In the Valley of the Smoking River: the Beginning

THE SONG OF ONE MAN Hagaoda ＂the turtle＂ Ronald A. McMillian, also known as Hagaoda, the Turtle Storyteller, was born in the spring of 1947. As a young boy, Ron’s family moved frequently and he had little time to make lifelong friends. Books about Indians and natural history became his companions. Learning as much as he could about the Plains Indians somehow made his heart fulfilled. Spending his summer days and sometimes nights wondering the woods and imagining how it would have been to live in those earlier times, started a life long journey that now makes his written stories come to life. After finishing High School, Ron joined the Navy and spent the next three years traveling the world. Upon finishing his duty to his country, Ron, returned to the Kansas City area where he attended a local junior college. 40 years ago Ron met and married his beautiful dark haired wife, Barb. It was with her that he attended a Cherokee Pow-Wow. Barb’s cousin was the head woman dancer at that gathering. It was there that he began to understand the drum beat hidden in his heart. His real love, storytelling, has allowed him to travel, teach and inspire many young children and those young at heart. As a natural storyteller, he started collecting and retelling the stories of the Plains Indians. When his children came along, he used them to refine his storytelling skills and later he began traveling and sharing his stories at schools, libraries, colleges and festivals around the country. He has been called upon by the federal government and many other organizations to speak on Native American history, art, music and culture. Ron tries to spend as much time as his job and wife will allow living in one of his traditional lodges. If he is not traveling somewhere you can find his lodge set up at his home, which his wife refers to as the ＂spare bedroom＂. Art and music are a very important part of Ron’s life. Following the customs and traditions of the old one’s Ron makes nearly all of his clothing, jewelry and art. He hand carves his flutes according to tradition and each one has its own voice and design. The story of the flute and what it represents is one of his family’s favorite stories. Ron’s children and grandchildren are responsible for him finally putting these stories down on paper, so that they would not be lost. With the help of his only life-long friend and with the encouragement of his wife his first book is now a reality with more to follow.