E Coosh EEWA: The way it is
Page 4
Spilyay Tymoo April 15, 2015
Letters to the editor
First Salmon
This year the spring
chinook arrived just as they
have for thousands of years.
Up and down the river their
arrival is greeted by the tribal
people.
The songs that are part of
the ancient First Salmon
feasts honoring the salmon’s
return are heard in
longhouses throughout the
region. To me, the feasts are
a reminder of how truly
blessed tribal people are to
have salmon return each year,
to feed and provide for our
physical and spiritual needs.
They are also a reminder
of the spirit and richness of
tribal culture—a culture that
it is still strong and connected
to the land that we call home.
In my meetings with state
and federal agency represen-
tatives and officials, I often
encourage them to take part
in one of these ceremonies.
Too often, in the day-to-day
fights over the salmon as a
resource, they can lose sight
of the fact that the salmon
are a gift from the Creator.
When non-Indians witness
and take part in a First Salmon
ceremony, they not only see
how important these sacred
fish are to the tribes, they also
see salmon and tribal people
in a whole new light.
The tribes do not have a
monopoly on caring for and
honoring the salmon. How-
ever, we’ve been doing it for
a long time. And we have a
lot of wisdom to share with
the region on what we’ve
learned.
Now, in this era of grow-
ing returns, the region is see-
ing the results of the tribes’
leadership and expertise to
restore and rebuild the Co-
lumbia River basin’s salmon
runs.
Paul Lumley, executive
director Columbia River In-
ter-Tribal Fish Commission.
Spring cleanup
A group of students from
Sojourn Collegiate Ministry at
Boston University visited
Warm Springs on their spring
break to conduct service
work.
A total of 44 people, pri-
marily students from colleges
throughout the Boston area,
participated.
They did a deep clean of
the three longhouses, a com-
munity-wide clean up in
Simnasho, picked up trash at
Elmer Quinn Park, cleared
the OSU Extension Garden,
and helped out at the Mu-
seum At Warm Springs, High
Lookee Lodge and more.
They did this work with
smiles, laughter and enthusi-
asm over their spring break.
I wanted to extend my
gratitude to the tribe for pro-
viding some funding so that
we could have a few meals
when they were working in
the longhouses.
I am especially thankful
for Charlotte Herkshan, who
led the charge for three of
those meals, donated food
and made a lot of cakes and
pies.
She also spent time with
the students, cleaning and
keeping me on task!
Thank you to Or vie
Danzuka for his help during
the Simnasho cleanup. He
came with his truck and
hauled out nine truckloads of
trash.
A big thank you to Cap-
tain Moody, his wife Nonie
and his son for coming to the
longhouse to help out and to
share our culture as well as
the donation of water.
Also thank you Linda and
Phillip David for donating
water for the group, and
Sheila Danzuka for donating
huckleberries.
Thank you to Ken
Kippley, who talked with the
students about the Warm
Springs Police Department.
I also want to thank Starla
Green for taking the lead on
coordinating the cleaning ef-
forts at both Agency and
HeHe longhouses.
Thank you to Wilson
Wewa for putting together a
hot meal for the students
when they were at HeHe
Longhouse, and getting swim
passes for the group.
I also appreciate Kah-Nee-
Ta Resort & Spa for provid-
ing passes and reduced rates,
and the museum for provid-
ing free access to both groups.
Also thank you to KWSO,
Three Warriors and Red Skye
Pawn Shop for donating gifts
for the students.
I appreciate the work that
Utilities did so that we had
necessary supplies on hand.
Thank you to all the com-
munity members who jumped
in and helped and stopped by
to say hello to the students.
Finally, I want to thank my
Mom who stood by my side
and put much more work
into the last two weeks than
I. She helped organize, cook,
get supplies from point A to
point B, stayed with the stu-
dents for several full days,
cleaned, and so much more.
It was only by chance that
I crossed paths with the or-
ganizers on Twitter and played
connect the dots for them in
the community.
I was very inspired by their
kindness and generosity and
many of them shared won-
derful thoughts about their
Spilyay Tymoo
(Coyote News, Est. 1976)
Publisher Emeritus: Sid Miller
Multi Media Specialist: Alyssa Macy
Managing Editor: Dave McMechan
Spilyay Tymoo is published bi-weekly by the Con-
federated Tribes of Warm Springs. Our offices are
located at 4174 Highway 3 in Warm Springs.
Any written materials submitted to Spilyay Tymoo
should be addressed to:
Spilyay Tymoo, P.O. Box 489, Warm Springs, OR
97761.
Phone: 541-553-2210 or 541-771-7521
E-Mail: dave.mcmechan@wstribes.org.
Annual Subscription rates: Within U.S.: $20.00
trip here. Thank you again to
community for being a part
of that!
Alyssa Macy
Vote Matters
The upcoming 509-J
school district board election
will decide two of five posi-
tions that make decisions in
the best interest of our fami-
lies and communities. As
someone who went through
this school district, and who
hopes to have children go
through it someday, I hope
people realize the importance
of electing fair, capable and
experienced people who are
committed to a better educa-
tion for all students.
My experience at Warm
Springs Elementary, the
Jefferson County middle
school and Madras High
School (Class of 2005) leads
me to believe that 509-J has
a great opportunity to do bet-
ter.
We need to work toward
uniting communities, creating
meaningful dialogue among
students, and increasing sup-
port for our educators. We
need to narrow gaps and
work together to offer up a
world class education and
nurture healthy, empowered
citizens who care about one
another.
I am writing this letter to
ask you to vote for my mom,
Sue Matters, for school board
position 4. She believes: All
kids deserve an excellent edu-
cation; that education mat-
ters; that every voice needs
to be heard and respected;
and that the district budget
must consistently support the
schools’ goals.
Vote Sue Matters for 509-
J position 4.
Carina Miller.
Diabetes talk
The Diabetes Awareness
and Support Group is hosted
by the IHS Warm Springs
Model Diabetes Program
and Warm Spring Senior Pro-
gram.
They have dinner and
share information on the
third Tuesday of each month,
from 5-6 p.m. at the Senior
Center.
The April 21 topic of dis-
cussion is Fitness, with
wellness coordinator Edmund
Francis.
The May 19 topic will be,
‘How does diabetes and blood
pressure affect the kidneys.’
Tournament
The United Auburn Indian
Community Handgame Tour-
nament is coming up at Lin-
coln, Calif.,
April 24-26.
Open games are at 5 p.m.
on Friday, April 24;
handgame tournament is at 2
p.m. on Saturday; and the
Bone Hog tourney is at 2 on
Sunday.
The prize for first place in
the handgame tournament is
$8,000; second place $3,000;
third, $2,000; and fourth
$1,000.
This is an outdoor event.
Lunch and dinner are pro-
vided on Saturday, $125 per
team, cash only.
For more information call
916-408-7777; or email:
Auburnrancheria.com
Folklife
We are pleased to an-
nounce that the National En-
dowment for the Arts has
awarded the Oregon Folklife
Network funding to conduct
field surveys and documen-
tation of traditions in the
Gorge region, the Confeder-
ated Tribes of Warm Springs,
and Jefferson, Wasco, Hood
River, Sherman and Gilliam
counties.
The Oregon Folklife Net-
work is looking to document
a variety of culture keepers
from different ethnic and re-
gional groups, as well as farm
and waterways traditions,
ranching, foodways, old time
music, quilting, auctioneering,
etc.
The Folklife Network part-
ners with local and state or-
ganizations to refer tradition
bearers and folk artists orga-
nizations, libraries or festivals.
We also preserve this docu-
mentation in our archives.
Please tell us about folks
in those areas who are known
for their traditional music
making, quilting, beadwork,
storytelling, cooking, saddle
making, fly tying, chain saw
carving, trapping, taxidermy,
basket making, etc. We’re very
interested in the range of pos-
sibilities…
To provide the Folklife
Network with contact infor-
mation for tradition keepers,
contact Riki Saltzman at:
riki@uoregon.edu
Or Emily West at, 541-
346-3820; or email:
eafanado@uoregon.edu
Nancy Nusz, 503-985-
9128
in the academy Community
Room.
At the Education building
the community study group,
for all ages (under 8 with
adult), are on Wednesdays
from 4-6 p.m.
For more information call
the Culture and Heritage
Department at 541-553-
32990.
Mushroom permits required
For most mushroom
gatherers, a permit is re-
quired to harvest on the
Warm Springs Reserva-
tion.
A permit is not required
for a tribal member who
collects less than one gal-
lon of mushrooms on the
reservation or in the state
of Oregon. Otherwise, a
permit is required.
Per mits are free to
tribal members, and are
available at the Forestry
office. Stop by Monday
through Friday, 8:30 a.m.-
4:30 p.m. For information
call 541-553-2416.
If you are found with-
out a permit, you may be
cited.
Home for sale
Home for sale - $297,500. Tenino Valley, Warm
Springs. 2,963 sq ft home on 5 acres free land.
Upper level: 1,750 sq ft. Three bedroom, two bath
with attached 2-car garage. Deck and patio area.
Lower level: 254 sq ft office and storage area;
960 sq ft two bdrm one bath apartment with out-
side entry and patio. 1,344 sq ft barn and 20’x10’
storage building. 541-553-1241.
For those medical
questions...
The Warm
Springs Health &
Wellness Center
Nurse Hotline
Numu classes
866-470-2015
The Culture and Heritage
Department is hosting Numu
Language Classes for youth
and the community at the
Warm Springs Eagle Acad-
emy, and at the Education
building.
The classes are Mondays
from 7-7:45 a.m., and on
Thursdays from 3:30-5 p.m.,
* My baby is coughing. Should I
take her to the clinic?
* How can I treat my sore throat at
home?
* Should my medical issue be
treated at the emergency room?