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About The Chemawa American (Chemawa, Or.) 19??-current | View Entire Issue (May 1, 1949)
SALUTATORY WELCOME Classmates, parents, teachers and friends: We, the class of 1949 of Che- mawa, salute you and welcome you to our graduating exer cises. For twelve long years we have worked for this happy oc casion. I say happy because it means the ending of long years of work, yet sad, because it means that, after today, we will all go our separate ways and many of us may never see each other again. Commencement is merely the beginning for most of us, to something else. In Commence ment we have only reached a certain stage in our life. The question with all of us is, "Where do we go from here?" Perhaps many of us already have some idea about that, but perhaps some are still unde cided. Let us hope the summer months will not find us "asleep at the switch." September will soon be here again and by that time every one of us should have made a definite decision. You do not expect us to stop here. If that were the end you would be disappointed. We do not know how much more you may anticipate for us, but what ever it is we join with you in future hopes. As we bid you welcome, we also wish to express our thanks to all those who made this oc casion possible. After all, we have had but a small part in our own victory. We have learned many things for which our Administrators and teach ers are responsible. We want to thank our parents for making it possible to be here and to con tinue until our work was com pleted. All this adds up to a huge debt we can never repay. No matter how dark the fu ture, how discouraging, school must go on. Only through edu cation can we emerge from darkness, stupidity and super stition. Let us look for a moment at some of the objectives of the Indian Schools. To give pupils an understanding and appreci ation of their own tribal lore, art, music and community or ganization, to teach students, through their own participation in school and governments, to become constructive citizens of their communities, to help stu dents in analyzing the economic resources of their community and how to use them wisely; livestock management, housing and clothing, gardening, mar keting, farm mechanics; health habits, disease prevention and limitless practical information In short, helping us to help ourselves. Not every community is so enlightened as ours. In welcoming you we appre ciate our own position in being here today and having reached this stage of our progress. With out you this would not be pos sible. So again, we thank you all for having given us this priceless heritage.—Frieda Bent WE LIVE IN ONE WORLD Members of the Faculty, Par ents, Classmates, and Friends: Today we, the class of 1949, are here to celebrate the attain ment of our goal and to thank all of those who have been re 5 sponsible for our having come this far. We consider it a privilege to be graduating from a school which for 69 years has served the Indian people. Most of the members of the class entered Chemawa in the grade school and two of the members had twelve years here at Chemawa. We do not know what the future may hold for us. But we have learned over the 12 years we have been in school that the only sound preparation for the future is the gaining and retaining of knowledge. One need only to make a brief re view of a few of the happenings which have combined to make the history which has transpired in our brief lifetime to realize how important a good educa tional foundation is. Many special inventions and discoveries which offer un- dreamed-of possibilities for good or evil have been devel oped during our time. Among these, television, guided mis siles, rocket artillery, supersonic speeds and global range of air craft, new fuels, the atom bomb and atomic energy—these are only a partial inventory which indicates the scope of the changes and challenges which confront us as we start to build our careers and our life's work. We are very happy to be graduating, but we also realize that the carefree days of high school are over and a more serious and sober time lies ahead for all of us. We have a great deal to look forward to and as our motto states, "If there isn't a way, we'll make one."—Victor Jackson
