TRIBAL MEMBER NEWS
Pilgrim Honored as Buffett Award Finalist
TomVoted MVP
Mark Tom was voted Most
Valuable Player by his teammates on
the Siletz Junior High football team
sponsored by Cohen & Park Studios.
Mark was given the MVP trophy
the night of the playoffs on Oct. 21.
Nick Kowtoko also received an MVP
award that night. Mark was a quarter
back and Nick was a running back.
The Siletz Junior High team did
an outstanding job this year in football.
On Dec. 2, Agnes Pilgrim will be
honored as a finalist for the 2003 Buffett
Award for Indigenous Leadership for
her cultural preservation efforts,
environmental advocacy, and work with
Native American youth.
She joins three others - Billy Frank
Jr. (Nisqually) of Olympia, Wash.;
Susan Masten (Yurok) of Hoopa, Calif.;
and Nathan Matthew (North Thompson
Band of Shuswap) of Barriere, British
Columbia - as award finalists.
Jeannette Armstrong will receive
the 2003 Buffett Award for Indigenous
Leadership for her work as a com
munity leader, educator, and indigenous
rights activist. She’s a member of the
Okanagan Nation and currently resides
in Penticton, British Columbia. She’ll
use the fellowship to restore the land
surrounding the En’owkin Centre
through the replanting of native and
traditional medicine plants.
As the elder advisor of the Southern
Oregon University (SOU) Native
American Student Union, Agnes is a
role model to many students. She’s been
involved with the Konaway Nika Tillicum
Native American Youth Academy at
Goodells Married in August Ceremony
Christine Jean and Chad Edward
Goodell were married Aug. 23, 2003.
Christine’s uncle Scotty Williams gave
her away and Pastor Vance Linstrom
performed the ceremony.
Attendants were children Ryan and
Chazlynne - who stood up
for them. Niece Breanna
Jordan-Goodell was the
ringbearer. Flower girls were
daughters Keionni Goodell
and Shaunde’ Goodell, and
niece Brittney Jordan-
Goodell. Ushers were
nephews Ab Williams and
Damion Williams.
Candle lighters were
Sheryl Simmons and Sheila
Jordan.
Roses were placed and
candles lit for Carol Williams,
Steve Loveland, Charmaine
Hammett, Linda Goodell, and
Greg Goodell.
SOU since its inception and currently
serves as the elder-in-residence.
Agnes’ work with Native American
youth helps ensure the continuation of
inter-generational traditions. She shares
her skills at the annual Culture Camp
in Siletz. She also visits many local
schools and introduces students to her
traditional crafts and culture.
Agnes, who lives in Grant Pass,
Ore., has been an active member of the
Cultural Heritage and Sacred Lands
Committee of the Siletz Tribe for more
than 20 years. She also serves on the
Table Rock Foundation Board of
Directors in Grants Pass and carries out
some of her Native traditions work
through the foundation as a volunteer.
In 1994, the U.S. Forest Service
granted Agnes and the Siletz Tribe the
right to use Kanaka Flat to perform the
Sacred Salmon Ceremony.
Agnes has worked with great dedica
tion over the years as an environmental
advocate. In 2002, she traveled to
Washington, D.C., with representatives
from the Siskiyou Project and the World
Wildlife Fund to lobby the Oregon
congressional delegation for the
Siskiyou Wild Rivers National
Monument. She also has worked toward
better forest and salmon protections.
Agnes graduated from SOU and
currently serves on the advisory board
for the Center for First Nations Studies.
In 2002, she was recognized as an SOU
Distinguished Alumnae of the Year.
Agnes is the oldest living woman
of the Takelma Indians from the Table
Rocks area along the Rogue River.
She’s a traditional dress, basket, hat,
and necklace maker.
The Buffett Award for Indigenous
Leadership honors Native leaders of
merit in the fields of conservation and
community development. Supported
by the families of Howard and Peter
Buffett, the award is conferred by
Ecotrust on an individual whose leader
ship has improved the social, economic,
political, or environmental conditions
in his/her community.
Buffett Award nominees are First
Nation or tribal members 35 years of
age or older. The nominees all work
within the coastal temperate rain forest
bioregion from San Francisco, Calif.,
to Kodiak Island, Alaska, or the North
west interior, including Washington,
Oregon, Idaho, and British Columbia.
Christmas Sparkle
by Eva E. Clayton
It’s ho-ho-ho time again,
To be merry with family and friends.
Chris Jingle with his reindeer sleigh,
Is making ready to head your way.
Remember that special gift, no special
reason
Just holiday joy, the Christmas season.
I like the sounds of laughter and cheer,
It's a warm sharing time of year.
Bring out the glitz and glitter from
hiding,
Heartfelt, eye appealing, how exciting.
There is the child within us all,
Remembering past times, fun to recall.
Christmas sparkle needs to reflect
through the year,
Spreading kindness towards those we
hold dear.
Make once upon a time happen more
often,
Rekindle relationships long forgotten.
Reunite with family and friends,
Invite them back to the circle again.
With silent whispers from afar,
Open your heart, wish upon a star.
It’s a wonderful time, Amen,
Good to have Christmas back again.
From my family to yours this holiday
season.
Christine and Chad Goodell
December 2003 O 'Siletz News
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