SILETZ NEWS
Delores Pigsley,
Tribal Chairman
Brenda Bremner,
General Manager
and Editor-in-Chief
Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians
Vol. 44, No. 1
Presorted
First-Class
Mail
U.S. Postage
Paid - Permit
No. 178
Salem, OR
Siletz News
Confederated Tribes of
Siletz Indians
P.O. Box 549
Siletz, OR 97380-0549
January 2016
Washburn to
leave Interior,
return to
University of
New Mexico
WASHINGTON – U.S. Secretary of
the Interior Sally Jewell announced on
Dec. 10 that Assistant Secretary for Indian
Affairs Kevin K. Washburn, after more
than three years of leadership, will con-
clude his service to the department and
will return to the faculty of the University
of New Mexico School of Law in January.
Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary
Lawrence “Larry” Roberts will lead
Indian Affairs for the remainder of the
Obama administration.
“Kevin is a tireless change agent for
Indian Country and true partner in our
efforts to chart a brighter future for Tribal
communities through self-determination
and self-governance,” said Jewell. “He is a
thoughtful leader who provided a steady
hand to modernize Indian Affairs to better
serve Tribes, which will be felt by gen-
erations to come in Tribal communities
across the country. It has been an honor
to call him a colleague and friend, and I
thank him for his selfless service.”
“The opportunity to serve Indian
Country under the leadership of President
Obama and Secretary Jewell, and with my
colleagues in Indian Affairs at Interior,
has been the highest privilege of my life,”
Washburn said. “I have seen a level of trust
develop with Tribes in the nation-to-nation
relationship under President Obama that
has not existed in more than 200 years of
federal-Tribal policy. It has been a very
special time. I appreciate Secretary Jewell
for leading with her heart and conscience
on Native issues and encouraging the
entire federal government to live up to its
trust responsibility to Tribes.”
Following Washburn’s departure,
Roberts will serve as acting assistant
secretary for Indian Affairs in January.
Roberts is a member of the Oneida Nation
of Wisconsin and has served in leader-
ship at Interior since 2012. He previously
served as general counsel of the National
Indian Gaming Commission.
“Larry has been centrally involved
in virtually every one of the department’s
accomplishments in Indian Country the
last three years and has been instrumental
in developing a strong Indian Affairs team
to carry the president’s work to the end
of the administration,” said Jewell. “With
Larry’s leadership, I am confident we will
continue the strong momentum rooted
in Tribal self-determination and self-
governance that Kevin has helped reignite.”
Washburn advanced the admin-
istration’s commitment to Tribal self-
See Washburn on page 4
Courtesy photo by Michelle McKibben of Memories by Michelle
Jaretzi Alonso, Sinai Alonso and Lilianna Garcia visit with Santa Claus (Don Hamilton) during the Community
Christmas Program in Siletz on Dec. 9.
See additional photos on page 13, plus photos of the Elders celebration on page 9.
The Siletz Tribe wishes you a safe and successful New Year.
Washington refuge renamed Billy Frank Jr. Nisqually
National Wildlife Refuge; treaty also commemorated
WASHINGTON – On Nov. 30, the
U.S. House of Representatives passed
the Billy Frank Jr. Tell Your Story Act
by a vote of 413-2. The bill, H.R. 2270,
was sponsored by Rep. Denny Heck
(D-WA) and will rename the Nisqually
National Wildlife Refuge in Washington
state the Billy Frank Jr. Nisqually National
Wildlife Refuge.
“Like many Washingtonians, I fre-
quently pass the sign on I-5 indicating
the way to the wildlife refuge. I cannot
wait to make that drive and see the name
of our friend Billy, who mattered so much
to the health and welfare of our area. It
will remind me of the special place we
call home and the people that cared for
its wellbeing,” said Heck. “I would like to
thank everyone, notably Indian Country,
the Republican majority and a unified
Washington House delegation who joined
together in this effort. This passage is a
fitting tribute to Billy and the treaty rights
he lent his advocacy to for a lifetime.”
Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA)
sponsored a companion bill, S. 2326, in
the U.S. Senate on Nov. 19.
“Billy Frank Jr. spent his life fight-
ing for treaty rights for Tribes and Indian
people that had long been denied. He was
a fierce guardian of our cherished salmon,
the Puget Sound and the rich natural diver-
sity that is revered by all of us who call
Washington state home,” said Cantwell.
This act, along with updating the ref-
uge name, also will establish the Medicine
Creek Treaty National Memorial within
the wildlife refuge to commemorate the
location of the signing of the Medicine
Creek Treaty of 1854 between the U.S.
government and leaders of the Muckle-
shoot, Nisqually, Puyallup and Squaxin
Island Indian Tribes.
Fawn Sharp, president of Quinault
Indian Nation, president of the Affiliated
Tribes of Northwest Indians and area vice
president of the National Congress of
American Indians. reflected on this news.
“This is such exciting news. Billy
Frank Jr. continues to be the inspiration
to so many Native Americans all across
the country and beyond and to non-natives
as well. He was a man whose dedication
to our Mother Earth and sacred resources
will never be forgotten,” said Sharp. “I
join people everywhere in thanking the
members of the House, and especially
Congressman Denny Heck, for having
the wisdom and foresight to acknowledge
Billy’s place in history in this way.”
NCAI President Brian Cladoosby, also
chairman of the Swinomish Indian Tribal
Community in Washington state, recently
commented on the impact of Billy Frank
Jr. when President Obama posthumously
awarded Frank the Presidential Medal of
Freedom in November.
“Billy’s voice spoke for the salmon
and the resources and most importantly
for the children of our future so they may
have the rights preserved for them more
than a century ago,” said Cladoosby.
NCAI membership passed a resolu-
tion at the 2015 Executive Council Winter
Session supporting legislation to redes-
ignate the Nisqually National Wildlife
Refuge as the Billy Frank Jr. Nisqually
National Wildlife Refuge and to estab-
See Frank on page 4