2 April 20, 2000
warm Springs, Oregon
spilyay tymoo
Courtney completes FBI National Academy Program On Patrol-
Warm Springs Cheif of Police,
Donald Courtney
Two hundred and sixty-eight law
enforcement officers graduated March
24, 2000 from the FBI National Acad
emy Program at D.A.R. Constitution
lull in Washington, D.C. Among them
was Warm Springs tribal member and
Chief Of Police, Donald Courtney. The
200th Session of the National Acad
emy consisted of men and women from
49 states, the District of Columbia, 22
international countries, three military
organizations, and three Federal civil
ian organizations.
Internationally known for its aca
demic excellence, the National Acad
emy Program, held at the FBI Acad
emy, offers 1 1 weeks of advanced in
vestigative, management, and fitness
training for selected officers having a
proven record as a professioal within
his or her agency. On the average, these
officers have 18 years of law enforce
ment experience, and usually return to
their agencies to serve in executive
level positions.
Attorney General Janet Reno,
Former DF.A Administrator Thomas
A.Constantineand FBI Director Louis
J. Freeh were principle speakers at the
ceremony.
Training for the program is pro
vided by FBI Academy instructional
staff, Special Agents, and other staff
members holding advanced degrees,
many of whom are recognized interna
tionally in their field of expertise.
Since 1 972, National Academy stu
dents have been able to earn under
graduate and graduate credits from the
University of many courses offered.
The graduating officers were repre
sented by the class spokesperson, Lieu
tenant Brian E. Lockerby, Great Falls,
Montana, Police Department. A total
of 33, 1 84 gradutaes now represent the
FBI National Academy since it began
in July 1935. Of this number, more
than 20,400 are still active in law en
forcement.
Deadline
by Don
Courtney
Assault sends
one to Hospital:
Details are still
sketchy that sent
Willard Poitra to
the hospital fol
lowing an assault
early Saturday
morning near his
home. The case
still under investi
gation. Officers train
ing: In most recent
training, officers of the department
attended several training sessions
sponsored by the Victims of Crime
Services program that will certainly
improve services being provided by
both departments.
Thanks goes out to Marie and her
program for providing these contin
ued opportunities.
Community Policing Update:
Members of the Community Po
licing Division continue to have
community members evaluate ser
vices following a reported burglary,
theft, malicious mischief, or an auto
theft case. Early indications still show
about on 85-90 positive or favor
able comments. Thanks again to those
who have responded to our inquiries.
Other activities have involved
participation in the Warm Springs
Elementary ScienceMath lamily
night. Children learned about finger
printing and photography.
The county's vision goggles were
also available for kids to experience
the effects of intoxication. The
teachers however had more interest
in the goggles then the children.
Work crew details are continuing
throughout this month as Spring
clean-up efforts continue.
McGruff Speaks:
Howdy folks, yes it's been quite a
while since my last article I did,
however, made an appearance most
recently at our Early Childhood Edu
cation Center's, Week of the Child
celebration. Special thanks goes out
to Sue Matters for our continued in
vitation. Thanks also to Lt. Miller and his
Community Policing Division for
organizing and participating with my
special little people both at ECE and
the Elementary school.
Speaking of the little people, with
the new seat belt law in effect, please
take special time to tend to the chil
dren in making sure they are buckled
properly.
College scholarships are numerous aDoroachina fast
A conservative estimate of col
lege costs for a full-time student runs
from $10,000-$30,000; high Cost
colleges can run from
$40,000-$ 1 00,000 ! Most parents and
students think that scholarships are
only for the students with excellent
grades, low-income families, or the
athletically inclined. A small example
of the numerous scholarships avail
able to students include: Handicapped
Student Scholarships, Members of a
Church Scholarships, Scholarships
for "C" Students, Veteran Children's
Scholarships, Scholarships for Mi
norities and much, much more.
Through the majority of scholar
ships are from the Federal Govern
ment and are merit andor need based,
billions of dollars are available to
students from private sector schol
arships. Much of private sector fi
nancial aid goes unused because the
parents and students do not know
how or where to apply.
There are organizations that have
spent hundreds of hours in research
locating scholarship sources. Ihe
U.S. Commission for Scholastic
Assistance-College Bound is such
an organization and supplies the
public with over 700 different pri
vate scholarship sources. The schol
arship list include the scholarship
names, addresses, application dead
lines, summaries about the scholar
ships and the amount the scholarship
will pay your child.
Many scholarships pay the entire
tuition, others can be applied towards
tuition, living expenses, andor other
fees. Most scholarships can be used
at junior colleges, career and voca
tional schools, 4 year colleges,
graduate schools, medical and law
schools.
For information on obtaining these
scholarship lists, send a
self-addressed, stamped business
size, 10, envelope to: The U.S.
Commission for Scholastic Assis
tance, PO Box 668, O'Fallon, IL
62269.
Computers offered to students
The Office of Information Sys
tems and Essential Education de
partments developed a joint project
to distribute refurbished computers
to tribal member high school stu
dents. In 1999 computers were re
placed throughout the organization
for Y2K readiness. There are ap
proximately 200 computers available
after the hardware needs of the tribal
organization were met. Funds were
raised for refurbishment, which in
cluded installing software and
cleaning hard drives. The software
installed includes Windows 95 and
Microsoft Office (Word, Excel &
PowerPoint). Contributions to re
furbish these computers were made
by Human Services Branch, Infor
mation Systems Branch, Warm
Springs Forest Products, Warm
Springs Power Enterprise and Indian
Head Casino. Students will receive a
computer, monitor, mouse and key
board. There is not cost for the
computer, however a printer and
modem for Internet access are not
Signup deadline
extended
The sign-up period for the 1999
Oilseeds program was scheduled to
end March 31st, 2000. USDA has
announced that they will extend the
sign-up until April 24, 2000. Eligible
oilseeds are Canola, Crambe, Flax
seed, Mustard Seed, Rapeseed, Saf
flower, Sunflower and Soybeans. If
you produced an oilseed crop in 1 999
you could be eligible for this program.
Please contact your local Farm Ser
vice Agency Office for details at
(541) 923-4358 extension 2. A fact
sheet on this program is available at
www.fsa.usda.gov or at the local FS A
office.
New hours
announced
Indian Head Casino will be open
at 8:30 a.m. beginning Monday, May
1, 2000. Further information can be
obtained by calling 553-6122.
Dear Tribal Member Artist,
Reminder! Deadline for Tribal
Member Art Exhibit,
This is to inform you that errors in
the letter you received on the Tribal
Member Art Exhibit. Please make
note and change these dates.
1. The exhibit will open and the
reception will be June 5, 2000 6 to 8
p.m.
2. The exhibit will run from June
5, 2000 through September 3, 2000.
All entries will be committed for the
entire exhibit time (no exceptions).
3. There were two different dates
for the application deadline, please
scratch both May 22 and May 26 in
their places put May 12, 2000 5:00
p.m. May 1 1 and May 12 will be set
aside for Tribal Artists to drop their
entries off at The Museum at Warm
Springs. We will also accept them
anytime in May, before those dates.
We apologize for any inconve
nience this may have caused anyone
and thank you for making note of
these corrections.
If you have any questions or need
additional applications, call Jewell
at The Museum 553-3331.
In Memory of
Donna Behrend
The Spilyay Tymoo held a
Memorial Open House to
remember a member of the
family who had passed on
April 15, 1999. She will
always be remembered by
the staff for her dedication
and joy of writing.
Her humor and her smile
are greatly missed by all
who knew her.
n - a
Donna Jackson Behrend
July 21, 1951-April 15, 1999
included and should be purchased by
the household to maximize the com-
'"SSre'juiremen.sareibai Tribal fortunes linked to salmon-past, present and future
member, enrolled in hieh school. 7
household does not have a computer
(running Windows 95 or newer), and
recipient household agrees to keep
computer for no less than 12 months.
Distribution will begin with seniors,
juniors and sophomores on April 26th
and 27th at the Garment Factory from
2 to 6 p.m. Distribution to the
freshmen class will be announced at
a later date. Due to the number of
students exceeding the number of
computers available, a lottery will be
held for the class in which computers
run out. The student's parent or legal
guardian "must" accompany the
student to sign for and pick their
computer from the Garment Factory
building.
Qualifying households who would
like a refurbished Tribal computer
should contact the ECC office at (54 1 )
553-3240 to request a computer prior
to April 26th.
7
-
J . !
,4 s-'. .:.fi
mm$
Museum
requesting
artifacts
The Museum At Warm Springs is
considering the purchase of materi
als for the permanent collections.
The Museum is requesting artifacts,
photographs and documents related
to the members of The Confederated
Tribes of Warm Springs to be brought
to the Museum. Every item will be
tagged with the owner's information
and an in-coming loan form com
pleted so that people have a record of
what they leave for consideration.
The Museum will evaluate materials
this summer for possible purchase. If
you have any questions, call the
Museum Curator, Eraina Palmer or
Director Mary Ellen Conaway at
(541)553-3331.
III ; , - ' ' ' I ,
Resurrection-Restoring wild salmon & steelhead to the Snake River.
Spilyay Tymoo
Publisher:
Managing Editor:
ReporterPhotographer:
ReporterPhotographer:
ReporterPhotographer:
Secretary:
Sidney Miller
Selena T. Boise
Bob Medina
Lenora Starr
Taw James "TTFoltz
Tina Aguilar
Founded in March 1976
Spilyay Tymoo is published bi-weekly by the Confederated
Tribes of Warm Springs. Our offices are located in the
basement of the Old Girl's Dorm at 1 1 15 Wasco Street. Any
written materials to Spilyay Tymoo should be addressed to:
Spilyay Tymoo, P.O. Box 870, Warm Springs, OR 97761
(54 1 ) 553-1 644 or 553-3274-FAX No. (54 1 ) 553-3539
Annual Subscription Rates:
Within U.S.-$ 15.00
Outside U.S. or 1st class in the U.S.-S25.00
Spilyay Tymoo 2000
This article was submitted by
Terry Courtney. It is reprinted from
the Salmon Wrapper and written by
David Wise.
"Nowadays, everybody seems to
be born in the hospital," says Terry
Courtney, who was born on the Warm
Springs Reservation in Central
Oregon in 1936.
"I started off my life right beside a
barn about 80 feet from a little creek
where I grew up fishing all my life."
When Courtney was born, the life
of the Warm Springs Tribe was
organized around fishing-especially
fishing the once plentiful runs of wild
salmon the Columbia and Snake
rivers.
But, like the salmon, Courtney
and the Warm Springs Tribes have
seen better days. Salmon have
dwindled to a fraction of the runs he
saw-and tribal customs tied to the
salmon have struggled to survive as
well.
Dams built on the Columbia and
Snake rivers have contributed to
dramatic declines of Columbia basin
salmon-and many of the tribes have
seen their livelihood decline with
them.
Nearly 150 years ago, the
Columbia Basin tribes signed an
agreement with the U.S. Government
that was designed to protect their
way of life by protecting their rights
to salmon.
But, because there are so few
salmon left to harvest, the tribes
contend the treaty is being violated.
Their claim, however, is falling on
deaf ears. Meanwhile, fewer and
fewer salmon return each year, and
the Columbia Basin tribes lose more
of their grasp on their traditional way
of life.
The Treaty
In the early 1 800s, conflict arose
around the Northwest when white
settlers moved into the Pacific
Northwest and forced Native
Americans off of their land. For the
Columbia Basin tribes whose lives
were centered on the runs of salmon,
dislocation away from the river was
i threat to their survival.
"Salmon was the backbone of our
trade," says Courtney. "It was what
; we would establish as our monetary
(system, and when the settlers and
immigrants came into the area, they
; started wanting the best of the land,
' and there was a lot of conflict."
As more and more settlers poured
; into the region, the Columbia River
tribes were forced to make decisions
about how to protect their way of
.life. "All the Indians along the
i Columbia River took a vote, and at
first, a lot of them were irate and
wanted to fight the settlers to the
death, because it wasn't worth living
without the river," says Courtney.
But the tribal elders, who could
see the numbers of Europeans settlers
growing, decided on a compromise
that they felt would guarantee the
survival of their people. This meant
protecting their right to salmon at all
costs.
The result was the 1855-56
agreement between the U.S.
Government and four Columbia
Basin Indian tribes-Warm Springs,
Nez Perce, Umatilla and Yakama
that guaranteed the Indians the right
to fish the Columbia in perpetuity. In
exchange for 1 0 million acres of land,
the tribes received the "right of taking
fish" at their usual and accustomed
fishing sites. In practical terms, the
treaty entitled the tribes to half of the
harvestable surplus of fish on the
Columbia River, and allowed the
Indians to maintain the fishing sites
Jiat they had used for generations.
In the end, the Indians traded their
and for the guarantee of salmon in
perpetuity. "That agreement was
designed to protect what kept our
people alive," says Courtney.
Salmon and Tribal Life
Salmon was the fabric of life for
the Columbia Basin tribes.
Obviously, the fish was important
for nutrition and physical survival.
But, salmon also provided a
commodity that could be traded for
and used to acquire other goods. It
was a social activity that brought
different tribes together, and pushed
different tribes apart. It had spiritual
purpose. It was tradition.
"We used everything of the
salmon," he says, "we caught it, dried
it, at it fresh. We at the meats, at the
heads dried or cooked. Even the guts
and entrails were taken and put into a
huge pot and boiled, and that was fed
to our dogs. Nothing went to waste."
Every year while growing up,
Courtney and his family would travel
120 miles from the Warm Springs
reservation to Celilo Falls on the
Columbia River. The Falls,
historically the most popular tribal
fishing spot on the Columbia, served
as economic and social center and
attracted many of the Northwest tribes
from far away.
For a three week period each fall,
many of the tribes would catch
enough salmon to feed them for an
entire year.
"For many of those in the tribe,"
says Courtney, "about 80 percent of
their diet was salmon-related. During
those three weeks, they would eat the
salmon fresh and they would cut the
salmon up and filet it, and dry it into
strips for keeping for a long time."
The annual gathering at Celilo
Falls also brought three weeks of
heavy trading and bartering. Trading
was an important component in the
lives of the Indians, who relied
heavily on the goods that different
tribes from around the Northwest
would bring to the gathering.
"It was a big trading center, what
I would call one of the greatest malls
in the Northwest at that time," recalls
Courtney. "Most of the tribes would
bring what they specialized in. The .
tribes to the South brought deer and
antlers and arrowheads. People from
the coast brought in their shells and
cedar baskets. Tribes from the interior
of Canada brought wolf and moose
and caribou. And salmon was always
a high value."
The Rise of the Dams
As large dams were erected on the
Columbia in the first half of the 20th
century, runs of salmon began to
decline. So too did tribal access to
many of their usual and accustomed
fishing spots.
In 1957, the Dalles Dam was built
on the lower Columbia River, only
miles from Celilo Falls. Following
the construction of this monstrous
dam, Celilo Falls was buried under a
reservoir, bringing an immediate end
to the cultural, social and religious
gatherings that had taken place there.
This was only a shadow of what was
to come.
Between 1962 and 1975, four
dams on the Lower Snake River-Ice
Harbor, Lower Monumental, Little
Goose and Lower Granite-were also
constructed. With the introduction
of these four dams came dramatic
declines of wild salmon. Since that
time runs of wild Snake River salmon,
which had been significant portion
of the tribal fish caught on the
Columbia, have declined by 90
percent.
Columbia Basin tribal fisheries
saw their lifeblood taken from them.
Regardless of their guaranteed right
to fish, the tribes had fewer and fewer
salmon, and had fewer and fewer
places to catch them.
"Salmon was our backbone," says
Courtney," Today, the fishery is
almost gone. The water has changed
completely." Last year's total run of
salmon on the Columbia was the same
number that would regularly come in
a single day only 30 years ago, he
said.
The decline of salmon has left a
deep mark on the tribal communities
of the Columbia Basin. Courtney
explains that since the salmon
decline, salmon-related tribal jobs
have dwindled. Unemployment
levels on the reservation climb from
30 percent in the summer to as high
as 70 percent in the winter.
"Without the fish to help us offset
the unemployment, our people don't
have the capabilities or money to
travel to get jobs off of the reservation.
Basically, our people are left out of
getting any kind of a good job."
As unemployment has climbed,
other problems on the reservation
have intensified.
Indian teenagers are dropping out
of school. Families have trouble
budgeting with their reduced
incomes. Health problems on the
reservation are increasing, with
Continued on page 12