Spilyay Tymoo, Warm Springs, Oregon
Howlak Tichum
Phillip Gean David ~ 1943-2020
Phillip Gean David, mem-
ber of the Confederated
Tribes of War m Springs,
passed away on May 11,
2020 at his residence in
Simnasho. He was put to rest
on May 12 at the Simnasho
cemetery with military hon-
ors.
Phillip was born on May
13, 1943 to Thomas David
and Annie Tsumpti in
Simnasho.
Mr. David is survived by
his wife Linda David, his son
Gilbert Brown, and daughters
Sheila Spino-Thrasher,
Philana
David-Caldera
(Binky), Darla Brown and
Angela Brown.
His father Thomas,
mother Annie, sisters, broth-
ers and daughter Philamene
David (GiGi) proceed him in
death. He has numerous
grand children and great
grandchildren.
Phillip served in the Navy
frp, October 6, 1964 to Oc-
tober 24, 1968.
He was employed many
years as a logger and a sanita-
tion technician till he retired
in 2007.
Phillip was a known fisher-
man throughout his life. His
love for fish began with fish-
ing Celilo as a young boy with
his father.
One of his happiest mo-
ments was with his Calica
brothers while their Grandfa-
ther showed them many fish-
ing sites along the Deschutes
River, which led him to fish-
ing Sherars Falls for almost 50
years.
He loved and appreciated
Sherars Falls like home, mak-
ing many nets to ensure he
was prepared to fish for
hours.
For years he welcomed any-
one whom wished to learn how
to make nets to his home in
Simnasho.
Laurel Nancy Greene ~ 1944-2020
Born on April 6, 1944 to
Francis Greene and Cecelia
(Stacona) Greene, Laurel
Nancy Greene was the young-
est of eight children. She was
preceded in death by her par-
ents, and seven of her siblings;
brothers Levi, Eugene, Harold,
Perry and David; and her sis-
ter Muriel (Mico) Chase.
Laurel is survived by her
oldest sister Agnes (Onte)
Lumpmouth. She expired on
April 15, 2020 at the age of
76, to congestive heart disease.
Events
(Continued from page 1)
Edmo decided that very day to
shift her career path. Today, Edmo,
who is Shoshone-Bannock, Nez
Perce, and Yakama, is Executive
Director of McKenzie River Gath-
ering Foundation, a Portland-based
nonprofit that funds grassroots ra-
cial and social justice work through-
out Oregon, including Native
American cultural preservation ef-
forts. “I gave myself pretty much
an ultimatum at that salmon feast
that if I still had that [former] job
by the time I turned 40, it was my
own fault. It has meant a whole
world opened up to me.”
Edmo’s story is a testament not
only to the draw and inspiration of
cultural events like the salmon feast
but also to the broader impact such
events have on Native American
communities and the people who
are their lifeblood.
But pandemic, and particularly
the cases of Covid-19 connected
to the First Salmon Feast, has led
to the cancellation of many cultural
gatherings, at least for the near
term. (The sovereignty of tribes
means that they are not subject to
Oregon Gov. Kate Brown’s orders
and instead can make independent
decisions regarding public health.)
Chuck Sams, who serves as in-
cident commander for the Confed-
erated Tribes of the Umatilla In-
dian Reser vation during the
coronavirus pandemic, said CTUIR
leaders canceled all traditional
feasts and gatherings and recom-
mended the cancellation of all
sweat lodge ceremonies as well. It
was one of the most difficult deci-
sions that CTUIR leaders have had
to make, Sams said.
“We had a number of tribal el-
ders and traditional community
leaders who said now is not the time
to be selfish,” he said.
In addition, the CTUIR imple-
mented numerous measures to fur-
ther public safety, including restrict-
ing public gatherings to 10 people
Laurel had physical and men-
tal disabilities and lived in adult-
care centers. For the past ten
years her residence was
Lebannon, Oregon. She loved
her caregivers, who took her to
powwows, bowling, and visits to
the ocean.
She knew and sang Shaker’s
songs, then learned Western
music, and her last years, Gos-
pel music.
We will miss her, and know
she is in a place of ever-last-
ing peace.
or fewer and recommending that
residents remain in their homes.
The Tribe also monitored traffic
into the reservation and encour-
aged outsiders to avoid the area.
There have been no new positive
coronavirus cases on the Umatilla
Indian Reser vation since a
nontribal employee at the
Wildhorse Resort & Casino tested
positive in early March.
Partial reopening is now under-
way on the Umatilla Indian Reser-
vation, with the casino’s restaurant,
movie theaters, and golf course
open for business, and there is talk
of reopening the hotel. Sams
added that any decision to reopen
the casino floor will be based on
testing and the advice of public
health officials. “We’re all going to
base this on epidemiology and
data,” he said.
Dan Martinez, emergency man-
ager for the Confederated Tribes
of Warm Springs, said his tribe de-
cided to allow traditional spiritual
leaders to determine for them-
selves whether to continue host-
ing cultural ceremonies. To date,
most have decided to cancel.
Spring of cancellation
The tribes of the Warm Springs
Reservation have seen 22 positive
COVID-19 cases (as of late May),
all within the past month, and tribal
officials believe that as many as 10
of those same individuals attended
the Celilo event. “We think it might
have been spread from that,”
Martinez said. “Pretty much all the
events have been canceled as a re-
sult of these issues,” including the
June 26-28 Pi-Ume-Sha Treaty
Days Powwow.
Martinez made clear that he and
other tribal members with whom
he has spoken do not fault anyone
for deciding to go ahead with the
April 13 feast. “We let them do
what they need to do in order to
honor the fish,” he said. Others
have been critical of the decision
and worry that gatherings will con-
tinue. Yakama Tribal Council Ex-
ecutive Board Chairman Delano
June 3, 2020
Page 5
Housing approval at Tribal Council
The Warm Springs Housing
Authority received the Tribal Coun-
cil okay to move forward with a
rehab project at the Kah-Nee-Ta
Hamlets. The plan is also to add a
drive-up window at Housing, and
improvement to the Housing ven-
tilation system.
The grant proposal was brought
forward by Danielle Wood, Hous-
ing director. Council unanimously
agreed on the resolution. In other
Council news from this Monday:
Emergency Response director
Dan Martinez gave an update
from the wind and rain storm late
last week. The event caused a
mudslide on the roadway by Rattle-
snake Springs. BIA Roads was re-
sponding, Martinez said.
Meanwhile, the Schoolie Flats
area was still dealing with the
lack of domestic water. There
were temporary showers set up
at the area, Martinez said. The
showers are seeing a lot of use,
he said.
In the Tribal Court of the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs
Note: All proceedings take place
at the Tribal Court:
CTWS, Petitioner, vs ESSIE
LAWSON, Respondent; Case
No JV28-13, JV29-13. TO:
ESSIE LAWSON, REGGIE
MEDINA, HECTOR SAIZA,
WILLIAM
STEWART,
HEATHER
WILLIAMS
STEWART, CPS, JV PROS:
YOU ARE HEREBY NOTI-
FIED that a PRELIMINARY has
been scheduled with the Warm
Springs Tribal Court. By this no-
tice you are summoned to appear
in this matter at a hearing sched-
uled for the 2 ND day of JULY,
2020 @ 11:00 AM
CTWS, Petitioner, vs ESSIE
LAWSON, Respondent; Case
No JV29-13, JV28-19. TO:
ESSIE LAWSON, REGGIE
MILLER, HECTOR SAIZA,
HEATHER
WILLIAMS
STEWART,
WILLIAM
STEWART, CPS, JV PROS:
YOU ARE HEREBY NOTI-
FIED that a PRELIMINARY has
been scheduled with the Warm
Springs Tribal Court. By this no-
J. Saluskin told the Yakama Na-
tional Review that, in spite of
widespread understanding of the
threat posed by the novel
coronavirus, “many ignored the
advice of the medical profession-
als and our government.”
On the Warm Springs Coun-
cil, Wilson Wewa said it is particu-
larly difficult for the tribal people
in the region to cancel ceremonies
that honor the animals and plants
that are such important sources
of food and so central to Native
American culture. The Celilo First
Salmon Feast heralds the start of
each year’s fishing, hunting, and
gathering seasons. The event is
held when large numbers of
salmon begin the journey up the
Columbia River to their spawning
grounds, and it is a longstanding
custom that tribal fishermen are
not allowed to start fishing for
salmon until after the feast. Other
springtime celebrations include a
feast to honor animals such as
deer, elk, buffalo, and bighorn
sheep; another ceremony for the
nearly two dozen root foods har-
vested by the tribes; and an event
dedicated to fruits like huckleber-
ries and chokecherries.
Most tribal communities in Or-
egon have longhouses, which
serve as spiritual centers and the
sites of these annual feasts and
other gatherings. Wewa empha-
tice you are summoned to appear
in this matter at a hearing sched-
uled for the 2 ND day of JULY,
2020 @ 11:00 AM
BERNADETTE CHAM-
BERS,
Petitioner,
vs
ZACHARY CHAMBERS, Re-
spondent; Case No.DO26-20.
TO: BERNADETTE CHAM-
BERS, ZACHARY CHAM-
BERS:
YOU ARE HEREBY NOTI-
FIED that a DISSOLUTION
OF MARRIAGE has been
scheduled with the Warm Springs
Tribal Court. By this notice you
are summoned to appear in this
matter at a hearing scheduled for
the 9 TH day of JULY 2020 @
9:00 AM
CTWS, Petitioner, vs
CYNTHIA ISADORE, Re-
spondent; Case No JV80,81-09.
TO: CYNTHIA ISADORE,
CPS, JV PROS:
YOU ARE HEREBY NOTI-
FIED that A PROBATION RE-
VIEW has been scheduled with the
Warm Springs Tribal Court. By
this notice you are summoned to
sized just how much the Covid-19
pandemic has tested the cultural be-
liefs of Oregon’s tribal people, forc-
ing them to decide whether hosting
their ceremonies is worth the risk
of spreading disease.
“It presents a hardship on us
now,” Wewa said. “I think our
people have adapted through this
spring cycle so far, but I know there
were some hard-hit longhouses.”
Some Native American families
have begun holding smaller feasts
within their households, reviving
past traditions that existed before
tribal communities constructed large
communal buildings to host their
ceremonies. Meanwhile, funeral cer-
emonies have continued, although
they are now shorter and incorpo-
rate social distancing measures to
reduce the risk of disease transmis-
sion. For the most part, though, this
has been the spring of cancellation.
Wewa and others also worry
about the overall toll of not con-
gregating. “It has made impacts, I
think, to the spiritual and psycho-
logical and emotional well-being of
our people to accommodate being
safe for our community and for our
families,” he said.
Beyond these near-term ramifi-
cations lurks another concern:
Could ceasing such ceremonies and
treaty-protected practices end up
jeopardizing those very rights? It is
the use-it-or-lose-it scenario that
appear in this matter at a hearing
scheduled for the 6 TH day of
JULY, 2020 @ 3:00 PM
CTWS, Petitioner, vs
ELLEN JACKSON, Respon-
dent; Case No.JV3-19. TO:
ELLEN JACKSON, CPS, JV
PROS:
YOU ARE HEREBY NOTI-
FIED that a SHOW CAUSE has
been scheduled with the Warm
Springs Tribal Court. By this no-
tice you are summoned to appear
in this matter at a hearing sched-
uled for the 1 ST day of JULY 2020
@ 4:00 PM
FELICIA RHOAN, Peti-
tioner, vs CYRIL FANK SR.,
Respondent; Case No.RO21-
20. TO: FELICIA RHOAN,
CYRIL FRANK SR., VOCs:
YOU ARE HEREBY NOTI-
FIED that a RESTRAINING OR-
DER has been scheduled with the
Warm Springs Tribal Court. By this
notice you are summoned to ap-
pear in this matter at a hearing
scheduled for the 30 TH day of
June 2020 @ 10:30 AM
many Native American communi-
ties are all too familiar with.
“Our fear is always that the fed-
eral government could come back
and say, ‘Well, you guys aren’t pro-
tectors of the natural resources, or
the wildlife, or the water, because
you guys didn’t do anything with
your ceremonies,’” Wewa said. “‘You
guys didn’t have your ceremonies
during the COVID [pandemic], so
why should we allow you eagle feath-
ers? Why should we allow you to
have a sweat in the prison? Why
should we allow you to wear braids
in school?’”
“That truly is my fear,” he said.
For Oregon’s Native American com-
munities, Covid-19 doesn’t only
threaten the body. It also threatens
the soul.
This is article is Kevin Abourezk,
who serves as Managing Editor for
Indianz.com, a Native American
news website, and has spent 21 years
as a professional journalist, includ-
ing 18 years as a reporter and editor
for the Lincoln Journal Star. He is
an enrolled citizen of the Rosebud
Sioux Tribe.
The publisher, Underscore.news is
a nonprofit journalism organization
based in Portland. Supported by foun-
dations, cor porate sponsors, and the
public, our reporting focuses on
underrepresented voices and in-depth
investigations.