Letters to
the Editor
Letters to the Editor :
All letters received will be
printed except those which are
determined to be slanderous.
Please type or write legible, no
p rofane la n g u ag e will be
p r in te d .
The Siletz News-
letter and Tribal Government
accept ho responsibility for
statements made in the letters
to the editor. The opinions
expressed are souly those of
in d iv id u a ls
w riting
in.
LETTERS THAT EXCEED
350 WORDS IN LENGTH
WILL BE EDITED as aDDroved
bv Tribal Council Resolution
#91-04.
All letters must
include vour name, address and
s ig n a tu re . Send letters to :
Siletz News, P.O. Box 549,
Siletz, Oregon 97380. Attn:
Teresa Miller, Managing Editor.
PLEASE NOTE: The Chief
E xecutive O fficer of th e
Siletz T ribe Is th e Chief
E d ito r
of
th e
S ile tz
N e w s le tte r .
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THANK YOU: ’
Thank you to Quanna Pigsley,
Kelly Cunningham and Ed
Goodell for taking care of me
after the,
"Rose Festival
Parade." I had a wonderful
time because of you-
Bill Towner Jr.
DEAR TRIBAL MEMBERS,
My name is Natasha Kavanaugh, I
am Junior Miss Siletz 1993-1994.
My keeping the title as Junior Miss
Siletz was in question because of a
incident that happened on May 4,
94, that had to do with me
drinking alcohol in school. I would
like to apologize for this, I did not
know what alcohol could do to you,
but now I know. I turned to alcohol
because of personal problems, and
peer pressure. I thought alcohol
would make me feel better, and
make my problems go away.
Instead I learned that alcohol only
clouds the mind and doesn't solve
anything I am not proud of
drinking alcohol, that is why I
admitted my mistake and got help,
by going to Teen Group, having
an individual counselor, talking
out my problems with Elders,
family, and friends, and doing a
Step 1 Workbook. I was told not to
be ashamed, not to stop dancing
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and to hold my head high, but to
keep the "EGO" out. This was told
to me by many respected friends
and Elders. When you run for
Royalty you are to sign a code of
conduct, that gives you a heavy
responsibility. In my case I let that
responsibility slip, but I was given
a second chance to make my wrong
a right I had alot of people's
support, encouragement, and belief
in me, which I am grateful for.
Thank you to Agnes Pilgrim for
talking with me, and your prayers.
Thanks
to my mom, Vivian
Harrison, Pauline Ricks, Sharon
and Felicia Edenfield, Rena
Blacketer-Philbrook, Kristi Martin-
Bayya,
David
West,
Bev
Youngman, Randy Fisher, Debbie
Mosley, Lisa Oleman, Marcie
Garrett, John Masunaga, Kathy
Heinen,
Ellen
Potter,
Sara
Kaufman, George Nagel, Jim
Poindexter, Lisa Cayous, Judy
Muschamp, Walt Klamath, Janet
Dair, Richard Leaton, Frank
Petersen, Darcy Jones, Joanna
Legaspi, Jeanna Harrington, for
your letters of support. Thank you
to POW-WOW
and Pageant
Committee and Tribal Council for
giving me a second chance and for
believing in me. I know it is
important as Junior Miss Siletz to
set a good example. I can't change
what I did but I can learn from my
mistakes and hope that others can
learn from me.
Respectfully,
Natasha Kavanaugh
To the Editor,
I would like to
extend warm thanks to
the Elders and the Pow
wow
Committee
for
selecting
my
theme,
"Honoring Our Heritage"
for our '94 Pow wow.
I feel it is necessary
at a time when so much
change
is
happening
around us, that we look to
ourselves to keep the
balance
and
true
perspective. I think that
comes not only from those
who we need to honor
from our past, but those
who
work
for
our
betterment and who also
work to keep us from
being exploited. I also
think that includes our
future, ensuring we are
here, recognized, and that
our heritage doesn't fall
claim to "advancements"
that would exploit and rob
us o f our identity.
★ -SS, A-
I would* like* to give*
the money I received for
my
being chosen^ and
donate the money to
sponsor a young dancer.
I think U nde Nip
said it well when he said,
"History as we've been
taught in School is more
propaganda than know
ledge of past events, but
many buy into it. For
them, it's the only way to
buy into the system and
have the chance to chase
that illusive "American
Dream." The cost is their
identify.
Uncle
Nip S ex
plained how to regard, this
racial degradation once.
He said, "Indians do not
come in parts. You either
are an Indian or you're
not. You couldn't be half
this, half that. Yon are all
Indian or not Indian at
all." Blopd runs the heart?
Thank you again.
Good luck to all the
dancers and thank you for
dancing for and with us!
Sincerely,
Samantha Hatfield
To whom it may concern,
We cannot deduce nor
comprehend any reasoning for
the sorrow in our hearts, the
frustration in our minds, or the
bitterness on our tongues as we
speak the words written here.
To you whom we have
always trusted, respected, and
even honored-we ask the
question: why?
What is the cause for
slighting the children of a man
that you've claimed to love?
Where
are
the
remnants
promised during life to be
given after death? And who are
you to decide who is worthy of
the memories of this man? He
is our Father. Therefore, we
should be recognized as his
children. Hence it is justifiable
that our opinions concerning
family affairs should be heard-
and even considered:
So, to those of you
who've had grandeur visions
of "Resurrecting" the home of
our fathers' father, we give a
definition; [Resurrect: to renew
or restore, to reinstate or re
establish, to put back, give
back, or build-up.] Nowhere in
The**(fefinTtTon does it^ read:
"Burn to the ground-then sell
the ashes."
It is not equitable that
we were not involved nor
informed of this decision, but it
is done.
And
though
a
substantial monument of our
family's precedence is now a
scattering
of
ash-the
reminiscence, of the love within
It's walls cp i never be burned.
Thus, those whom we have
envied for a single material
token of our father's life-know
that the resentment once felt
has diversed1 to pity in the
/knowledge that this is the..only
• way b u r father remains known
to y o u . What we hold in our
hearts is more valuable than
anything that you hold in your
hands, because memories are
seldom lost, never stolen, and
easily shared.
So, to you-the keepers
of the family tree, and you-the
"soul catching" retainers of
photographs, to the Collectors
- of paintings, prayers, and
poems, and to those who hold
hjs medicine: count your
memories. And know that
we've found consolation in the
belief that grandfather has
blinded our father's eyes to the
tribulations of his children for
the yams of life left united in
his passing.
Levi and Jason Simmons
Son and Daughter of
Robert E. Simmons
To Whom it may concern,
The person or persons
who went into the big farm
house on Steer Creek Rd.
(Robb's House) after the death
of Robert (Bobbie) Simmons
and removed a Medicine
Bundle,
Jargon
books,
"Medicine Doll" and what
ever. Your soul will not rest
easy,
and your fate is
unpredictable
unless
those
items are re-turned you have
taken from the deceased. You
left behind a (small) shep-lined
denim vest and also a blue
grey, tan lined wind-breaker.
Please return items in a brown
paper bag to the home of
Roscoe Schaeffer. He will not
know why or what, just leave
them. There will be no
questions asked:
Thank-You.
Dorothy M. Simmons
(More letters on Page 5 ,8 , & 9)