Tracy Hauff

The Woman Behind the Words

Tracy Hauff is an enrolled tribal member of the Oglala band of Lakota Sioux and her heritage provides her with a sense of pride as well as an ongoing source for stories. Her company, Red Kettle Co., produces Blazin’ Badlands salsa that is distributed at Crazy Horse Memorial in Custer, SD. The company is named after her great-great grandmother, Mollie Red Kettle, who was a full-blooded Lakota Sioux. 

A complex, carefree spirit—Tracy is energized by the excitement of city life while rejoicing when in the solitude of the mountains and plains. She travels easily between the two worlds and when in need of comfort, she retreats to the Black Hills and family; her candle bright.

She has always turned to reading and writing for solace. What began as a creative outlet has developed into a full-fledged passion. She is happiest when she is tapping out a story in her home office or spending time with her adored granddaughter.

Ten Little Known Facts about Tracy:

1. She was the first female car salesperson in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

2. While living in Texas, she was personally serenaded by Freddy Fender and at a private benefit in New Braunfels, Willie Nelson walked off with her red 20X Stetson cowboy hat. She never saw that hat again.

3. She was the first female surveyor at Spring Creek Coal Mine in Decker, Montana and the first female surveyor to work for the Sheridan County Highway Department—prompting the department to revise their dress code.

4. While attending the University of Wyoming, she received a scholastic scholarship for academic excellence and completed two self-designed practicums, although only one was required for graduation. Her first practicum was with the Sheridan Girls School where she created and taught an innovative course exploring domestic violence and rape as it has occurred throughout history. The second practicum was working for the State Board of Charities and Reform in Cheyenne, WY. She gathered the research necessary for writing an eighty-page report that the Wyoming Legislature presented to Governor Herschler. The study addressed the need to transition the Wyoming Children's Home into a treatment facility for emotionally disturbed children.

5. She is a member of the nation's oldest and most selective honor society—Phi Kappa Phi. Seniors who rank in the top ten percent of their collegiate class are invited and initiated into the esteemed community of scholars.

6. While working as a counselor at the Tucson Psychiatric Institute in Tucson, AZ, she was held hostage during a resident riot and was eventually rescued by the S.W.A.T. team.

7. After the riot, she changed careers, finding employment as the Administrative Assistant to the President of an investment banking firm in Tucson. This employment ended when two agents from the Securities and Exchange Commission, along with two FBI agents, appeared at her home requesting she come to their headquarters. They had seized all the files from the company and needed her expertise to help them locate the paperwork they were searching for. Never implicated in any wrongdoing herself, the CEO of the firm was charged with securities fraud including manipulating the stock market, short selling abuse, and investment fraud. Out on bond, he allegedly faked his own death and is rumored to be living in a foreign country under an assumed identity.

8. As a bartender in a Tucson restaurant, she saved the life of the Academy Award winning film star, Lee Marvin; a regular customer who would hold her hand and tell her stories while she served him bourbon on-the-rocks.

9. She has logged over 4,000 hours in volunteer work relating to domestic violence, sexual assault, and emotionally disturbed adolescents. Some of the organizations she has worked with include: CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocate); WAVI (Working Against Violence, Inc.); Cathedral Home for Children; Youth Crisis Center, Artemis House-Shelter for Abused Women; and The Mission for the Homeless.

10. She is currently working on a short story based on her celebrity encounters. In addition to the celebrities listed above, the finished piece may include Kevin Costner, Robert Stack, Gary Hart, Eleanor Mondale, Don Barnes—38 Special, a Mexican Diplomat, Floyd Red Crow Westerman, Jerry Lee Lewis, Mick Jagger, Dr. Nichopoulos a.k.a. Dr. Nick—Elvis Presley's personal physician, and a presidential nominee who shall remain nameless.