Still Here: Community Rallies Around UKB Leader Corey Still After Life Saving Liver Transplant
- Cherokee 411 Staff
- 19 hours ago
- 3 min read
By Cara Cowan Watts, Cherokee 411
Cara Cowan Watts, Cherokee 411 correspondent, sat down with Dr. Corey Still to talk about his difficult health journey so the community could better understand what he has faced and how to support him in the months ahead.
NORMAN, Okla. — Dr. Corey Still, a citizen of the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians and a respected voice in Indigenous higher education, is recovering after receiving a life saving liver transplant on October 4. The longtime educator, researcher and cultural advocate continues to inspire the many students and communities he has served since his youth when he was a member of the Cherokee National Youth Choir.
Still serves as Senior Research and Training Director at One Fire Associates, LLC, an Indigenous owned research and evaluation firm based in Oklahoma. More information about the organization can be found at https://www.onefireassociates.org/. His previous roles include Director of Scholarship Operations and Director of Research at the American Indian Graduate Center, now Native Forward Scholars Fund. He holds a PhD in Adult and Higher Education from the University of Oklahoma.
His research centers Indigenous research methodologies, program and data evaluation, Native American student support services, leadership development, Native American fraternity and sorority life, Native identity, and the experiences of Native men in higher education. He also focuses on Native masculinity and the community impact of Native fraternities. Still is one of the last first language Cherokee speakers in his family.
For several years Still has quietly battled an autoimmune liver disease he unknowingly carried since childhood. When doctors told him a transplant would be his only chance for long term survival, he faced immediate barriers many Indigenous Oklahomans know too well. More than a fifth of Native residents in the state are uninsured. Still had relied on Indian Health Service coverage his entire life. IHS offers primary care and some specialty services but is not considered comprehensive insurance and cannot cover major procedures such as organ transplants.
Still shared that he once faced a stark choice. Pursue a transplant that could exceed one million dollars without reliable insurance or prepare his family for the possibility that treatment would remain out of reach. Providers at the Absentee Shawnee Tribe’s Little Axe Health Center helped him identify an option he could afford, which allowed him to begin transplant evaluation. By that time his health had weakened, and he worried he might no longer qualify.
The transplant arrived in time. Family members said the donor liver has given him a renewed chance at life and asked the community to keep the donor’s family in their prayers.
Recovery will take months. Still must follow a strict medical regimen, rest extensively and rely on round the clock caregiving. A GoFundMe titled “Still Here: A Recovery Fund for Corey Still” was created to help with medical costs, groceries, living expenses and caregiver support during this period. His family emphasized that prayers and positive thoughts remain more than enough for anyone unable to contribute.
Still’s academic contributions continue to guide Indigenous educators. His 2019 dissertation, “Examining How Native Men Engage the Tricksters,” used Indigenous Storywork methodologies to explore identity, masculinity and support networks among Native men in four year universities.
Today, the community he has served since childhood is lifting him through his recovery. Supporters say they hope this chapter allows him to continue inspiring the next generation of Cherokee and Indigenous leaders.
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