Ernie Stevens Jr., chair of the Indian Gaming Association and Oneida Nation leader, has died

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MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Ernie “Big Cat” Stevens Jr., a driving force behind the expansion of Native American gaming for more than two decades, has died. He was 66.

The Indian Gaming Association, a Washington, D.C.-based group that works to protect tribes and promote tribal gaming, announced Monday that Stevens died Friday at the Oneida Nation in Wisconsin. His aunt, Bobbi Webster, confirmed his death in a short telephone interview with The Associated Press on Tuesday.

“It's sort of unfathomable,” Webster said of Stevens' death. “He was pretty young and vibrant and athletic and healthy. It just came as an unexpected shock to everyone who knew him to lose him.”

The AP left a follow-up message with Webster inquiring about how he died. Deana Jackson, a gaming association spokesperson, said the family has not shared the cause of death with the association or the public yet.

Stevens was in his 13th two-year term as chair of the Indian Gaming Association when he died. In a news release announcing Stevens’ death, the association called him a fierce defender of the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, a 1988 federal law that formed the legal basis of tribal gaming. During his tenure as chair, tribal gaming revenues climbed from $11 billion in 2000 to nearly $44 billion last year, the release said.

“Chairman Stevens’ passing leaves a void that will be felt across all of Indian Country,” Jason Giles, the association’s executive director, said in the release. “He was not only our Chairman, but a mentor, a friend, and a warrior for tribal sovereignty. His legacy will continue to guide our work for generations to come.”

Stevens served on the Oneida Nation tribal council from 1993 to 1999, according to a biography on the association's website. He also served as first vice president of the National Congress of American Indians and on the boards of various organizations, including the National Center for American Enterprise Development; the Center for Native American Youth; the Nike N7 Foundation, which supplies grants to tribal nations; and the Native American Advisory Board for the Boys & Girls Clubs of America.

Former U.S. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland wrote on her Facebook page Friday that Stevens was kind and always ready to help.

“He was tremendously optimistic about the abilities of Indigenous people and displayed sharp, decisive leadership,” Haaland wrote. “When I got the news of his passing, I realized the difficulty in imagining this world without him. He will be missed.”

Stevens, and his wife, Cheryl, together had five children and 15 grandchildren. The Oneida Nation has planned a memorial program for him Friday evening before he's interred Saturday morning at the tribe's burial grounds outside Green Bay.

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This story has been updated to correct that Stevens was in his 13th term as Indian Gaming Association chair.