Lance Tahmahkera with his sister’s ceremonial dress
Dick Remski
On June 11 the Robson Ranch Gun Club was honored to have a very special guest speaker, Mr. Lance Tahmahkera, a great-great grandson of the last great Comanche Chief, Quanah Parker. Quanah was the son of Comanche Chief Peta Nokona and Cynthia Ann Parker who had been taken in a raid at the Parker compound in May, 1836, at the age of nine. She was adopted into the Comanche nation and later married into the tribe. Lance shared with the club many family stories that he learned as a young child, traveling with his parents to tribal gatherings and sitting at the knee of elder story keepers. He talked about how the bison got his hump and how the family fared after they were moved from their final encampment at Palo Duro Canyon to the reservation in Oklahoma.
Lance related the story of how fabled Texas rancher Charles Goodnight would not pay a fee in cattle to drive his herds north across the reservation, a fee placed by Chief Quanah to obtain cattle to feed the tribes of Apache, Kiowa, and Comanche who lived there. Quanah said, “Pay or go around the reservation lands.” The first time, Goodnight went around and lost so many cattle in the detour that he paid the fee on subsequent drives!
We were also told the history of the Comanche code talkers of World War II. Twenty-one were recruited in 1939 by the Army, and of the 17 who went to war in Europe, all came safely home. Their service included D-Day. Later in the war, many Navajo were recruited as code talkers, and they served in the Pacific Theater with the Marines. And there were Choctaw code talkers who served in World War I as well.
Lance brought a number of tribal artifacts to show the members, including a white deerskin ceremonial dress worn by his sister and made by his grandmother over a three-year period!
A full house crowd of approximately 80 club members offered a standing ovation at the completion of Mr. Tahmahkera’s remarks. Lance is also a board member in the American Indian Benefits Alliance (AIBA), a small nonprofit group that provides clothing and educational materials to many current reservation residents, regardless of tribe. In thanks for his visit, the Gun Club has donated on his behalf to the AIBA.
The Robson Ranch Gun Club is open to all Robson Ranch residents and provides educational and safety training to our members as well as offering several recreational and sporting shooting activities. More information on the club can be obtained from our home page at rrgc.groups.io/g/RRGC or from the club vice president Chris Simpson at [email protected] or by phone at 201-463-8335.