TRIBAL PROGRAM NEWS
Highlights from Siletz Tribal Head Start
Head Start welcomes 2003-04 Head Start Policy Council members: Aaron,
husband of Parent Committee member Jessica from Salem, Kerne from
Portland, and Danielle from Salem.
Head Start says goodbye to 2002-03 outgoing Head Start Policy Council
members: Sonja and Jamie of Springfield, Carmen from Portland, and Sara
from Salem.
Walt’s Words of Wit and Wisdom
by Walt Klamath
Well by golly, how time does fly,
especially if you’re having a good time
or getting older.
Time dragged by; it used to take so
long to pass in Siletz High School. Sum
mer vacation went fast, though. That was
work time with haying and harvesting.
When the fall rains started, it was
fishing. My uncle used to fish for steel
head. He used what seems like a 20-foot
pole at the mouth of the little stream that
ran through his property. At that time,
we called it Street Matter Creek. I don't
know what the real name of it is or was.
He said that he didn’t fish for sport. When
a fish bit, it was out on the ground.
There’s a falls a short way from
Rock Creek maybe five feet high. The
fish jumping looked like ideal spear
fishing. Just looks -1 have spent hours
trying to spear a fish when it jumps.
Even tried putting a forked stick with
the peer pole setting in the “Y.” Then
the dam fish didn’t cooperate and jump
where the spear was pointing.
There were enough fish though that
just by poking the water, one would hit
a fish. After they were up the stream,
they become pitchfork bait. My uncle,
just older than me, would spend a lot
of time chasing fish by trying to comer
them to pitchfork them. Eventually,
they would get to going so fast they
would miss a comer and go up on shore,
then they were had.
The fall rains started in early Sep
tember. I remember picking apples at the
Belle Bell Hartmen place, crying because
it was raining. It was cold and miserable
up in a tree picking. When Mom had
what she wanted, we would go home.
Then what did we do? Get the pole
and go fishing. I don’t think Mom thought
our crying was very credible. At that
time, the fishing spot was owned by Ol'
Man Bemrose, that’s Bertha Lane’s dad.
Sometimes Scotty Lane would be fish
ing there. His kids would be complain
ing about the cold. They were Pauline
and LeRoy and sometimes other young
‘uns. 1 think that their name was Bright.
A lot of fish were caught and they
were real bright. Most I think went to the
smoker, what looked like outhouses all
smoked like a house on fire during salmon
season. Of course, they were used at other
times too, but mostly I remember the fish.
Sometimes my uncle who raised me
would smoke his own ham and bacon,
but rarely as the domestic stock was for
selling and deer was for eating. I don’t
know where the game warden was all
this time. By golly, he would have had
a heyday. On the other hand, the fishing
wasn’t solely for sport on the old folks'
part, that was food. Hunting wasn’t
solely for the fun; in fact, it was work.
There weren’t many deer to be found.
Eddie Bensell used to tell of the
hunting trips that would take days before
they would connect up with a deer.
People had dogs to chase them. From
what I hear told, almost all the people
up in the Logsden area had dogs. Some
had dogs for cats. My dad had a dog that
people used to borrow to hunt deer. Some
neighbors would borrow dogs to hunt
and then kill the dog for chasing deer.
That happened to one of Dad’s dogs.
Eddie told stories of five days on
the trail of a deer that would take him
from the fish hatchery almost to Toledo.
He said that when they would catch up,
they would be very hungry and would
eat part of the liver raw. He said it tasted
like it was cooked. I’m sure glad that I
wasn’t with them at that time. In fact, it
would be many years before I would
start hunting. The deer had started their
population explosion or something, for
when I was old enough to start hunting
by myself, there were quite a few deer.
I was out this weekend for the opener.
It was so dry I couldn’t tell if there were
any fresh signs. There are in my orchard,
but they’re protected from me anyway.
I won’t kill a deer on my property. I tell
them that as long as they stay there
they’re safe, but if they wander off then
they’re fair game. I guess they believe
me because I don’t see them.
Brother bear also has been visiting
my orchard. We’ve been wondering
why the dog gets so excited; the way
she yelps one would think she was
being beaten. Well, far as I’m
concerned, the bear is safe too.
There was a time when I would have
shot him or her for the teeth. I had some,
but somehow they got lost in the shuffle.
Anyway, this isn’t what I started to talk
about today. I was going to talk about
elk hunting in Ukia’. Maybe next time.
Child Care
Assistance
Program Expands
The income limits for the CTSI
Child Care Assistance Program have
increased to 85 percent of the median
income for the state of Oregon. More
families should now be eligible to
receive assistance for their child care.
To qualify for this program, families
must reside within the 11-county
service area and must be working,
going to school, or attending training
or wellness activities, and their children
must be tribal members. Eligibility begins
the day we receive your application,
which must include income verification.
If you’re interested in applying for
this program, please call your local area
office or the CTSI Child Care Assistance
Program at 1 -800-922-1399, ext. 363, or
541 -444-8363 to request an application.
November 2003 □
Siletz News
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