[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 177 (Thursday, December 8, 2016)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6917-S6918]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         REMEMBERING TONY REYNA

 Mr. UDALL. Mr. President, I wish to pay tribute to Taos Pueblo 
Governor Tony Reyna, who passed away December 5, 2016, at the age of 
100, in Taos, NM.
  Governor Reyna's life was defined by service to others: he served his 
country, his State, his community, his Pueblo.
  Governor Reyna was born February 1, 1916, to Helario and Crucita 
Reyna of Taos Pueblo. He was given the name ``Chuta,'' which means 
``Hunter's Call.'' According to Governor Reyna, ``It was so important, 
the care my father and mother gave us, their commitment to us they 
said, `Don't take. Give something back.' That's the philosophy we live 
by.''
  Governor Reyna was raised in the traditional pueblo of Taos--occupied 
for 1,000 years and considered the oldest continuously inhabited 
community in the United States. The five-storied adobe pueblo--dramatic 
and picturesque--lies at the base of the Mo-ha-loh or Ma-ha-lu, which 
we call the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. Governor Reyna maintained a 
home there, where the family gathered for pueblo ceremonies.
  Governor Reyna attended the Taos Pueblo Day School as a young boy. 
``By the time we could carry a bucket, we were carrying water and wood 
for mother to cook. We would run home from school to water and feed the 
horses. We would ride into town bareback to get kerosene. Those were 
very enjoyable days. We thought it was very hard, but looking back, it 
was very worthwhile. We learned to work and to take responsibility.''
  He attended Santa Fe Indian School and graduated from Santa Fe High 
School in 1936. After high school, he taught woodworking at Albuquerque 
Indian School.
  Governor Reyna was a member of the New Mexico National Guard in 1941 
when he was shipped to the Philippines. At that time, Native Americans 
were not considered full citizens. They served in the military with 
bravery and distinction, yet did not have the right to vote. Governor 
Reyna was captured by the Japanese, along with 10 other servicemen from 
Taos Pueblo. He endured and survived the 65-mile Bataan Death March and 
3 and one-half years of brutal captivity. He was tortured and forced to 
bury hundreds of his fellow servicemen, including his best friend. ``I 
was raised a farm boy from sunrise to sundown, so I was tough enough to 
survive starvation,'' he said. ``Determination kept me going. I had a 
family, a home to come back to.'' Five from Taos Pueblo survived till 
the end of the war, and Governor Reyna was the last surviving of them. 
His American Legion garrison hat--honoring his service--bears an eagle 
feather in the band. According to Governor Reyna, ``This feather 
represents all the Indian veterans, men and women.''
  Today marks the 75th anniversary of the Bataan invasion, which began 
on December 8, 1941--just hours after the attack on Pearl Harbor--when 
soldiers from the 200th Coast Artillery Regiment became the ``first to 
fire'' to defend the Philippines from Japanese bombers. It is fitting 
that we Honor Governor Reyna today.
  After the war, Governor Reyna returned to Taos Pueblo and, as he 
said, ``. . . got busy.'' He married, and he and his wife, Annie Cata 
Reyna, had four children, Diane, John Anthony, Phillip, and Marie.
  Governor Reyna wanted to open an art shop in Taos, but banks would 
not loan to a Native American, even a veteran. ``I went to the bank, 
but they weren't interested in loans to Indians because they had 
nothing in the way of security,'' he said. He found two businessmen in 
town who would lend to him, and over the next 2 years, he hand-built an 
adobe shop and home and paid the men back in full.
  ``I opened the doors to the shop May 1, 1950,'' he said. ``There was 
no shop like this at the Pueblo at the time. I felt I had a 
responsibility to promote Indian craft.'' At the time, Governor Reyna's 
shop--Tony Reyna Indian Shop--was the only Native-owned store dealing 
strictly in Native-made crafts. The shop is open to this day--run by 
Governor Reyna's son Phillip--and is the oldest shop in Taos selling 
Native-made art.
  Governor Reyna served Taos Pueblo as secretary for the Governor's 
office in 1975 and Lieutenant Governor in 1977. He served two terms as 
pueblo Governor, in 1982 and 1992, and was a lifetime member of the 
tribal council. ``I served in the Army, I served the state of New 
Mexico, and I served the city of Taos, but the most important of all 
was serving my people as governor.''
  Governor Reyna was instrumental in the successful effort to return 
Blue Lake to Taos Pueblo. Nestled in the mountains northeast of the 
pueblo, the lake is sacred to the pueblo. It and 48,000 acres were 
taken from the pueblo and appropriated as Federal lands in 1906. After 
much work, the area was returned to the pueblo in 1970.
  As Governor, Governor Reyna was instrumental in securing Taos 
Pueblo's designation as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1992. He 
secured that status without compromising the pueblos' conditions for 
privacy. After the designation, he convinced the U.S. Air Force to 
change flight patterns of supersonic jets over Taos Pueblo. The flights 
were damaging the structure of the buildings. As a veteran, Governor

[[Page S6918]]

Reyna had credibility and assured the Air Force he understood the need 
for national security, but firmly demanded the damaging flights stop. 
The Air Force rerouted the flights.
  Governor Reyna served as police commissioner for the town of Taos, as 
a member of the Taos Municipal School Board, as a trustee for the 
Millicent Rogers Museum in El Prado, and as a tribal judge at the Santa 
Fe Indian Market.
  In 1992, he was honored as a Santa Fe Living Treasure. The Heard 
Museum gave him the Spirit of the Heard Award in 2010. The chair of the 
advisory committee stated that Governor Reyna was selected ``. . . 
because he dedicated his life to the betterment of Indian people and, 
in particular, to helping preserve the culture, resources and 
traditions of his tribe.'' And, ``[h]e is a man who has given much, but 
has asked for little in return.'' The New Mexico Legislature proclaimed 
his 100th birthday, February 1, 2016, as ``Tony Reyna Day.''
  Governor Reyna was buried December 5, 2016, dressed in a deerskin 
robe and with full military honors, at the Taos Pueblo cemetery, 
following a mass at the pueblo's San Geronimo Church.
  War hero, husband, father, businessman, pueblo leader, community 
leader--Governor Reyna's contributions to arts, culture, politics, 
community, and the Nation are astounding. His life demonstrates the 
value of service to others. He will be missed.

                          ____________________