Profound loss

The family, clan, Tuscarora Nation, and many parts of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy to which Rahnekawe:rih Dr Montgomery Clayton Hill belonged are devastated by Monty's recent transition to the spirit world.  Many of our friends, colleagues, and larger networks of trust have expressed a desire to contribute something towards the material needs of the immediate family. Towards that end, we are setting up this fundraiser.  The family's request is that the first $13,000 raised will go towards immediate financial needs, such as the cost of the funeral itself.   His obituary is below. 

Rahnekawę:rih Montgomery Hill, 35, of the Tuscarora Nation, Beaver Clan, passed away on April 11, 2025. He was born in Niagara Falls, NY, on January 5, 1990, to Donald C. Hill and Kristine M. (Wheatley) Hill. His favorite role was the beloved Nakeri (father) of his only child Yehwatsironnyons Gibson Lynn Clayton Maracle Hill.

He attended Tuscarora School, graduated from Bard College at Simon’s Rock in 2011, and received a PhD in linguistics for his dissertation, "Tuscarora Morphology & Language Revitalization," in 2020 at the University of Buffalo. He was most recently awarded the Mellon Foundation's 2025 Career Enhancement Fellowship managed by the Institute for Citizens & Scholars, and was an Assistant Professor of Indigenous Studies at the University at Buffalo.

He was a self-professed language nerd as both a Tuscarora and Mohawk speaker, linguist, and language activist. He attended Standing Rock in 2016 and was part of the group who added the Tuscarora marker to the signpost, now in the Smithsonian Museum. He was an active community member within the Tuscarora Nation and invited to become a speaker at the community’s longhouse in 2013. 

In his free time, he loved to go on walks, play video games with his child, spend time with family, and continue his learning of Indigenous knowledge and Indigenous knowledge creation.

In addition to his parents and his child, he is survived by his three siblings Rachel (Yasiel Cabrera) Hill, Kimberly Hill, and Logan Hill, his grandparents, Ken and Kathleen (Patterson) Wheatley, and many loving aunties, uncles, cousins, and friends. 

He was the grandson of the late Daniel C. and Hazel L. (Van Every) Hill.

Krissy Hill, Monty's mother, works for Rē: the Regenerative School. Rē, an organization dedicated to regeneration and many of whose staff and community members have interacted with Dr Hill, was looking for a way to contribute to her family, and we are delighted to be able to offer this fundraiser. All funds donated will go to the family; the organization is taking zero overhead for this effort.  As a 501c3, all donations are tax-deductible, and you will receive a letter stating your donation to Rē.

If you want to write a message to the family and larger community of Monty, please click here.