Spilyay Tymoo, Warm Springs, Oregon
June 30, 2021
Page 7
Air quality readings during fire season
D.McMechan/Spilyay
June 25 a
parade of
riders honored
the one-
hundred and
sixty-sixth
anniversary of
the Treaty of
1855. They
traveled from
the Education
building area
to the powwow
grounds.
With the threat of wildfire
during the summer months,
air quality can become a
health risk.
Online you can check the
current air quality of the
Warm Springs community.
There are two War m
Springs Purple Air Sensors—
provided to the tribes by the
Environmental Protection
Agency—in place that you can
access from your phone or
computer: At the search engine
type ‘Warm Springs Pur ple Air
Sensors’.
The Branch of Natural Re-
sources installed the Warm Springs
Purple Air Sensors last summer,
during the very smokey season of
the massive Lionshead fire, that
burned on the reservation last
August and into September. The
specific website address for the sen-
sor at Indian Health Services is:
www.purpleair.com/map?opt=1/
m / i / m A Q I / a 1 0 /
cC4&select=59961#12.19/
44.72248/-121.25415
And the site for the Branch of
Natural Resources:
www.purpleair.com/map?opt=1/
m/i/mAQI/a10/cC4#12.19/
44.75178/-121.23597
CTWSBNR
Sensor at Natural Resources.
Another sensor is desig-
nated for the Simnasho com-
munity: This one has yet to be
placed.
More prizes in vaccine lottery
With the deadline nearing for
the cutoff to get at least the first
dose of a Covid-19 vaccine to be
entered into Oregon’s $1 million
lottery, Gov. Kate Brown an-
nounced four travel packages to
be given away statewide, as well as
more cash prizes.
People who have been vacci-
nated through the IHS and the Con-
federated Tribes program are auto-
matically entered in the lottery.
If you received you vaccine
from another health service, you
can register to enter the lottery at
takeyourshot.oregon.gov
Lottery winners will be an-
nounced in July.
Air quality index chart corresponding to the readings of the two Warm Springs sensors.
Support for Native Arts and Cultures
Suspicious 45-acre fire near fish hatchery
Fire crews quickly contained
a suspicious fire near the
Warm Springs National Fish
Hatchery, Monday, June 21.
Anyone with information is
encouraged to contact the
Warm Springs Police Depart-
ment anonymous tip line, 541-
553-2202.
The fire burned about 45
acres on a hillside near the fish
hatchery.
The tribal police department
received a report around 9 p.m.
June 21. No structures were
burned, and no evacuations
were required.
A preliminary investigation
determined the fire’s start was
suspicious in nature, said Police
Chief Bill Elliott.
The FBI was notified, as the
crime of arson in Indian Coun-
try is a federal offense, Mr.
Elliott said.
“We will do ever ything
needed to arrest people inten-
tionally starting fires,” Elliott
said. “We will ensure they are
Courtesy WSPD
Warm Springs Police on the scene of the suspicious fire.
prosecuted to the fullest extent of
the law.”
The police chief added that
tribal police will increase pa-
trols in rural areas, to provide
for the safety of residents.
The Native Arts and Cultures
Foundation, soon to be based in
Portland, has been awarded a multi-
million dollar gift in support of its
mission to advance equity and cul-
tural knowledge.
A Native-led organization, the
NACF focuses on the power of arts
and collaboration to strengthen
Native communities and promote
positive social, cultural and environ-
mental change. NACF is one of
286 high-impact organizations na-
tionwide that received $2.7 billion
in gifts from philanthropists
MacKenzie Scott and Dan Jewett.
“We are at a pivotal moment in
Indigenous communities in which
creative forces are aligning for the
good of all,” said Lulani Arquette,
NACF president. “As we grow our
organization and programming, we
believe art is a powerful force to
bring about transformative change,
healing and understanding.”
While Native-led nonprofits are
often overlooked in philanthropic
giving, Native artists and organiza-
tions are doing profound work to
strengthen Native communities,
change misconceptions about In-
digenous peoples and create space
and opportunities for Indigenous
voices to be amplified.
NACF is pleased to receive this
gift in the company of other val-
ued Native recipient organizations,
and is inspirited by the support, rec-
ognition and visibility this will bring
to Indigenous issues.
“We are grateful to be included
alongside so many vital organiza-
tions in our collective efforts to
uplift the strengths of American
Indian, Native Hawaiian and
Alaska Native people and support
positive social change,” Ms.
Arquette said.
The gift comes as NACF tran-
sitions to a new national headquar-
ters in Portland, after taking own-
ership of a historic building in the
city’s vibrant southeast neighbor-
hood. The Center for Native Arts
and Cultures (CNAC) will be a ro-
bust community asset and gather-
ing place for Native artists and lo-
cal partnerships. NACF has distrib-
uted over 500 grants since 2009
to artists and arts organizations in
34 states and the District of Co-
lumbia. To learn more about
NACF and CNAC, visit:
nativeartsandcultures.org