Sunny Dooley is a Diné storyteller born into the Saltwater Clan and born from the Water's Edge Clan.[1] She shares Hane', or Diné Blessingway stories, and is a former Miss Navajo Nation, having won the title in 1982.[2]

Biography

Dooley was born to parents Dorothy and Tom Dooley.[3] She is from the Chi Chil' Tah (Where the Oaks Grow) community in New Mexico,[2][4] and grew up on the Navajo reservation in Arizona. She learned to speak Diné Bizaad as her first language[5] and learned the skill of storytelling from her mother. As a storyteller, Dooley shares stories that have been passed down through generations in her family.[6][4]

In 1979, Dooley graduated from West High School in Salt Lake City, Utah. She attended the University of New Mexico, where she received an Associate of Art degree.[7] She later graduated from Brigham Young University, majoring in speech communications and minoring in art. While at the school, she was awarded Miss Indian Brigham Young University.[8][6]

In 1982, she competed in Miss Navajo Nation. During the competition's skills portion, she told a story about the Changing Woman. She won the competition, becoming Miss Navajo Nation from 1982 to 1983. After the contest, she continued storytelling.[1] She performed at the National Museum of the American Indian in Washington, D.C. around 2009.[5] A year later, she published a story called "Mai and the Cliff-Dwelling Birds" in the 2010 book, Trickster: Native American Tales.[9]

As of 2021, Dooley lives in Chi Chil' Tah in a hogan, a traditional log house.[10]

In 2023, she had an acting appearance in the film Frybread Face and Me.

References

  1. 1 2 Vecsey, Christopher (2015). "Navajo Morals and Myths, Ethics and Ethicists". The Journal of Religious Ethics. 43 (1): 101–115. doi:10.1111/jore.12087. ISSN 0384-9694. JSTOR 24586177. Retrieved 12 December 2021.
  2. 1 2 Legendary Locals of Gallup New Mexico. Arcadia Publishing. 2017. p. 124. ISBN 978-1-4671-2567-3. Retrieved 31 July 2020.
  3. ↑ "N.M. Navajo Woman 25th BYU Miss Indian". Albuquerque Journal. 7 April 1985. p. C8. Retrieved 12 December 2021.
  4. 1 2 "Native Dine Blessing Way Stories Told by Sunny Dooley". US Fed News Service. 3 February 2010. ProQuest 471990455. Retrieved 12 December 2021 – via ProQuest.
  5. 1 2 Terhune, Lea (6 February 2009). "Teaching the Art of Being Human: Ancient". Federal Information & News Dispatch, LLC. ProQuest 189983934. Retrieved 12 December 2021 – via ProQuest.
  6. 1 2 "Storyteller shares Navajo lore of revered, scarce horned lizard". Austin American-Statesman. 11 February 1992. p. B2. Retrieved 12 December 2021.
  7. ↑ "Sunny Dooley: Miss Navajo Nation Plans Two-Day Stay in Flagstaff". Arizona Daily Sun. 8 February 1983. p. 7. Retrieved 12 July 2021.
  8. ↑ "Navajo Miss Selected as Miss Indian BYU". The Daily Herald. 24 March 1985. p. 4. Retrieved 12 December 2021.
  9. ↑ Fenton, James (4 November 2012). "Navajo storyteller visits Aztec". Daily Times. ProQuest 1125706094. Retrieved 12 December 2021 – via ProQuest.
  10. ↑ Dooley, Sunny (2 November 2021). "When You Displace a People from their Roots". In Bitsóí, Alastair Lee; Larsen, Brooke (eds.). New World Coming: Frontline Voices on Pandemics, Uprisings, and Climate Crisis. Torrey House Press. p. 23. ISBN 978-1-948814-54-6.
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