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About Siletz news / (Siletz, OR) 199?-current | View Entire Issue (June 1, 2007)
Culture Camp, veterans survey, holarship applications SCO Pages 7,9,14-15 OrCol 1 E 78 .06 5523 v • ■—* no. 6 J une 2807 Basketball champs, wrestling champs, graduates Pages 13,16 I I । I | HPV vaccine, cancer survivors network, exercise challenge Page 20 Paul Anka, comedy, $700,000+ slots jackpot, Native art show Pages 21-22 I | N ews S iletz Vol. 35, No. 6 June _ 2007 _________ ated Tribes of Siletz Indians Siletz Tribal Elder Ed Ben (right photo) participates in Tribal Information Day at the state Capitol in Salem on May 18. He presented the Siletz Tribal flag as part of the Color Guard presentation. Tribal Chairman Delores Pigsley attended along with representatives from all nine Oregon tribes. Umatilla Tribal Elder Jay Minthorn served as host of the ceremony that took place on the steps oj the Capitol, (photos by Brent Merrill) Siletz Tribal Restoration - A 30th Anniversary Celebration by Brent Merrill Part II - “We Are All Family ...” hands of the federal government for more than 150 years when they signed treaties. They continue to approach their relationship to the government with dignity and respect to this day. Forced relocation to the confines of the reduced allotment known as the Siletz Reservation in 1855 meant a diminished ability to practice their hunting, fish ing, and gathering techniques that had sustained them from time immemorial. Tribal member George Thompson remembers his grandfather’s story of being relocated to the Siletz Reservation. “It was summer time. We were all herded down to the edge of the ocean at Port Orford by the soldiers of the gov ernment. Some people were crying, others were just quiet. Nobody talked. Each person was allowed only one package or pack, generally made up in a basket. The Indians took mainly something to eat, as they did not know where they were going. The only clothes were what they wore; later the govern ment gave us a blanket apiece. We left behind many fine canoes, homes, tanned hides, and other belongings.” The connections between the tribes in Oregon run deep and have many roots. For many tribes, it's their shared history of forced relocation, termination, and restoration that bind them to each other. Like holocaust survivors at a reunion, when tribal elders see each other they smile and grin like little kids. Siletz Tribal Restoration 30 years ago brought that practice into the modem day, where it can be shared by seven generations to come. Tribal elders pass down their his tory to their family members and they pass it on to others so they can learn and grow. Restoration allows these tra ditional Native values to live on. El ders will continue to share their wis dom and the tribe’s .young people will continue to try to change the world. “It is our tradition and therefore our legacy that we learn from our elders and that they be respected and honored." said Tribal Chairman Dee Pigsley. “We are passing that legacy on to our children and they will pass it on to their children. This is our way of life. We are all family. Modern-day eiders of the Siletz Tribe have endured difficulties at the f_____ ------ ----------------------------——----- - ----------------------- What’s Inside 2 Letters to the Editor 3 Chairman’s Report 6 Tribal Program News 16 Tribal Member News \__________ _ ____ ________ Tribal Council Timesheets Siletz Clinic Chinook Winds Passages The grandfather remembered the pain they all felt. “All of us were heartsick." It took nearly nine months for Thompson’s grandfather and his people to be relocated to the area that would become the Siletz Reservation. The people were placed on a ship that took them on a five-day journey the entire length of the Oregon Coast to Second in a Series Celebrating 30 Years This is the second in a series of monthly articles by Brent Merrill about the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians’ 30th Anniversary of Restoration. Merrill is a public relations con-sultant for the tribe. He has spent his adult life working for many tribes throughout the Northwest as a journalist, pub lic relations con-sultant, and natural resource law enforcement coordinator. Siletz News Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians P.O. Box 549 Siletz, OR 97380-0549 Delores Pigsley, Tribal Chairman Brenda Bremner, General Manager and Editor-in-Chief Universitv of Oreuon Library Received on: 06-04-07 Siletz news (Siletz. Or. : 1398) 19 20 2l 23 ____ 1_ z the mouth of the Columbia River and then delivered them to Portland. “One morning we saw land and we were happy again. We did not know it then, but we were in the Columbia River. We sailed up to Portland - only a few large buildings at that time." The tribal people were then led by ox-team from the piers in Portland to the PRESORTED FIRST-CLASS MAIL U.S. POSTAGE PAID PERMIT NO. 178 SALEM.OR
