Kathleen “Katie” Ann Goodman (Rasor)
Born in Cottage Grove, OR, on January 3rd, Katie was the second child born after the New Year (1954) and was awarded gifts and prizes as such. Her siblings would eventually be: Jean, Janet, Mike, Jean Jr., Kerri, Kevin, Gregg, Melody, and Candy. (Big family) A member of the Nakoda Nation (from the Wadopana and Red Bottom clans), her childhood was a cycle of endless adventures, spent moving from Oregon to the Fort Peck Reservation and back again. If she wasn’t in Oregon being known as Kathy, she would be in Montana known as Katie. In her adult life, Katie took on the mantle of a single mother and provider of her three children: Sean Goodman, Michelle Eanes and Brandon Neal.
Throughout her life, she would work whatever needed doing, in order to do the things that she truly loved. She traversed the working world in a variety of jobs that included a stint in the Oregon National Guard, Caseworker for the Oregon Department of Human Services, Dispatcher for the North Bend, OR police department, Camp Crew Chief for the Fort Peck (BIA) Wildfire fighting crews (including the 1988 fires in Yellowstone National Park), Answering Service Operator (Albany, OR), Menasha Paper Mill worker (North Bend, OR), and Manager for the now infamous, and short-lived, Wolf Point Taco Bell.
It was in Montana that she discovered 2 things, the love of her life, Wayne Martell, and hunting (her true love). Mom was a true outdoorswoman. There was not a gun that she couldn’t shoot, or a fish that she couldn’t catch. I used to watch in amazement as my tiny mother would hang big game and have it skinned in less than 5 minutes. (If you’ve never seen her do it, I’m truly sorry because it was amazing!). Camping, fishing, and hunting were a constant of life, on the Rez and off. She could be frequently found **spotlighting deer on the river-bottom, which earned her the nickname: “Katie-runs-through-the-brush-hiding-from-tribal-police-at-dawn”. Her hunting and fishing prowess was only matched by her ability to clean her catch; in fact she was so good that she was often referred to as “Uncle Katie”.
Katie loved cooking, in general, but baking was her favorite, and she would bake breads, rolls, and especially cinnamon rolls to share with everyone. Nothing made her fat children happier than coming home and smelling bread in the oven. And of course, her frybread. Oh my damn, her frybread was indescribably delicious.
Katie attended various schools throughout her life, graduating from North Bend High School (go Bulldogs) and from the NAES college, with a Bachelor Degree in *Underwater Basket Weaving (please see notations below).
Despite having a life set to “Indian time”, Katie lived her life as she saw fit. She and Wayne took on more traditional roles over time. Mom tried her best to assume a more traditional native lifestyle. She became a protector of children when working at a group home, then a protector of women while working for a shelter. She and Wayne were most often found at sweats or lodge or at meetings held for those that needed help. Mom never missed an opportunity to attend a powwow. Some of her favorite past time activities included: wandering the prairies looking for chokecherries, bull berries, wild turnips, arrowheads, interesting feathers, and amazing stones and other minerals. She also enjoyed calling bingo at the old Community Hall in Wolf Point, in exchange for tobacco and pop. She loved feeling needed; it made her the happiest woman in the world.
She also loved to fuel up the Gremlin, pack her kids and her sister Kerri’s kids into it and drive to remote mountain tops or beaches to allow the kids to scream, yell, and generally work out their extra energies until tired, and then drive home on fumes. These trips, more often than not, resulted in stories that are still whispered about today, ***including the ever-popular “leave an adult behind while driving away, making the kids scream and cry”… Mostly, she loved to laugh, scheme, and joke. She did so loudly and as often as possible; preferably in the company of her many brothers, sisters, and extended family.
Katie was preceded in death by her parents: Jean F. Rasor Sr. and Ruby M. Rasor (Gregg). She leaves behind her wonderful husband, Wayne Martell; her children, Sean Goodman, Michelle Eanes (Rasor) and Brandon (Kaycee) Neal; adopted daughter, Althea (Miles) Iron Cloud-Jakcson. She was blessed with grandchildren who took up a large part of her life, Destiny Eder, Sunni Neal, Marcus Jackson, Martina Jackson, Miles Jackson Jr., Ian Rasor, Jonathon Eanes, Heavynn Lowdog, RJ Lowdog, McKenzie Neal, Kaitlyn Neal, Braedon Neal, and Maria Rasor. Believe it or not, for someone so young, she already had 2 beautiful great-grandchildren, Nikeda and Antonio. She is also survived by 5 brothers: Mike Matthews, Jean F. Rasor Jr., Kevin Rasor, Jean Merril Rasor, and Gregg Rasor, and her 4 sisters: Kerri Flitcroft, Janet Cooper, Melody Rasor, and Candy Rasor. She also has a plethora of nieces, nephews, grandchildren and many more kids that looked up to her as a surrogate mother, aunt, or grandmother.
Like all humans, she was governed by the laws of physics. It is a scientific fact that hearts and clocks slow down as they approach the speed of light. Katie’s heart reached that speed on Sunday morning, December 11th, transforming her soul into energy, into pure white light. Though she is no longer with us, she is all around us. Guaranteed, we will all miss her smile.
*These life achievements may require outside verification and certification…
**May or may not be true
***Seriously, are most of these even real?