Fred Short

The many storied life of Fred Short could fill volumes.

On May 12, 2026, Fred went to the spirit world, just eight days short of his 80th birthday. Fred was born on May 20th, 1946, in Sacramento, California, to Fred Short Sr. and Benita Marrin. A Chippewa or Anishinabe Indian, he is enrolled at the Turtle Mountain Reservation in North Dakota. Fred believed that when Native children were being shipped off to boarding schools, his father left and eventually joined the army in World War II, ending up in Sacramento.

Fred was open about his early life being affected by some family dysfunction, which left its mark on him. He was in and out of reform schools as a youth, and ended up in prison as well. But Fred also learned to defend himself and later spent fourteen years as a professional boxer and martial artist.

A cultural and spiritual awakening came to Fred, first when he decided he needed to get sober, which he remained for nearly 53 years. His path to sobriety also led him to connect with his Native heritage through the work of Native recovery programs, like Three Rivers in Manteca. Fred further committed himself to the activism of the American Indian Movement that was defending Indian rights and opportunities, including at the Native led D-Q University near U.C. Davis. At D-Q, Fred connected with Dennis Banks, another AIM leader, and they began a life of efforts to defend Indian sovereignty together.

Fred developed his strong commitment to ceremony during those years, including a return to the land of his ancestors for the AIM Sundance in Pipestone, Minnesota. He also showed up to bring ceremony to many causes for the earth, for Indian rights, and for community gatherings of all kinds. “The medicine tells us who we are as Indians,” he once said.

Another way that Fred helped others as a spiritual leader was in circling back to his early years in prison and contributing to a program that supported Native prisoners who would benefit from Indian programs and ceremony inside, emphasizing sobriety and cultural connections.

For over two decades, Fred was a presence on twice-yearly trips to Alcatraz Island to contribute to two Sunrise ceremonies with thousands of participants.

A huge contribution that Fred made, along with his wife of 30 years, Connie Short, was as a runner and walker for Indian causes. He and Connie participated in many walks across the country, including with the American Indian Movement 500-Mile Spiritual Marathon, a group that continues to do a yearly run across Northern California and other locations. Fred himself was an ultra-marathon runner.

Wherever Fred showed up, he has been revered as a crucial source of wisdom—and humor. He enjoyed telling stories, and listening to others tell their tales, as well as sing their songs. He encouraged people to take “responsibility to learn who you are. Once you know about your own culture, your life does get a lot better. Mine has,” he said for a book about his life, The Story of Fred Short: American Indian Movement Spiritual Leader (edited by Kim Bancroft).

Following Fred’s passing, many people of all walks have offered loving comments in his honor on Connie and Fred’s Facebook page. Marek Nowocien from Poland described Fred as “a calm man. He taught silence and focus. Fred was a witness to the fact that AIM’s true strength was in their spiritual foundation.” Don Coyhis noted, “You and Fred showed up years ago to help launch the Wellbriety Movement by taking the Sacred Hoop of 100 Eagle Feathers on the 109-day run to Cherokee North Carolina and then to Washington D.C. Without Fred's guidance on that run, there would be no Wellbriety Movement today. Forever grateful for my brother's commitment to recovery.”

Fred is survived by his beloved wife Connie, with whom he shared a great deal of laughter, affection, and community building. He is also survived by Connie’s caring children, Lacey, Lonnie (Becky), and Clover, and grandchildren, Melanie and Juliet. Fred is further survived by his children, Anthony and Candelaria (Bill), and his grandchildren Anthony, Billy, Brandon, Vincent, Sally, Joseph and Lucio, and numerous great-grandchildren. Fred’s stepson Emilio (from a prior marriage) and his daughter Rose pre-deceased him, as did his grandson Alex.

The family thanks Hospice of Ukiah for their endless support and caring, specifically Diane Keaton. They would like any offerings of donations to go to this worthy organization.