Osiyo,
“Thank you for your service."
It’s a simple nod of respect and the least we can do. We say it often — maybe too often — which shifts the meaning to a simple greeting rather than a true commitment. At the Cherokee Nation, we are determined to honor those words as a promise for action every day, not just on Veterans Day.
Cherokees have served this country since its founding, and that legacy was on full display at our recent annual Veterans Summits, held in Vinita and Roland. We gathered to celebrate and to recommit ourselves to being worthy of the sacrifice our brave military men and women made and continue to make.
Honoring patriotic service demands action, not just appreciation. It demands that no veteran who defended this country comes home to face housing insecurity, inadequate healthcare, or silent struggles with their mental health. If we allow those gaps to persist, then neither the United States of America, nor the Cherokee Nation, can rightly call itself worthy of its veterans.
We have made real progress. When the VA clinic in Vinita faced closure, Cherokee Nation stepped in to keep it open, and it now operates within our world-class health system. It continues to operate and serve generations of veterans. We've expanded food security for elders, including veterans, and recently extended additional utility assistance to our lowest-income elders as rising costs strain monthly budgets. We are also investing in programs to address veteran suicide prevention, working to bring struggles out of the shadows and into the light.
Housing remains an area where we must do more. That is why Deputy Chief Bryan Warner and I are launching a new work group, spearheaded by Secretary of Veterans Affairs S. Joe Crittenden, that will explore ways to expand housing opportunities for Cherokee veterans. This group will pursue two federal resources that remain underused in the Cherokee Nation: the Native American Direct Loan program, which helps veterans build homes on trust land, and the HUD-VASH program, which provides rental assistance to veterans facing housing insecurity. We intend to bring these services directly to our citizens rather than waiting on federal agencies to deliver them.
We already know what success looks like. We built our Mige Glory Military Housing Addition in Tahlequah, in partnership with the U.S. Department of Defense, to provide 21 in-demand homes for Cherokee veterans. That’s proof that when we commit our land, resources and purposeful intention, we can deliver real stability.
Additionally, we are preserving the stories behind military service. Our new Cherokee Nation Circle of Honor, launched in partnership with the Library of Congress' Veterans History Project, will give citizens who received the Cherokee Nation Medal of Patriotism a platform to share their stories. These powerful stories will be on display on our Cherokee.gov website and will be available for generations to come to read and learn more about the heroic acts by our veterans.
This is Gadugi in action.
Our veterans answered the call when the nation needed them. They’ve protected our rights and liberties. Now, it is our responsibility to protect them and show our gratitude with a place to call home.
Wado,
Chuck Hoskin Jr.
Principal Chief
