Halito from District 6, the Heart of the Nation. District 6 welcomes the new year, 2026, and we are looking forward to new opportunities.
We were honored to be a part of the first-ever Johnson O’Malley (JOM) Native American Night at Wilburton High School gym and the Quinton High School Native American Night as well.
The half-time shows were filled with our Princesses performing the Lord’s Prayer and a demonstration of cultural dances and songs. Isabella Hood, Wilburton JOM student, did a beautiful job of singing the National Anthem. Yakoke to our JOM committee for hosting the event.
Eastern Oklahoma State College in Wilburton will be hosting Choctaw Night during their basketball game on Feb. 4. Come out and support the EOSC Mountaineers and help us represent District 6.
We are excited to announce that Eastern Oklahoma State College and the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma have announced a new partnership, which will allow CNO associates to attend Eastern with deferred tuition. CNO associates will be able to enroll in up to eight academic classes per calendar year and defer eligible tuition charges for EOSC courses for approved degree programs. The memorandum of understanding was signed by Assistant Chief Jack Austin, Jr. and EOSC President Dr. Randy Harp. Yakoke, Dr. Harp. You are helping to empower the future of our tribe through education.
We will be holding our Valentine’s lunch and senior party on Wednesday, Feb. 11. The seniors will be voting for their king and queen and enjoying a good lunch with door prizes and Cupid in the center, so watch out!
Feb. 20 is our YAB banquet. We appreciate our YAB leader, Chasity Busby and her students for their continued support at the community center for our seniors. They have been a tremendous help volunteering and serving our seniors whenever they are needed.
Our premium sale will be held at the Jennifer Woods Community Center on Feb. 21 at 6 p.m. Come support your 4-H students who have worked hard all year with their animals.
We would like to encourage our District 6 Choctaw veterans to bring a picture of themselves in their service uniforms and their service information, so we can add it to our Veteran wall as a way to recognize them for their service. We also want to thank our veterans and their families for all the sacrifices they have made. You have our deepest honor and respect for your service.
Stickball has begun, so be sure to come to Tuskahoma and support our players.
We are working to help preserve the Choctaw language with our monthly Chahta Anumpa classes on the fourth Tuesday of the month, taught by Steven Parish. Our language is important to carry on our heritage, and we encourage you to come and learn in person or on the internet, as we are now partnered with Rosetta Stone Endangered Languages Program to help preserve and teach our language to keep it from extinction.
We are very proud of one of our own hometown girls, Tammye Gwin, who was selected as Choctaw Nation Top Influencer 2026. Tammy is recognized as a top influencer within the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma, particularly in the realm of business development and economic growth. Tammye was a graduate of Panola High School. We know that her mother, the late Sharon Aaron, would be so proud of her, as we all are.
District 6-Heart of the Nation welcomes you to come and attend one or all of our monthly events. Prayer is held on the first Friday of each month at 7 a.m., followed by breakfast. We have potluck and bingo at 6 p.m. on the second Tuesday of each month, Veterans Tvshka Warrior Coffee on the third Thursday of the month at 10 a.m., and our senior meeting is held on the second Monday of the month at 1 p.m. There is also a beading class every two weeks on Monday from 2-6 p.m., casino trips, shopping trips and many other events that we encourage you to be a part of. Come by the community center and pick up a copy of the calendar of events as well as our menu for the month. Also, please fill out housing applications so we can build more homes in District 6.
God bless you all and Yakoke for the privilege to serve our great District 6.
