Marcella LeBeau

Marcella Ryan LeBeau (October 12, 1919 – November 21, 2021), also known as Marcella Le Beau and Wigmuke Waste' Win, was a Lakota elder, politician, nurse, and military veteran.

Early life and education LeBeau was born Wigmuke Waste' Win (English: Pretty Rainbow Woman) in October 1919 in Promise, South Dakota on the Cheyenne River Indian Reservation. Her parents were Joseph M. Ryan and Florence Four Bear Ryan. Her mother was of the Two Kettles subtribe of the Lakota. Her father was Irish-American. She was the oldest of five children in the family. Her mother died when she was ten and LeBeau was raised by her father. LeBeau also helped run the household, learning to cook and sew to care for her siblings. As a child, she attended an Indian boarding school.

Career After graduation, LeBeau began working as a registered nurse in Pontiac, Michigan. In 2019, she spoke at a ceremony to introduce the bill, alongside Deb Haaland, at the U.S. Capitol.

In 2020, LeBeau was awarded a Leadership Award from the National Congress of American Indians. She was married and had eight children.