Dibaajimowinan (stories)
Read about the origin of our store name and who we are.
Origin of our name
Victoria Gokee, co-owner of Toddy's Place was named after her grandmother and the store name is a tribute to her.
Victoria “Toddy” (LaFernier) Gokee, Mashkikikweban
August 13th, 1931 – March 18, 1991 (age 59). Married in 1958 to her loving partner.
Toddy was a fierce warrior for treaty rights, education, and basic human rights. She was the person people would go to for help or if they were in trouble day or night. She had a loving and playful personality. She would have to get her face on at the kitchen table – with her lipstick and mascara as tools of the trade. She’d play volleyball and softball with her children, swinging the bat like an ax chopping wood! She was an eloquent and powerful speaker and writer. She created several plays as a form of advocacy to share Anishinaabe history from a true Anishinaabe perspective.
Toddy was an amazing woman, with numerous accomplishments. Here are a few that stand out and speak to her character:
1970 – 1972 she was elected the first female Chairman of Red Cliff. She was pivotal in securing grants for the implementation of community wide water and sewer, the first housing project, a park/campground and the Buffalo Arts Center. During her tenure as Chairman, she was elected to serve as Area Vice-President for the National Congress of American Indians where she advocated for the Anishinaabe people.
1972 – 1973 Indian Child Welfare Coordinator for the state of Wisconsin, her work laid the foundation for the 1978 Indian Child Welfare Act. April 9th, 1974 she testified at the US Senate Subcommittee on Indian Affairs in Washington, D.C. in her role as Indian Child Placement and Development Program.
1974 – 1978 Attended Northland College and graduated with a major in Political Science with a minor in American Indian Studies
Her parents were Josephine “Mama Jo” Gurnoe Buffalo and James “Big Jim” LaFernier. Her lineage can be traced back to Chief Buffalo who signed the Treaty of 1854 on Madeline Island.
Alexander “Ike” Gokee Jr., Ma’iinganiban
December 29, 1918 – August 18, 2005 (age 86).
PFC US Army
Ike was drafted to the US Army during World War II. He was on the frontlines with only a 45. He became extremely ill with laryngitis and lost his ability to speak. He was almost shot by his comrades since he couldn’t say the password. He ended up going to the army hospital and during his stay his entire platoon was wiped out.
Ike was a supportive and loving partner to Toddy. His mind was mechanically inclined, and he could fix absolutely anything. He spent his whole life in the woods and knew the landscape like the back of his hand from the barrens to the Sand River. He would build wigwams and harvest medicines with knowledge that was passed down to him by his mother, Lizzie Mason. He boiled medicines together such as cedar, the inner bark of balsam, yarrow, etc. and he would drink it every single day. He stored it in old two-liter coke bottles. He also enjoyed playing hardball and volleyball, he had a wicked serve he hit with his knuckles that was like a bullet that wobbled in the air. Together with his wife, they started the Red Cliff Traditional Pow Wow in 1978 held on the first weekend of July. He was known for his amazing frybread, which he sold to raise funds to pay dancers and drums.
His parents were Elizabeth “Lizzie” Mason and Alex Gokee, Sr.
Minwaanimad & Memegwesiikwe
We have been married since 2017. We brought two beautiful daughters into this world in 2018 and 2024. Raising our daughters to understand our language and identity are of the utmost importance. We purchased a commercial storefront in November 2025 to offer high-quality traditional and contemporary Ojibwe crafts, harvest supplies, and harvest products to the community.
Minwaanimad:
I grew up on the Bad River reservation in northern Wisconsin on the southern shores of Lake Superior. Despite my roots, my passion for my work started in adulthood. I didn’t have anyone to teach me growing up. My work is from the pursuit of understanding my own identity as a woodland indigenous man from Lake Superior. I’m a self-taught woodcrafter; I make traditional lacrosse sticks, cradle boards, and other traditional and contemporary Ojibwe crafts. Lacrosse is my passion, from making sticks, to playing, and teaching/mentoring the next generation.
Minwaanimad indizhinikaaz. Ma’iingan indoodem. Mashkiziibii indoonjibaa. Indoojibwem. Ingikinoo’amaagoz iwidi Gabe-gikendaasoowigamgong imaa Gaakaabikaang. Mii imaa maaji-gikinoo’amaagoziyaan gidinwewininaan. Ingii-wiidookaagoog aandind Gichi-ayaag Netaa-ojibwemojig ojibwemotawiwaad bimi-ayaayaan nanda-gikendamaan gidiwewinaan. Since the Ojibwe language is an integral part of how I live my life, I wanted to share my name, clan, where I’m from, and where I learned to speak Ojibwe.
It is important to me to continue traditional crafts to help keep my culture and associated language alive.
Memegwesiikwe:
Memegwsiikwe indizhinikaaz. Migizi indoodem. Miskwaabikang indoonjibaa. Niminwendaan niminwendaan ojibwemoyaan endaso-giizhik. I grew up on the Red Cliff reservation at the northernmost tip of Wisconsin on a peninsula jutting out into Lake Superior. My identify as an Anishinaabe woman is what gives me the strength to persevere. My passion comes from a community of strong women and mentors who have influenced and supported me.