Clara Mae White Hip Nomee was an Crow politician and tribal leader who served as the Chairwoman of the Crow Tribe of Montana for five-terms from 1990 to 2000.
29 Facts About Clara Nomee
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Clara Nomee was born on May 12,1938, in Crow Agency, Montana, to parents, Henry Pretty On Top, Sr.
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Clara Nomee's parents gave her the Crow name of Xooxaashe iisaashe itshe, meaning "Good Corn Stock".
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Clara Nomee was raised in the vicinity of Lodge Grass, Montana, and graduated from Lodge Grass High School.
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Clara Nomee attended Sheridan Business College and Bacone College in Oklahoma.
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Clara Nomee drank heavily for the following two years, before forgoing alcohol permanently in 1978.
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Clara Nomee had no children, but raised twelve family members.
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Clara Nomee worked for Bureau of Indian Affairs, an agency of the federal government of the United States, at its local offices in Browning and Crow Agency for thirty years before her retirement.
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Clara Nomee served on the Lodge Grass High School board of trustees for eight years.
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Clara Nomee became involved in politics when her husband, Carlton Clara Nomee Sr.
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Clara Nomee served as the secretary of the Crow Tribe for one term from 1988 to 1990.
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Several of Clara Nomee's predecessors had been indicted or impeached for criminal behavior.
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Clara Nomee decided to run for Chairperson of the Crow Tribe in 1990.
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Clara Nomee would serve for five, two-year terms in office between 1990 and 2000.
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Clara Nomee was one of just six Native American leaders selected to meet with officials of the Clinton administration in Washington, DC in 1993.
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Clara Nomee helped to establish Crow Native Days, which attracts thousands of visitors and tourists to the Crow Tribe reservation annually.
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Clara Nomee oversaw the construction and opening of dialysis facilities, a new nursing home, and a bank.
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Clara Nomee was able to increase and attract federal and private revenue streams into the Crow Tribe's coffers.
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Clara Nomee has been largely credited with establishing financial security and stability for the Crow tribal government.
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Clara Nomee's administration settled a long running reservation border dispute, which centered on the 107th meridian and had lasted for more than 100 years.
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Clara Nomee successfully fought for a water compact with the government of Montana.
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That year, Clara Nomee acquired 80 acres of land belonging to the Crow Tribe for $8,000.
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Clara Nomee denied any wrongdoing in the sale, but federal prosecutors, who indicted her in 1997, contended that she had used influence to coerce members of the Land Resources Committee into approving the sale, since she had appointed many of the members of the committee.
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Clara Nomee was convicted for felony theft of tribal land in September 1998.
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Clara Nomee's conviction was appealed, but upheld by a federal appeals court.
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Clara Nomee successfully fought off bids to remove her from office following her conviction.
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Clara Nomee largely remained largely out of the public's eye after leaving office in 2000, though she did make occasional public appearances.
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Clara Nomee died at St Vincent's Hospital in Billings, Montana, on January 31,2012, at the age of 73.
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Clara Nomee was buried at Lodge Grass Cemetery following a funeral at Lodge Grass Our Lady of Loretto Catholic Church.