ELIZABETH JACKSON BRADY

1923 - 2010

Elizabeth Jackson Brady

Our Mother, Grandmother, Sister & Wife, Elizabeth Jackson Brady passed away on August 24th in Elko, Nevada. In 1923, Elizabeth was born at Indian village on the Elko hillside overlooking the current Great Basin College. She was raised in Elko, Battle Mountain and the Beowawe areas of Nevada. Surviving Elizabeth are her husband, Webb Brady, and children Betty Jo Dick, Leah Brady, Lois Whitney, and Marvin Brady of Elko, Nevada, Maggie Walker of Reno, Nevada, Lorraine Shay of Ft. Hall, Idaho, Steve Brady of Wells, Nevada, Chuck Layton of Chandler, Arizona and siblings, Alfred Jackson and Leonard Jackson Sr. of Elko, Nevada, Geraldine Gerber of Sweetwater, Oregon, and Delores Higgins of Gillette, Wyoming. Preceding her in death were her parents, Judy Johnson Jackson and Jerry Jackson Sr., siblings – Leo Jackson, Laura Jackson, Helen Layton, Thelma Fickes, Jerry Jackson Jr., Willard Jackson, David Jackson and daughter Marian F. Sam.

In her early years, Elizabeth worked as a domestic worker and cook for variety of town people. She continued working by opening a small business, known as "Liz's Indian Tacos". Her fry bread was well known around the western United States where she sold at many native events and at local activities in Elko County.

A fluent Shoshone speaker, she was proud to be a descendent of the White Knife Band of Western Shoshone. She contributed to her community by serving on the Elko Band Council, tribal enrollment and housing committees on and off for about 30 years. As one of the oldest members of our tribal community in Elko, Nevada, she contributed to the arts and the community. Elizabeth demonstrated around the community and the western United States showing her cradleboard, braided rugs, beadwork and buckskin work. Highlights of her life was when she demonstrated cradleboard making at the 1976 & 2006 Smithsonian Folk Life Festivals in Washington DC, awarded the 2004 Governor's Award for Excellence in Folk Arts, participating in 2002 in the University of Nevada Reno's Oral History Project for singing native Shoshone songs and storytelling, a Master Artist for the Nevada Arts Council's Apprenticeship program in 1996 and 1999 for singing and hand braided coil rugs and in 1995, Elizabeth was honored by the Nevada Women's Association for a Lifetime Achievement Award.

In her final years, Elizabeth enjoyed traveling to spend time with her nine children, twenty-three grandchildren, thirty great-grandchildren, and three great-great grandchildren, traveling to the Shoshonean Reunions in Fort Hall, Idaho, Layton, Oklahoma and Ft. Washakie, Wyoming to demonstrate her cradleboards, language & singing traditional Shoshone songs taught to her by her father and to Stanley, Idaho to watch traditional salmon fishing.

A viewing will be held Sunday, August 29, 2010 at the Burn's Funeral Home from 4-6pm and the funeral services will be held on Monday, August 30, 2010 at the Elko Colony Gymnasium at 1 pm.