Unci Rita receives diploma after 99-year wait

RIO RANCHO — She’s waited nearly a century — 99 years in fact — to achieve her dream, but on Oct. 21, Unci Rita Long Visitor Holy Dance finally got a chance to don the cap and gown, go out on stage and receive her high school diploma.

The ceremony took place at the Rio Rancho High School Performing Arts Center in front of a packed house.

The best part? It was a total surprise to the recent high school graduate, public speaker and prominent voice of the Oglala Lakota people.

“She thinks she’s coming to meet with the kids,” Scottie Pierce, organizer and friend of Unci Rita’s, told the Observer before the ceremony. “She has no idea.”

Unci Rita must’ve had some clue beforehand, because she arrived in a full cap and gown, bedazzled with colorful designs and important imagery.

“Unci” (pronounced oon-ch-ee) is a Lakota term of affection meaning “grandmother,” and that’s how Rita Long Visitor Holy Dance is seen by the people in her life — even the grandmothers.

Unci Rita is a founding member of the International Council of Thirteen Indigenous Grandmothers.

“When our council first met, we did the math,” said Rita’s best friend and fellow Thirteen Grandmothers member, Flordemayo (Maya). “We found, combined, we had over 900 years of feminine wisdom. And Unci Rita is our matriarch.”

According to the council’s website, grandmotherwisdom.org, the International Council of Thirteen Indigenous Grandmothers is an international alliance of indigenous female elders that focuses on issues such as the environment, internationalism and human rights.

Council members include Aama Bombo of the Tamang in Nepal, Maria Alice Campos Freire from the Amazonian Rainforest in Brazil, and Rose Bernadette Rebienot Owansango of the Omyene in Gabon, Africa, among other prominent voices for indigenous rights.

After opening remarks from Mayor Gregg Hull and Suzanne Nguyen, executive director of federal, bilingual and Native American Programs for RRPS, the attendees — which included roughly 100 RRHS students and faculty, as well as Unci Rita’s family and friends — heard an invocation from Terry Pecos of Jemez Pueblo.

Next, Superintendent Sue Cleveland took the podium.

“Unci Rita comes with a warm heart, a gathering of incredible life experiences and memories, and the accumulation of almost 100 years of knowledge and wisdom,” said Cleveland. “We are honored to share in this ceremony with her this morning.”

Next, NACA executive director Anpao Duta Flying Earth (Lakota, Dakota, Ojibwe, Akimel O’odham) sang an honor song.

School Board President Amanda Galbraith spoke next before presenting Unci Rita with her diploma.

“Sometimes an ordinary space becomes sacred,” she said. “And today, this little theater in Rio Rancho has become sacred.”

After closing remarks from One Generation Executive Director Kara Bobroff (Lakota Dine), a reception was held.

Unci Rita was visibly moved by the proceedings. She has waited a long time for this, after all.

Before Galbraith presented Unci Rita with her honorary diploma, Pierce spoke briefly and pointed out just how patient Unci Rita has been.

“May we all not have to wait 99 years to achieve our dreams.”