Donald E. Loudner

Dates

Obituary

Donald E. Loudner, 92, of Mitchell, SD, passed away Thursday, February 13, 2025, at Firesteel Healthcare Center in Mitchell. Celebrations of Life and military honors will be at 10:00 AM Thursday, March 6, at the Crow Creek Tribal Hall in Fort Thompson, SD. Visitation will follow Thursday evening from 5-7:00 PM at Bittner Funeral Chapel in Mitchell. On Friday, March 7, at 10:00 AM there will be services at the SD Military Heritage Alliance in Sioux Falls, SD with military honors to follow as Donald is laid to rest at 2:00 PM in the South Dakota Veterans Cemetery in Sioux Falls, SD.

Donald E. Loudner was born March 18, 1932, on the Crow Creek Sioux Reservation at Fort Thompson, SD. The Great Spirit called him home on February 13, 2025 in Mitchell, SD. He was proud to be a member of the Hunkpati Dakota Sioux Nation.

Don was proud to have volunteered to serve our nation during the Korean War and was inducted on August 1, 1950 with the U.S. Army. After the war, he continued to serve in the reserves until he retired as a Chief Warrant Officer 4 after 33 years of service. During this time, he married Joyce (Fallis) Loudner on May 16, 1953, and was married to her for 55 years until her passing. This union brought them four children, Donita (Fort Thompson, SD), Rose, Michael and Donald II (Kathy - Blair, NE).

In 1972, Gov. Richard Kneip appointed him South Dakota’s Coordinator of Indian Affairs, and his mettle was immediately tested during the Wounded Knee Occupation in 1973. He had many stories regarding his interactions with both sides and the aftermath until his term expired in 1976.

He was then called up to work for the U.S Department of Interior, Bureau of Indian Affairs as an Agency Superintendent at the Yankton South Dakota Agency and later to the Horton Kansas Agency. After working at the Bureau of Indian Affairs for 12 years, he retired once again.

Then Don and Joyce opened Great Plains Traders in Mitchell, SD, across the street from the Corn Palace and sold authentic Native American merchandise from different tribes all over the United States. They enjoyed their off-season by traveling the US and visiting reservations and buying items for the store and spending their winters in Arizona.

To say Don was very active in various service organizations would be an understatement. To name a few things, he was a life member of the DAV, Masonic Lodge, and El Riad Shrine Temple of South Dakota. He was the Post Commander of the American Legion in Mitchell. He chaired the South Dakota State Veterans Affairs Commission. He also served on the National Census Advisory Committee representing the American Indian and Alaska Native populations for the US Census Bureau. He was also on the National Cemetery Administration Advisory Committee for Cemetery and Memorial Affairs. Finally, Don was one of the best-known American Indian Veterans advocates in the United States. He was the first National Commander of the Native American Indian Veterans, Inc. NAIV formed in 2004 and officially received its Congressional Charter last year.

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