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2015 NIFA Indigenous Women's Soccer Team Canada Category Team Tribes Team Canada Year Inducted 2022 NIFA Women’s Indigenous Team Canada won the inaugural World Indigenous Games soccer championship in 2015. The World Indigenous Games is a multi-sport event with over 2,000 athletes from 30 countries. Indigenous Team Canada, with nine of its 17 players from First Nations communities across BC, played six games against teams from Brazil, Peru and Chile. In the Championship Final, the Canadian team played the host Brazilian Indigenous Nation of Xerente in front of 10,000 local supporters. Regulation play ended 0-0, the Canadian team becoming champions by scoring on three penalty kicks to one. The team repeated its achievement at the 2017 World Indigenous Games.On their return, the team received a letter from Canada Soccer, in which President Victor Montagliani expressed Canada Soccer’s congratulations and pride in this “monumental victory” of Indigenous Team Canada. BC Soccer Hall of Fame and Heritage Archive Web-Site – Click on Full Biography: Home 2026 Banquet 2026 Banquet Sponsorship About Inductee Search Provincial Nominees Contact More

Drew Bucktooth Category Athlete Tribe Oneida Year Inducted 2022 D.O.B. 2/3/1981 Drew Bucktooth is a lacrosse and hockey player from the Onondaga Nation in upstate NY. As a member of the Syracuse Stars hockey team he played against the highest level and won back to back state championships, a national championship and a world championship and was MVP of the world championship game. As a 16 year old, Drew was selected for the United States National team but was drafted and played in the OHL instead but still played for Team USA in international competitions and was named the team captain. In lacrosse, the first goal Drew ever scored was on his own goalie, but he made sure to do it correctly after that. As an eighth grader Drew led the varsity lacrosse team in scoring, as a ninth grader he led his league in scoring. As a 10th grader Drew once again led his team in scoring and earned All American, one of only two lacrosse players in NY state history to earn the title of All American as a 10th grader. When Drew was 15 he competed with the Iroquois Nationals in the U19 world lacrosse championships in Japan, although Drew was the youngest player there, he led the tournament in scoring and was named to the All World Team. A few years later the Lacrosse World Championships were held in Australia, and again Drew was named to the All World Team and has the distinction as the only person in history to make the U19 All World Team twice. As a member of the Onondaga RedHawks, his team captured the Presidents cup twice, which is the Canadian National box lacrosse championship. These days Drew can still be found in and out of hockey rinks and lacrosse fields coaching his four sons, Blake, Gavin, Dylan and Cruze. Home 2026 Banquet 2026 Banquet Sponsorship About Inductee Search Provincial Nominees Contact More

North American Indigenous Athletics Hall of Fame (NAIAHF) Banquet Saturday, September 9, 2023 from 9 am to 3 pm at Canterbury Park Expo Center: https://www.canterburyparkevents.com/venues/expo-center/ The North American Indigenous Athletics Hall of Fame will recognize the inaugural 2022 and second class of 2023 inductees in a ceremony and lunch on Saturday, September 9, 2023. By honoring and celebrating the empowered journey of these individuals and teams, the hope is their stories may inspire future generations to follow their dreams in athletics. Please join us in our efforts to honor and recognize the elite indigenous athletics leaders in North America by becoming a sponsor or hall of fame program advertiser of our first North American Indigenous Athletics Hall of Fame Ceremony and Dinner. All proceeds will offset the event expenses including providing gifts to the inductees. This is the NAIAHF website: https://www.naiahf.org/ Dr. Dan and Susan Ninham, Directors, NAIAHF, PO Box 652, Red Lake, MN, USA, 56671, coach.danninham@gmail.com Gold Sponsor $5,000 Three reserved VIP banquet tables for 10 per table and 30 total Logo on the Welcome signage Logo on both sides of the Autograph Card Logo and website link on the North American Indigenous Athletics Hall of Fame webpage Video screen logo at the banquet One sponsor spokesperson will be speaking for five minutes at the afternoon banquet session Announcement of Gold, Silver and Bronze sponsors at the banquet Silver Sponsor $3,000 Two reserved VIP banquet tables for 10 per table and 20 total Logo on the Welcome signage Logo on both sides of the Autograph Card Logo and website link on the North American Indigenous Athletics Hall of Fame webpage Video screen logo at the banquet One sponsor spokesperson will be speaking for five minutes at the afternoon banquet session Announcement of Gold, Silver and Bronze sponsors at the Banquet Bronze Sponsor $1,000 One reserved VIP banquet table for 10 total Logo on the Welcome signage Logo on both sides of the Autograph Card Logo and website link on the North American Indigenous Athletics Hall of Fame webpage Video screen logo at the banquet One sponsor spokesperson will be speaking for five minutes at the afternoon banquet session Announcement of Gold, Silver and Bronze sponsors at the Banquet Hall Of Fame Table Sponsor $400 per 10 seat table Logo or words on the bottom of both sides of the Autograph Card Sponsor may designate who will be seated or allow Dr. Dan and Susan to seat people Announcement as a Table Sponsor at the Banquet Hall of Fame Banquet Drawing Prize Sponsor $500+ retail value of drawing prizes Logo or words on the bottom of both sides of the Autograph Card Announcement as a Drawing Sponsor at the Banquet If retail value of drawing prizes are at the Gold, Silver or Bronze levels above, the same Medal perks are included Sponsorship Details The deadline to receive sponsorship is noon central time on August 18, 2023. The deadline to receive payment and copy ready ad for the Hall of Fame Program is also noon central time August 18, 2023. Payment can be made in a check or money order and sent to Empowered Youth Development Initiatives, C/O NAIAHF Banquet Sponsor, PO Box 652, Red Lake, MN, USA, 56671. Payment can also be made by PayPal - use code: coach.danninham@midco.net . All payments are in USD. Contact Dr. Dan Ninham at 218.368.6430 (text preferred) or coach.danninham@gmail.com to receive additional details about the sponsorship and Hall of Fame program advertising.

Neal Powless Category Athlete Tribe Onondaga Year Inducted 2022 D.O.B. 10/27/1974 Neal Powless played for the Iroquois Nationals in 6 World Lacrosse Championships and made the tournament’s ALL-World Team as an Attackman in 2002 and won a Silver Medal in 2003. Mr. Powless is a Professional (1), NCAA (1) and Canadian (3) National Champion. He was a 3x All-American at Nazareth College and held the Single Season goals (57 in 15 games) record for 18 years, which is still second all-time even though the seasons are now 18 games. Neal played professionally for 7 seasons amassing 53 goals and 39 assists in 41 games. Neal is the current Head Coach of the Men’s Dutch National Box Lacrosse Team that is ranked #8 in the World. He began coaching the Netherlands in 2014-16, where they finished #17 in the World and #7 in Europe in Field lacrosse. In 2017 he transitioned to box lacrosse where they progressed from #17 in Europe to their current World rank. Neal was inducted into the Nazareth College Sports Hall of Fame in 2009 and the US Lacrosse, CNY Chapter Hall of Fame in 2017, one of the most prestigious chapters in the USA. He also produced the Major Motion Picture Crooked Arrows, which featured lacrosse. Home 2026 Banquet 2026 Banquet Sponsorship About Inductee Search Provincial Nominees Contact More

< Back Richard Peter Richard Peter Cowichan Tribes Induction Category: Year Inducted Athlete 2024 He was known as “Bear” to many people, not only a nod to his strength and the size of his hands, but also the size of his heart. Poll the world’s top wheelchair basketball coaches and players regarding about who they’d choose to build their ultimate dream team around and in the top five would be Duncan, British Columbia’s Richard Peter. A proud member of the Cowichan Tribes, community was a huge part of Peter’s upbringing. Strength of family and his own determination helped him overcome a terrible injury at age four when a school bus backed up over his chest breaking his hip and spinal cord just below the ribcage. Adjusting to life in a small community with few wheelchair-accessible buildings wasn’t easy, but Peter’s strength of character more than met the challenges. He graduated from public school and tried virtually every sport available. In 1994, Peter debuted on the Canadian national team and was a pillar of strength for Canada from 1996 through to 2012. Beginning in 1996, Peter represented Canada at five Paralympic Games helping capture three golds (Sydney 2000, Athens 2004, London 2012) and a silver (Beijing 2008). In world championship play, Peter has been part of one gold medal-winning squad (2006) and three that earned bronze. Six times he led Team BC to the national championship. Individually, Peter is regarded as one of the fiercest defenders in the world, an effortless scorer, and one of the game’s most sportsmanlike players. In the latter years of his career, Peter was still a regular member of the national team and played professionally in Germany with club RSV Lahn-Dill where he lived part of the year with wife Marni Abbott-Peter, herself a BC Sports Hall of Famer. At the same time, Peter was already racking up an impressive array of accolades. Twice named winner of the Tom Longboat Award as Canada’s Male Aboriginal Athlete of the Year, he was also a two-time Canadian Wheelchair Sports Association Male Athlete of the Year, and the 2008 Canadian Wheelchair Basketball Athlete of the Year. Bio credit: Jason Beck, Curator of the BC Sports Hall of Fame. <Back

Gewas Schindler Category Athlete Tribe Oneida Year Inducted 2022 D.O.B. 3/28/1976 Gewas Schindler is a Haudenosaunee Oneida Nation citizen and a member of the Turtle Clan. He grew up playing multiple sports under the tutelage of his grandfather, Chief Paul Waterman, on the Onondaga Nation. Gewas played the Creator’s game, this game has world-renowned origins within the Haudenosaunee culture known as Dehontsigwiseh - "bumping hips" is called lacrosse, currently played collegiately, internationally, and at pre-Olympic levels today. Gewas worked for the National Hockey League Phoenix Coyotes and the National Lacrosse League Arizona Sting in marketing, the professional Rochester Nighthawks Lacrosse organization as Governor and he served five years on the National Lacrosse League Board of Governors along with serving on their Marketing Committee, Player Relations Committee, and the Collective Bargaining Agreement Unit. In 2012 Gewas Schindler received the NCAIED (The National Center for American Indian Enterprise Development) 40 Under 40 National Business Award, and the Rocky Mountain Indian Chamber of Commerce Award in 2010. Gewas Schindler attended Loyola University in Baltimore, Maryland, concentrating in Communications and Marketing. As a student-athlete at Loyola, he earned lacrosse accolades earning 3X Division 1 All American Attackman awards. He was a 3X Iroquois Nationals World Team Captain who worked as a professional athlete in the National Lacrosse League and the Major Lacrosse League for eight years. Gewas Schindler competed in seven more World Lacrosse Championships and made eight Iroquois National World Team Rosters. In 2021, as General Manager, the Haudenosaunee U-15 Team won a Gold Medal in the IIJL World Championship, and the Haudenosaunee U-17 Team followed with a Gold Medal. Gewas’ role as an organization builder for youth lacrosse led him to serve as a Lacrosse Ambassador traveling to numerous countries such as Australia, Japan, Thailand, Czech Republic, Finland, Germany, England, Mexico, Switzerland, Haudenosaunee, Indigenous Territories, Canada, and the United States to support, advise, and to leave a sport the indigenous people gave to the world community of lacrosse. Gewas’ family includes his wife Tia, and four children, Lawson, Madex, Kohen, and Kimaura. Home 2026 Banquet 2026 Banquet Sponsorship About Inductee Search Provincial Nominees Contact More

< Back Brady Fairbanks Brady Fairbanks Leech Lake Ojibwe Induction Category: Year Inducted Athlete 2022 Brady Fairbanks, 2007 graduate of Cass Lake Bena High School (MN), was a Minnesota High School All-State athlete in football and basketball. During his high school career, Fairbanks was a three-year starter on the basketball team leading CLB to an 83-11 record, including 42-0 in conference play. In 2006-2007, he led CLB to the Class A State Championship game where the team came up just shy of victory in a memorable game. Accomplishments include: • Conference MVP (‘06 and ‘07), • Section 6 MVP (‘06 and ‘07), • Honorable Mention State (‘06), • 2nd Team All State (‘07), • McDonald’s All-American Nominee, • Minnesota Native American Athlete of the Year, • National High School Player of the Year (Native Elite Showcase) Fairbanks accepted a full scholarship to NCAA DII Bemidji State University, becoming a starter and earning a spot on the All-Freshman Team in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC). Transferring to Haskell Indian Nations University (HINU) after his junior year, Fairbanks had a historical year becoming the school’s first male athlete to become a NAIA All-American. Accomplishments include: • 7th nationally in scoring (20.9), • 14th in rebounding (6.3), • First Team All-Conference, • Conference New-Comer of the Year, • Team MVP, • 1,000+ Points (Collegiate Career). Photos: Haskell Athletics and Ryan White <Back

Katie Taylor Category Athlete Tribe Lac Courte Oreilles Year Inducted 2022 D.O.B. 5/29/98 Katie Taylor is a member of the Lac Courte Oreilles Band of Ojibwe. She is a six-time All American and a National Champion. In high school, she competed in basketball and track for Hayward High School (WI). In 2014, she was the Wisconsin Division 2 State Runner-up in the shot put and discus. She graduated from college in 2021 with a degree in Interdisciplinary Studies, which focuses on three areas of study including Math, IT, and Indigenous Studies. Her future goals include becoming fluent in her native Ojibwe language and relearning cultural significances she has lost over the years. Katie is in her senior season at Minnesota State University – Mankato. In the 2021 Outdoor season, she was named First Team All-American in the discus throw after finishing fifth at the NCAA Division II Outdoor Track & Field Championships while also competing in the shot put and finishing 14th. She earned all-conference honors in the shot put, hammer throw and discus throw, finishing fourth in all three events at the NSIC Outdoor Track and Field Championships. She set career bests in the discus throw at 49.85m (163'6") and hammer throw at 55.54m (182'3") at the Maverick Classic. During the 2021 Indoor season, she earned the national championship in the weight throw, setting a school record with a throw of 21.17m (69'5.5") at the NCAA Division II Indoor Track & Field Championships. She earned first-team All-American honors in the shot put, finishing seventh at the NCAA Division II Indoor Track & Field Championships. She also earned all-conference honors in the shot put and weight throw, finishing fourth and second respectively at the NSIC Indoor Track & Field Championships. During the 2020 Indoor season, she earned all-conference honors in the shot put and weight throw, finishing fourth in both events at the NSIC Indoor Track & Field Championships. In 2017, Katie was Indoor Shot Put NSIC Champion while attending Winona State University. She was the 2017 Indoor Weight Throw 3rd place at NSIC Championships, the Outdoor Shot Put 3rd place at NSIC Championships, the Outdoor Discus 3rd Place at NSIC Championships and 2017 Outdoor Shot Put 3rd Place at the NCAA Championships. Home 2026 Banquet 2026 Banquet Sponsorship About Inductee Search Provincial Nominees Contact More

Martin Wheelock Category Athlete Tribe Oneida Year Inducted 2022 D.O.B. 6/5/1874 D: 5/25/1937 Martin Frederick Wheelock was born in Oneida, WI, in 1874 and attended Carlisle Indian School in Carlisle, PA, from 1890-1902 where he became a varsity letterman on the legendary Carlisle Indians football team for years 1894-1902. The Indians played against all the major teams in the East and some in the Midwest. In 1899, with Wheelock as Captain, the team received an invitation to play the University of California in San Francisco on Christmas Day for the "East-West Championship". The California team had just finished an undefeated season and had been un-scored upon. Following an adventurous train trip across the country, the Indians defeated California by a score of 2-0 in a tough game fought on a slow, sandy field. Wheelock played guard and tackle during his career, was the leading kicker many years, and finished as center in 1902. Despite bouts of pleurisy, he is reported to have played football for one season at Haskell Institute in Kansas after leaving Carlisle. Following the end of his football career, Wheelock returned home to Oneida, WI, where he married a former Carlisle student, had a family, farmed, and used his extensive education (for the times) to help interpret important matters. He died in 1937. Honors and recognition Wheelock received include: Carlisle Indians Team Captain, 1899 and 1901; Second Team All-American in 1901; All-University Team in 1902 by the Sports Department of the Philadelphia Inquirer; named by Glenn Warner as his choice for left guard on his all-time Carlisle line-up, and frequent mention in the school newspaper, "The Indian Helper". When Wheelock spent time at home in Wisconsin, he was recruited to play one season for the Green Bay football team (before they were the Packers). Wheelock, along with other Oneida football players who played for the Green Bay town team, is featured on a Walk of Legends statue outside Lambeau Field. In 1980, Martin Frederick Wheelock was inducted into the American Indian Athletic Hall of Fame at Haskell Indian Junior College in Lawrence, Kansas. Home 2026 Banquet 2026 Banquet Sponsorship About Inductee Search Provincial Nominees Contact More

Sunnie R. Clahchischiligi <Back Diné (Navajo) Induction Category: Media Year Inducted 2022 Sunnie R. Clahchischiligi is a longtime storyteller from the Navajo Nation. She spent over a decade as sportswriter for the Navajo Times, telling stories of high school, college, and professional Navajo athletes. Clahchischiligi, a former athlete, developed an admiration for sports and storytelling at a young age. She completed six internships in three years, one at Sports Illustrated magazine in New York City. Clahchischiligi earned multiple awards for her writing in sports, editorial, community coverage, elder coverage, and investigative reporting. She wrote for the St. Cloud Times, the Albuquerque Journal, the Santa Fe New Mexican, the Osage News, Searchlight NM, and the Salt Lake Tribune. From her extensive coverage of basketball on the Navajo Nation, she has been dubbed an expert in rezball, a fast-paced style of basketball played throughout Indian Country. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, Rolling Stone, and The Guardian, to name a few. Clahchischiligi has a bachelor’s degree in print journalism from the University of New Mexico, a master’s degree in rhetoric, writing, and digital media studies from Northern Arizona University, and is currently a PhD candidate in rhetoric and writing at UNM. She also teaches composition in the English department.

Eugene Oree Foster <Back Navajo Induction Category: Media Year Inducted 2024 Eugene Oree Foster was a long-time resident of Fort Defiance, Arizona where he was born and raised. His late father, Harold Y. Foster, was a Navajo Code Talker and his mother is Margaret Foster. As a sports writer, Foster covered all sports at all levels including professional, college, high school, junior high school, elementary school, and community sports and leagues. He was also a heralded athlete at Window Rock High School (1968-71) in basketball, baseball, cross-country and track and field. He earned a college athletic scholarship to run cross-country and compete in track and field at Central Arizona College. Foster played semi-professional baseball with the Fort Defiance Indians. He was also a varsity school baseball coach and an assistant cross-country coach at Window Rock High and coached a little league baseball team, the Fort Defiance Indians. He received his AA Degree from Central Arizona College, BS Degree in Journalism from the Arizona State University, and MA Degree from the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism at Arizona State University. Foster was a recipient of many awards including the Native American Journalist Sportswriter for 15 consecutive years, the prestigious Arizona Interscholastic Association (AIA) Skip Bryant Media Award in 2010 and 2016, and the award for excellence, the Wall of Fame Award from Central Arizona College, for his outstanding journalism, as a historian, and a photojournalist. He was also a sports correspondent for Arizona State University Football, the Arizona Diamondbacks Baseball, Arizona’s Phoenix Suns Basketball, Professional Bull Riding (PBR), Ty Murray and Associates, the Arizona Interscholastic Activities (AIA) 365Sports, the New Mexico Activities Association (NMAA) Sports, the Arizona Republic, and the Gallup Independent Sports. These sports awards and recognitions were meant with excellent award-winning sports journalism reviews. As a sports editor for over 30 years at the Navajo Times newspaper, he established the Navajo Times All-Area Athletic Sports Teams, established the Arizona vs New Mexico Basketball Classic, founder of the Navajo Nation Sports Hall of Fame, founder of the Native American Basketball Invitation (NABI) for Youth, and founder of the Arizona Diamondbacks Baseball Native American Day for 10 consecutive years. He also recognized many athletes in the professional rodeo arena with the Indian National Finals Rodeo (NIFR), and the National Finals Rodeo (NFR) Association, and locally with the All-Indian Rodeo Cowboy Association (AIRCA), the Navajo Nation Cowboy Association (NNRCA). Oree Foster died on 3/1/2023 and will be missed.

Awehiyo Thomas Category Athlete Tribe Cayuga Year Inducted 2022 D.O.B. 5/9/1986 Awehiyo Thomas (Beautiful Flower) is Cayuga Nation, Wolf Clan from Six Nations of the Grand River Territory. She played competitive lacrosse on the international, NCAA DI and professional stage, with many Player of the Game awards. Awehiyo first started playing lacrosse in 1998 for Six Nations Girls Field Lacrosse, and later traveled to Cattaraugus, NY playing many years with the Seneca Girls Lacrosse Club under Sandy Jemison. In 2003, she had her first international experience with U-19 Team Canada, finishing third and being named the third-leading scorer on the squad. Awehiyo was a walk-on starter at Syracuse University, who transferred from Canisius College in her junior year. She started all 21 games and helped the team to its first NCAA Final Four in 2008 - as a senior she started all 19 games and graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Health and Wellness. Awehiyo was a proud member of the Haudenosaunee National Women’s Lacrosse (HNWL) Team for many years, competing on the world stage in 2009, 2013 and 2017. In 2018, she was the first Haudenosaunee woman to play professional lacrosse with the Baltimore Ride in the UWLX league. Most recently, she was a member of the HNWL Sr. Team which placed first at the Pan American Lacrosse Association in 2019. As a veteran lacrosse player of 24 years and mother of four, soon to be mother of five, she continues to be a role model for many Indigenous girls coming up. She comes from a long line of great lacrosse players in her family including Grandfather Ivan Thomas, the 1997 Ontario Lacrosse Hall of Fame inductee and great-grandfather Joseph Logan Jr., maker of the “Logan Special” lacrosse stick. To this day, Awehiyo’s lacrosse display at Woodland Cultural Center in Brantford, Ontario continues to be up for the public to view. Photos: Reems Landreth and Awehiyo Thomas Home 2026 Banquet 2026 Banquet Sponsorship About Inductee Search Provincial Nominees Contact More