economic, political, and tribal objectives.  Thane Gopher possessed straight-forward and plain spoken vision and knew how to locate the heart of the issue.

more later.....

The Listening Thunder Band of Ojibway

PRESS STATEMENT

After many failed attempts to work cooperatively with several groups to restore the whole original "Rocky Boy's Band of Chippewa Indians" pursuant to the 1908 original Chippewa roll--the lineal descendants of Robert Gopher, full blood Chippewa Indian--are petitioning for federal recognition as a re-orgnized band of 40-60 members, and are hereforth the  "The Listening Thunder Band of Ojibway."  America's newest band has contacted and notified the Office of Federal Acknowledgment of their steps to resubmit a letter of intent.

UPDATE ON OUR CHANGE OF COURSE

Due to the continued bad faith on the part of a sole opposing heir; all plans for trusts (pursuant to Montana law) creation are on hold, and the remaining heirs will not be advancing these at the present time.  The heirs also believe that state courts are not the proper jurisdiction to empower a trust, as this is a Native American item of cultural patrimony, and falls under the NAGPRA, therefore will be generating our own clan held documents, in our first act of restoring our sovereignty to provide for the care and conservation of of the valued item.

Copyright 2012.  The Listening Thunder Band of Ojibway.  All Rights Reserved.