And he got sick and seven days later was dead,' said Ahtone. 'His wife died about a week and a half later for the same reason. 'I have a very close friend that I grew up with, my age. For Ahtone, who recently attended the funeral of a friend, the loss has taken a toll. More than 30 Kiowa first language speakers, singers and people with important cultural knowledge like Ahtone have died from COVID-19, including two tribal legislators who died within a four month period. That's just one of many stories Ahtone tells of how the Kiowa came to understand the world. And so there was this one particular place that he wanted to concentrate on. 'Tornado happens because Saynday was coming along one time and he saw all these things going on and he didn't see many more. Vernon 'Cy' Ahtone, a Kiowa elder and culture bearer, has some insight into why tornadoes happen.

That's especially true for the Kiowa Tribe in Southwest Oklahoma. In some tribal nations, the virus has taken first language speakers and the culture bearers who hold knowledge that marks the tribal nation's identity. The pandemic has hit Indigenous communities particularly hard. In February, the United States passed the grim milestone of 500,000 deaths from COVID-19.