Michael Shawn McGonigal

MICHAEL “PHENOMENAL” SHAWN McGONIGAL “La-Ky-Thy-P'toe” Michael McGonigal was taken from this life and began his journey to join our ancestors on Saturday, September 20, 2025, at the age of fifty-three. He was a member of the Absentee Shawnee Tribe of Oklahoma and from the Horse Clan. He was born on Thursday, November 11, 1971, at St. Francis Hospital in Tulsa, Oklahoma to Sharon Lee Collum and Otis Paul Sloan, and became a lifelong resident of Bartlesville, Oklahoma until his passing. He graduated from Bartlesville High School in 1990 and went on to University of Central Oklahoma, and then to Oklahoma State University for a brief time before returning home to Bartlesville. To say that Michael made an impact on those who knew him is an understatement. Hence his nickname that stuck with him throughout his life, “Phenomenal,” because that was exactly what he was, phenomenal. He was a proud member of five amazing brothers known as “The Pals,” and an honorary brother to his sisters known as “The Gals.” Those brother/sisterhoods began in grade school then grew to expand and have lasted for all of them and a multitude of others to this day. If Michael liked you then he loved you, and that is all there was to it. Do not just ask The Pals and The Gals, ask the countless that Michael was close with and they will attest this to be true! Because there was never an in between for him, no matter who it was. If he knew that you needed help with anything, he would go out of his way to help. He would stop what he was doing, re-arrange his schedule and jump into the task. Whether it was helping with car repairs, working cattle, cooking for you if you were sick, taking you where you or your children needed to go, helping with household or appliance repairs – it did not matter. And though he may not be able to fix it, he would try his absolute best to! Because that is the type of partner, friend, brother, nephew, son, and father he was. He was one of the greatest storytellers and unknown comedians of his generation! No matter what the story was that he was telling – and it could be horrific – Michael had this way of making you laugh as he shared it! He couldn’t help it. He was hilariously funny and could make you laugh a hard belly laugh, even if and when you did not want to, without even trying. His motto in life was “I’m not here for a long time. I’m here for a good time.” Little did we all know those words would come to fruition so soon. Michael credited all of the hunting, fishing, gardening, carpentry, and mechanical skills that he had learned from his dad, Kenneth McGonigal, his grandfathers, Tom Collum, Jesse Hodge, Perry McGonigal, and many of his “brothers” that he had taken as his own. He spent many years from toddler age to adulthood side-by-side learning and then collaborating alongside his dad and his Grandpa Hodge. He credited his skill for cooking to his mom, Sharon Collum McGonigal, and maternal grandmother, Essie Dunn Hodge. His skill for smoking and barbequing meat came from the many years that he worked at Dink’s BBQ in Bartlesville. His skill for sales when he worked years in the cell phone industry, he always claimed came from his “sister,” Jeana Mattix Lunsford. But, for the last year, he was proud that he was able to help his maternal aunt, Betty Collum Earley, and “sister” Cynthia Earley Feeler by helping them take care of their rental properties. Michael was proud to be Absentee Shawnee and all that that entailed! When his uncle, Troy Little Axe, Sr. gave him his name, “La-Ky-Thy-P'toe,” that pride and honor expanded greatly. He knew where his place was on that log, participated in their squirrel hunt, and was so proud to be descended from Little John, the son of Tecumseh. But his love and pride for being Absentee Shawnee did not stop there. His love and friendship extended to the Osage Nation of Oklahoma, where he became remarkably close to many of their people! He was known for many times coming to help The Bighorse-Cunningham/Walker families from the Pawhuska Village get their homes, the Pawhuska Indian Village arbor and clean the grounds to be ready for their I’n Lo’n Schka dances each June, He was also known to be there for many Osage families to help with food and wood when someone was named, weddings, or funerals. On May 20, 1999, he met an Osage woman who would change his life and connect him permanently to the Pawhuska Village families of Andrew Bighorse and Laura “Hum Pah To Kah” St. John, and the Hominy Village families of David Copperfield and Maggie Bangs by giving him the one thing that he always wanted on March 1, 2000 - his one and only son, Peter. He was proud and elated that he had a son who would be a part of both Native Nations that Michael loved with his whole heart, but also that he, who was an only son, now had an only son. Michael is survived by his father, Kenneth McGonigal; Son, Peter R.H. “Freedom Hill” McGonigal; Peter’s mother, Sheryl Gann-Hill; Maternal Aunt, Betty Collum Earley and Paternal Aunt Carol Poling (Gene); Paternal Great Aunts Marjorie Ann Sloan-Kaniatobe, Jenifer Sloan, and Estelene Sloan-Schulenberg; Honorary Uncle, Tim Fannings; Brothers Fred Sloan, Troy McGonigal, Lance Horn, The PALS – (Brian Petree, Joey Dunlap, Sam Anderson and Trey Goad), Coy Aspach, Rhett Lucas, Florencio “Flo” Gonzalez, Sean Short, Justin King, Brian Cass, Danny Walker, Bobby Walker, Randy Walker, R.J. Walker, Josh Hale, Justin Barnhart, Justin King, and Rear Admiral (ret.) Michael Weahkee; Sisters Robin Thornburg, Cynthia Earley Feeler, Jeana Mattix-Lunsford, Trina Mattix, Cee Jay Buchanan-Rush; Peter’s aunts Missy Buck-Gillman (Jimmy), Marlo Alexander, Kristi Morgan, Linda Stieben Coppage, and Peter’s Maternal Grandmother, Sherry S. Gann, along with a multitude of nieces, nephews, great-nieces and great-nephews, cousins, and countless friends. Michael was proceeded in death by his mother, Sharon Lee Collum McGonigal and Biological Father, Otis Paul Sloan; Maternal grandparents Essie Dunn Hodge, Jessie Hodge, and Tom Collum; Paternal grandparents Perry McGonigal and Betty O’Neal McGonigal, Tom Sloan and Nellie (Mah-Tah-Pea-Se) Mahardy, along with several aunts, uncles and other very special relatives. Michael will be brought home to Pawhuska and lie in state at Pawhuska Indian Village Chapel, beginning Thursday, October 2nd. Services will be on Saturday, October 4th, beginning at 9 AM also at Pawhuska Indian Village Chapel and internment will be at Osage Nation Cemetery beginning at 11AM. Funeral feast to be at Wakon Iron Hall in Pawhuska Indian Village, immediately following. Arrangements are under the direction of Davis Funeral Home and Crematory. Online condolences and remembrances may be shared at www.davisfamilyfuneralhome.com.

Michael Shawn McGonigal

November 11, 1971 - September 20, 2025