By Cara Cowan Watts | Cherokee 411
October 26, 1939 – June 11, 2026
Tahlequah, Oklahoma
Cherokee Nation citizen
Loyal Shawnee, Delaware, and Cherokee
Mary Rose Secondine Mead, beloved mother, grandmother, community leader, and faithful servant, passed peacefully on June 11, 2026, in Tahlequah, Oklahoma. She was born on October 26, 1939, in White Oak, Craig County, Oklahoma, to Edward Buck Secondine (Delaware) and Mamie Alice Carpenter (Cherokee, Loyal-Shawnee).
Mary’s Loyal Shawnee Indian name, Pelewawkawpawsi (a horse standing off), is a name that reflected strength, grace, and dignity throughout her life.
Raised in Oklahoma, Mary was proud of her Native heritage. She was Miss Pawnee Homecoming Princess as a teenager, and in 1956, she was a contestant in the Miss Indian America Pageant, placing in the top three finalists. During this time, she met Dennis Alley, whom she later married.
