Veterans Day holds a special place in this episode, I visited with Choctaw Nation’s Assistant Chief Jack Austin Jr., a man whose life has been shaped by service, family legacy, and an unwavering devotion to the Choctaw people.

From his small-town Oklahoma upbringing in Talihina, where the soda fountain was a gathering place, and family values were taught in everyday moments, Jack shares what it was like to be raised by his father, the late Jack Austin Sr., and guided by a grandfather who led not through speeches, but through steady action.

Jack opens his story wider, reflecting on why he serves his country, his Choctaw Nation, and his community. We trace the legacies passed down through generations, including his own Choctaw ancestor who fought in the Battle of New Orleans, long before citizenship was extended to Native people. Jack unpacks the significance of that battle, the irony woven through history, and how those ancestors still stand with us today.

He also speaks candidly about his years in the U.S. Army: the brotherhood, the lifelong friends, the moments that shaped him, transitioning out of military life, and the continued mission he carries through his work with the Choctaw Veterans’ Advocacy program.

Jack reflects on the prayer that guides him as he serves the Choctaw people, the educational journey he and his wife traveled together on the way to their bachelor’s and master’s degrees, and the profound turning point in his life when his mother passed away. He honors her legacy of caring for those in need within the Tribe and shares the story of the woman who stepped in as a mother to lift him up during that difficult chapter.

Packed with history, humor, heart, and hard-won wisdom, this episode shines a light on what it truly means to lead and to serve with a Choctaw heart.

On this Veterans day, yakoke to all who have served, and to the families who stand beside them!

Veterans Day holds a special place in this episode, I visited with Choctaw Nation’s Assistant Chief Jack Austin Jr., a man whose life has been shaped by service, family legacy, and an unwavering devotion to the Choctaw people.

From his small-town Oklahoma upbringing in Talihina, where the soda fountain was a gathering place, and family values were taught in everyday moments, Jack shares what it was like to be raised by his father, the late Jack Austin Sr., and guided by a grandfather who led not through speeches, but through steady action.

Jack opens his story wider, reflecting on why he serves his country, his Choctaw Nation, and his community. We trace the legacies passed down through generations, including his own Choctaw ancestor who fought in the Battle of New Orleans, long before citizenship was extended to Native people. Jack unpacks the significance of that battle, the irony woven through history, and how those ancestors still stand with us today.

He also speaks candidly about his years in the U.S. Army: the brotherhood, the lifelong friends, the moments that shaped him, transitioning out of military life, and the continued mission he carries through his work with the Choctaw Veterans’ Advocacy program.

Jack reflects on the prayer that guides him as he serves the Choctaw people, the educational journey he and his wife traveled together on the way to their bachelor’s and master’s degrees, and the profound turning point in his life when his mother passed away. He honors her legacy of caring for those in need within the Tribe and shares the story of the woman who stepped in as a mother to lift him up during that difficult chapter.

Packed with history, humor, heart, and hard-won wisdom, this episode shines a light on what it truly means to lead and to serve with a Choctaw heart.

On this Veterans day, yakoke to all who have served, and to the families who stand beside them!

PART 3

From opening her own law firm in Durant to protecting Native art and culture, attorney Chloe Moyer joins Native ChocTalk to unpack:

✨ Federal Indian law & tribal sovereignty

✨ Protecting public arts & the Indian Arts and Crafts Act

✨ The balance of communal vs. individual ownership

✨ NAGPRA, NHPA, & protecting what’s been taken

✨ Tips for Native artists selling online (contracts, trademarks, copyrights)

PLUS:

– Tribal IDs and membership rules

– Adoption possibilities for Choctaw families

– McGirt v. Oklahoma & Castro-Huerta

– Starting your own Native-owned business

📌 Learn more at: moyerlawpllc.com

Native ChocTalk Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/nativechoctalkpodcast

All Podcast Episodes: https://nativechoctalk.com/podcasts/

From opening her own law firm in Durant to protecting Native art and culture, attorney Chloe Moyer joins Native ChocTalk to unpack:

✨ Federal Indian law & tribal sovereignty

✨ Protecting public arts & the Indian Arts and Crafts Act

✨ The balance of communal vs. individual ownership

✨ NAGPRA, NHPA, & protecting what’s been taken

✨ Tips for Native artists selling online (contracts, trademarks, copyrights)

PLUS:

– Tribal IDs and membership rules

– Adoption possibilities for Choctaw families

– McGirt v. Oklahoma & Castro-Huerta

– Starting your own Native-owned business

📌 Learn more at: moyerlawpllc.com

Native ChocTalk Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/nativechoctalkpodcast

All Podcast Episodes: https://nativechoctalk.com/podcasts/

From opening her own law firm in Durant to protecting Native art and culture, attorney Chloe Moyer joins Native ChocTalk to unpack:

✨ Federal Indian law & tribal sovereignty

✨ Protecting public arts & the Indian Arts and Crafts Act

✨ The balance of communal vs. individual ownership

✨ NAGPRA, NHPA, & protecting what’s been taken

✨ Tips for Native artists selling online (contracts, trademarks, copyrights)

PLUS:

– Tribal IDs and membership rules

– Adoption possibilities for Choctaw families

– McGirt v. Oklahoma & Castro-Huerta

– Starting your own Native-owned business

📌 Learn more at: moyerlawpllc.com

Native ChocTalk Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/nativechoctalkpodcast

All Podcast Episodes: https://nativechoctalk.com/podcasts/

PART 3

In this episode, my guests, Amy, Ian and Mike take you deep into the heart of Choctaw tradition, food, and the sacred relationship with the hunt.

You’ll learn about:

- Life at Nan Awaya Farm (where yvnvsh (buffalo) and food are grown the Choctaw way

- Ancient Choctaw hunting - the reverence for animals & wisdom from elders

- Do buffalo will actually charge through 10k volts of electric fence?

- What it’s really like to care for buffalo every day

- The surprising stealth (and jumping skills!) of buffalo

- The second edition of Ian Thompson’s Choctaw Food book (launching soon!)

- Crafting traditional bows, arrows, and quivers

- Stories from the hunt - how our ancestors approached deer with such skill and respect

 

This episode is full of stories, surprises, and teachings that connect past and present. Don’t miss it!

Native ChocTalk Facebook page:  https://www.facebook.com/nativechoctalkpodcast 

All Podcast Episodes:  https://nativechoctalk.com/podcasts/

PART 3

In this episode, my guests, Amy, Ian and Mike take you deep into the heart of Choctaw tradition, food, and the sacred relationship with the hunt.

You’ll learn about:

- Life at Nan Awaya Farm (where yvnvsh (buffalo) and food are grown the Choctaw way

- Ancient Choctaw hunting - the reverence for animals & wisdom from elders

- Do buffalo will actually charge through 10k volts of electric fence?

- What it’s really like to care for buffalo every day

- The surprising stealth (and jumping skills!) of buffalo

- The second edition of Ian Thompson’s Choctaw Food book (launching soon!)

- Crafting traditional bows, arrows, and quivers

- Stories from the hunt - how our ancestors approached deer with such skill and respect

 

This episode is full of stories, surprises, and teachings that connect past and present. Don’t miss it!

Native ChocTalk Facebook page:  https://www.facebook.com/nativechoctalkpodcast 

All Podcast Episodes:  https://nativechoctalk.com/podcasts/

PART 2

In this episode, my guests, Amy, Ian and Mike take you deep into the heart of Choctaw tradition, food, and the sacred relationship with the hunt.

You’ll learn about:

🌱 Life at Nan Awaya Farm where yvnvsh (buffalo) and food are grown in the Choctaw tradition

🪶 Ancient Choctaw hunting - the reverence for animals & wisdom from elders

⚡ Do buffalo will actually charge through 10k volts of electric fence?

🦬 What it’s really like to care for buffalo every day

🤫 The surprising stealth (and jumping skills!) of buffalo

📖 The second edition of Ian Thompson’s Choctaw Food book (launching soon!)

🏹 Crafting traditional bows, arrows, and quivers

🦌 Stories from the hunt - how our ancestors approached deer with such skill and respect

This episode is full of stories, surprises, and teachings that connect past and present. Don’t miss it!

Native ChocTalk Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/nativechoctalkpodcast

All Podcast Episodes: https://nativechoctalk.com/podcasts/

PART 1

In this episode, my guests, Amy, Ian and Mike take you deep into the heart of Choctaw tradition, food, and the sacred relationship with the hunt.

You’ll learn about:

- Life at Nan Awaya Farm (where yvnvsh (buffalo) and food are grown the Choctaw way

- Ancient Choctaw hunting - the reverence for animals & wisdom from elders

- Do buffalo will actually charge through 10k volts of electric fence?

- What it’s really like to care for buffalo every day

- The surprising stealth (and jumping skills!) of buffalo

- The second edition of Ian Thompson’s Choctaw Food book (launching soon!)

- Crafting traditional bows, arrows, and quivers

- Stories from the hunt - how our ancestors approached deer with such skill and respect

 

This episode is full of stories, surprises, and teachings that connect past and present. Don’t miss it!

Native ChocTalk Facebook page:  https://www.facebook.com/nativechoctalkpodcast 

All Podcast Episodes:  https://nativechoctalk.com/podcasts/

PART 2

On this episode of Native ChocTalk, my cousin, Cheryl and I took a road trip into the heart of Choctaw country to explore the fascinating and little-known history of Tamaha, Oklahoma - a town with stories that are anything but small.

As we meandered along banks of the Arkansas River, we met a local gentleman walking his dogs. That chance encounter led me to Tonia Brannan - an unofficial town historian with a deep connection to the land, the stories, and the Choctaw history embedded in the soil who shares it all with me today.

From early ferry landings of the Choctaw trading points following Removal, to a Civil War steamboat raid led by Confederate Cherokee General Stand Watie, to the very first prisoner of the Tamaha jail, and even the scrappy boxing legend Wild Wilson Dunn, a Choctaw man who claimed to be Osage and once fought Jethro’s dad from the show, The Beverly Hillbillies - Tamaha has seen it all!

(By the way - know any Choctaws with the last name Dunn? Let me know!)

Native ChocTalk Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/nativechoctalkpodcast

All Podcast Episodes: https://nativechoctalk.com/podcasts/