119 year-old woman dies

By John Christian Hopkins
Diné Bureau

PREWITT, N.M. — When Emma Bodie Begay was born, the president was Grover Cleveland, Hollywood was still an orange grove and Wild West icons like Sitting Bull, Geronimo and Wyatt Earp were all alive and well.

According to her family, Begay who died Good Friday at the age of 119 was born in a hogan in the area around Mariano Lake. Her mother was Edibah Charley, according to her granddaughter, Rosita Smith of Prewitt, N.M. Begay's clans are Tlogi' (Zia-Weaver Clan) and she was born for Deeshchii'nii (Start-of-the-Red-Streak Clan).

Smith, acting as the family spokesperson, said that her masaani (maternal grandmother) was a loving, honest person with a taste for simple pleasures.

"She had a big cornfield and I remember working in it with her, picking corn and planting squash," Smith said.

She attended a Christian school and spoke English her entire life.

"She loved going to church, she would never miss it," Smith said. "She was a good Christian, she always wanted to share whatever she had. She was always giving."

Born at home, there is no birth certificate to validate her family's claim that Begay was the oldest Native American. If her age is correct, it would make Begay the last person born in 1888.

The last surviving documented person born in 1888 was Adelina Domingues, who died at 114 years in August, 2002.

The America Begay was born into was vastly different from the one she left behind on Good Friday about seven months shy of her 120th birthday.

In 1888, Reconstruction had ended in the South, and Jim Crow laws ruled the land; that year saw 69 known lynchings of blacks.

Other events from 1888 include:

• Olympic hero Jim Thorpe was born.
  
• George Eastman introduced his Kodak box camera, it sold for $25 and could take 100 pictures per roll of film.
  
• Joseph P. Kennedy, founder of the Kennedy fortune and father of President John F. Kennedy, was born.
  
• William Gray patented the pay telephone.
  
• Jack the Ripper was on a murderous spree.
  
• Van Gogh cut off a part of his ear.

Begay lived through seven American wars the Spanish-American, World Wars I and II, Korea, Vietnam and Gulf Wars I and II. She was born into an America where Indians were not citizens (that wouldn't happen until 1924), women could not vote (1920), baseball's biggest star was Adrian "Cap" Anson, a racist who played a central role in barring blacks from playing, media mogul William Randolph Hearst had recently bought his first newspaper and boxing's heavyweight champion was John L. Sullivan, who began his career when the sport was bare knuckles.

Navajo Nation Speaker Lawrence T. Morgan (Iyanbito/Pinedale) wholeheartedly offered condolences to Begay's family.

"Mrs. Begay's passing is a great loss to the Navajo Nation," Morgan said. "I offer my condolences to the family during this difficult time."

Morgan said Begay's passing is a great loss because all the old Navajo teachings that she had learned in her 119 years are gone with her.

Morgan and Navajo President Joe Shirley Jr. plan to attend services for Begay and will order the Nation's flags to fly half-staff, Smith said.

Begay remained active all of her life. Each day she greeted the dawn at 4 a.m., and would sing songs as she tended to her morning household chores, Smith said.

"She didn't care who was around, she loved to sing," Smith said. Her favorite song was "How Great Thou Art."

Begay was an "outgoing, hardworking, spiritual Navajo woman," Smith said. And her grandmother was proud of the fact that she "spoke the English language beautifully," Smith added.

Begay herded sheep all of her life, she also was a weaver, farmer and homemaker. Only three daughters out of her 12 children survive her, and there are nearly 300 grandchildren, Smith said. There are also countless great-grandchildren, great-great grandchildren and great-great-great grandchildren.

"She lived to see five generations," Smith said.

Begay was married to Santiago Begay, who was originally from Alamo, N.M. He passed on in 1974.

"She used a horse and wagon all the time. When they would go to Alamo, it would take them two days to get there," Smith said.

Services are to be announced by the family.

Smith and her family members are respectfully requesting donations to help with the burial services. The Office of the Speaker will also offer assistance to the family to help during this difficult time.

For information to donate to the family, please call Smith at 505-287-0741 or send to P.O. Box 127, Prewitt, N.M. 81045.

John Christian Hopkins can be reached at hopkins1960@hotmail.com or by calling 505-371-5443.