Cathy J. Yellow Hawk

Catherine Jane Yellow Hawk, 72, of Eagle Butte, passed away Sunday, April 12, 2026, at her home in Eagle Butte.

Funeral services will be 10:00 a.m. MDT, Monday, April 20, 2026, at St. John’s Episcopal Church, Eagle Butte. Burial will follow in St. Paul’s Episcopal Cemetery, LaPlant. There will be a procession at 9:00 a.m., Monday from the 4-Mile.

Catherine was born December 20, 1953, at Old Cheyenne Agency, South Dakota, to Kenneth West Sr. and Vivian (Red Fox) Traversie. She was raised by her mother, Vivian, and her stepfather, Theodore Traversie.

Catherine began her education at Cheyenne Agency. In 1959, the agency was flooded, and all families were relocated to Eagle Butte, South Dakota, where she continued her schooling at Cheyenne-Eagle Butte School. She later attended boarding school at St. Joseph’s Indian School and completed all four years of high school at St. Mary’s School for Indian Girls in Springfield, South Dakota, graduating in 1972. She went on to attend Black Hills State University and the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, California. She also attended law school at the University of South Dakota in Vermillion.

In 1972, while living in Rapid City, South Dakota, Catherine experienced the great flood and was fortunate to survive. In 1974, she moved to Los Angeles, California, where she married and had five children: Mary Elizabeth, Eve, Luzanna, Hector, and Moses Soto. She later welcomed two additional children, George Felton and Otis Felton Jr.

Upon returning to South Dakota, Catherine held several jobs in the Pierre area. On October 18, 2021, she married Joseph Holy Bear Jr. Due to diabetes and other health complications, she began dialysis in 2024.

Catherine loved all of her grandchildren and cherished staying in touch with them through phone calls and Facebook, as they live in the Los Angeles, California area. She was a devoted fan of the Los Angeles Lakers, and her favorite colors were purple and yellow.

Catherine is survived by her husband, Joseph Holy Bear Jr.; children: Mary Elizabeth, Eve, Luzanna, and Hector Soto Jr., and Otis Felton Jr.; grandson, George Felton Jr.; sisters: Wanda Lind, Carol, Mary Ellen, and Connie Mae Traversie, all of Eagle Butte, and Sophia (Mark) Perttula, Sioux City, IA and Mary (Mike) Miner, Sioux Falls; brothers: William. T. Carter, Rapid City, Clayton E. Carter, Cortez, CO, Michael Red Fox, Rapid City, Loren and Gerald Traversie, Eagle Butte, Jess (Peggy) West, Crown Point, NM, and Kenneth (Linda) West Jr., Eagle Butte.

She was welcomed into heaven by her parents: Theodore and Vivian Traversie; biological father, Kenneth West Sr.; grandparents: Frank Logg and Jennie (White Eyes) Logg; children: George Felton and Moses Soto; two sisters, Cindy Lou and Ruth Ann Traversie; and brother, Bernard Carter.

Luce Funeral Home of Gettysburg has been entrusted with Cathy’s arrangements.