August 3, 2006
Spilyay Tymoo, Warm Springs, Oregon
P^ge 2
Canoe project afloat and set to finish in September
By Leslie Mitts
S pilyay Tymoo
It’s hard to miss the project
in progress at the Museum at
Warm Springs—three replica
canoes being built, one of each
tribe of the Confederated
Tribes.
Joseph Sheppherd, project
coordinator for the River Eagle
Canoe Project, has been hard at
work. With the help of tribal
members, the canoes should be
completed by September.
“As a non-Indian, my job is
very clear,” Sheppherd said. “It’s
to build three model canoes for
the museum, teach as many
people who are interested the
skills that I have acquired, and
then step away so that tribal
members can take the lead and
direct it where they feel it is ap
propriate for it to go.”
Since the beginning of the
project, he added, 22 tribal mem
bers have helped out.
He has worked direcdy with
some tribal youth and also with
some tribal members who were
simply passing by and decided
to help for a few minutes.
In addition, Sheppherd said,
“In that same period of time
we’ve had 800 non-tribal visi
tors come and not help but won
der what was happening.”
Sheppherd spent many years
studying and working in Asia,
Africa and South America and
learned about the canoe-making
process.
According to Sheppherd,
“Wherever there were people
living beside bodies of water
they made canoes, and as a
young man I learned from
them. Now, as an old man, it is
my obligation to pass on what I
know to younger generations.”
To complete the replicas,
Sheppherd constructed blue
prints and closely examined
whatever existing examples or
historical materials he could
find.
Sheppherd added, “We also
went to professional Indian ca
noe builders and watched how
they made canoes.”
Carol Leone, director of the
museum, said, “It’s been an in
teresting project, and it’s funded
by some grants.”
Besides an Oregon Heritage
Commission Grant, there are
also private supporters like the
Pendleton Woolen Mills, Ander
son Construction, and some in-
kind donations from Warm
Springs Forest Products.
According to Leone, “One
of the interesting things is that
the museum’s current exhibit
does talk about fishing but it
doesn’t really refer anywhere
specifically to the canoe tradi
tions of the Warm Springs and
Wasco people.”
Now, Leone added, they are
hoping that the replicas will help
extend that discussion.
With an upcoming exhibit
about Celilo Falls, she said, there
will be “a whole discussion of
the so-called control of the Co
lumbia River. The canoes will
be outside the museum as part
of that whole thing.”
While those involved have
made a lot of progress, the
project is far from over.
They hope to get red cedar
logs to build dugout canoes
that are traditional for tribes,
in this area.
Leone said, “There’s much
further work to be done. It will
completely go to tribal members
when we are able to obtain the
red cedar logs for the dugouts.”
“People who know how to do
that in the traditional way will
come to the museum and do it
that way,” Leone said. “There
are some who do have those
skills already or who have fam
ily members who have some of
those skills.”
After that, the canoes will be
turned over to canoe families.
“We want to emphasize that
this is only the first phase. We’re
building replicas that are going
to be used as an additional en
ticement,” Leone said. “The
next phase is bringing in the logs
and bringing in experts. Hope
fully the canoe families will then
get going on their own.”
At this stage of the project,
Sheppherd said more than 1,200
hours have been spent on the
replicas.
Photo courtesy of Joseph Sheppherd
Since the beginning of the project, 22 tribal members have lent a helping hand-like the high
school students pictured above. According to Sheppherd, part of the River Eagle Canoe
project aims “to catch up with the other tribes of the Pacific Northwest in the construction of
wood and fiberglass replicas for racing and the annual canoe journey which unites all of the
Pacific Northwest tribes in an event that brings together 5,000 Indians and hundreds of canoes
from scores of reservations.” This year the journey will take place on July 31 on Lake
Washington, near Seattle.
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Little League junior team at regional
The Jefferson County
Little League Junior Team
has played a remarkable sea
son. The team this week is
competing in the Western
regional tournament, held in
Beaverton.
The Jefferson County
Little League Junior Team
reached the regional tourna
ment after sweeping the state
tournament in LaPine.
Winners at the regional
tournaments then play in the
semi-finals, followed by the
Junior League World Series
Championship Game.
Local youth on the Jefferson
County team, representing Or
egon, include Tyrell Smith,
Trevor Suppah, Martin Brown,
Rodney Smith and Spencer
Ellsbury.
The team manager is Bob
Gill, who works in the tribes’
Forestry Department. Coaches
are Doug Calvin and Doug Jack-
son.
The team was scheduled on
Tuesday of this week to play its
opening regional tournament
game against Northern Califor
nia. On Wednesday their oppo
nent was the host team of
Beaverton, followed on
Thursday, August 3, by South
ern California.
On Friday, no game is
scheduled for Oregon, then
on Saturday the game is Or
egon vs. Montana. On Sun
day no game is scheduled, and
then on Monday the game is
Oregon vs. Arizona.
The semi-finals begin on
Wednesday, August 9.
The regional tournament is
being played at the Tualatin
Valley Parks and Recreation
District.
Camp Sap-Si-Kwat next week at park
Camp Sap-Si-Kwat will be
from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday
through Friday, August 7-11 at
Elmer Quinn Memorial Park.
The camp is a fun time for
families and children, youth and
elders. The camp features arts,
crafts and culture. Continental
breakfast and lunch provided,
For information call Char
Herkshan at 553-3205.
Is Y our C a r R e a d y
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755 S.W. Hwy 97, Madras, OR 97741
CALL 475-6663
T w en ty-jive y ea r s a go this week
From the July 30, 1981 edition
o f the Spilyay Tymoo.
The question of whether or
not Simnasho school warrants
the expenditure of $46,000 of
the 509-J district budget was
again presented to the school
board.
There had been some appre
hension among many Warm
Springs and Simnasho residents
that the small rural school would
be axed from the budget. Now
it appears the school has again
survived the 509-J budget axe.
Several members of the
Madras community expressed
their belief that the Simnasho
school was too expensive to
operate. In other news:
Who would ever believe that
a young man, just out of school,
who was hired as a temporary
clerk/typist in Washington, D.C.
would, in 18 years, end up a
superintendent on the Warm
Springs Indian Reservation.
That’s exactly what Meritt
Youngdeer, an Eastern Chero
kee from North Carolina, Warm
Springs’ newest superintendent,
did. And elsewhere:
Hired earlier this spring to
head up the newly formed Jus
tice Branch for the Confeder
ated Tribes is Dick Burton. The
2 4 -H o u r
T o w in g
by
C e r t if ie d
O p e r a to rs
new branch was formed follow
ing the completion of a task
force study conducted in 1979
entitled “A Need for Reform.”
Or stop by for an appointment
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