Betty Nixon

Betty Nixon (November 28, 1928 - February 3, 2013) was an American Kiowa artisan, preservationist, guidance counselor, and museum administrator. Nixon was a co-founder of the Mid-America All-Indian Center, which opened in Wichita, Kansas, in 1976, and later served as chairwoman of the center's board of directors.
Nixon was born near Anadarko, Oklahoma, on November 28, 1928, to Homer Sampson Yeagtaupt Buffalo Tabbytite and Alice Ahtapety. In a 1992 interview with the Wichita Eagle, Nixon explained the importance of her family in learning Kiowa culture, "I learned traditional beadwork and cooking...My grandmother would take us into the woods and tell us what plants to use. For instance the roots from soap weed could be used for shampoo. If we had a rash or mosquito bites, she would look for toadstools and dry them. Then she would crack them open and take the gray powder and rub them on our hands. She’d always tell us, ‘Don’t touch or taste. They are poisonous.’ "
Betty Nixon died on February 3, 2013, at the age of 84. She was survived by her husband, Everett E. Nixon, whom she married in 1946; three of their children, Sheri, Virginia, and Scott; nineteen grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. She was predeceased by two sons, Everett Wayman Nixon and Allen Eugene Nixon.<ref name=weagle/>

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