Morris " Morrie " Thompson ( September 11 , 1939 – January 31 , 2000 ) was an Alaska Native leader , American businessman and political appointee working on matters related to Alaska Natives . Thompson was best known as the official in charge of the Bureau of Indian Affairs for the U.S. state of Alaska during the 1970s , and later as head of Doyon , Limited , the Alaska Native Regional Corporation for Interior Alaska . Following his retirement from Doyon , while returning to Alaska from vacationing in Mexico , Thompson died , along with his wife and one of his three daughters , in the crash of Alaska Airlines Flight 261
Alaska Airlines Flight 261
Alaska Airlines Flight 261
Morris Thompson