Spilyay Tymoo, Warm Springs, Oregon
Howlak Tichum
Pat Courtney Gold ~
1939-2023
Pat Courtney Gold, re-
nowned Wasq’u basketmaker,
passed away on February 1,
2023. She was 74.
Ms. Courtney Gold was
born on January 22, 1939, and
grew up on the Warm Springs
Reservation. In her youth, she
attended a Bureau of Indian
Affairs boarding school, went
on to earn a BA in Mathemat-
ics and Physics from Whitman
College, and became a profes-
sional mathematician and com-
puter specialist.
Childhood visits with her
mother to museums, displaying
traditional Wasq’u artwork, in-
spired Pat to study and help re-
vive the full-turn twining tech-
nique, unique to her tribal com-
munity.
The result was a resurgence
of Wasq’u ‘sally bags,’ twined
root-digging bags with a tradi-
tional function for harvesting
and storing traditional food.
The baskets were important
because they were vital con-
Pat Courtney Gold presents at
Oregon Folklife Network 2013
Arts in Parks series.
tainers, Pat said: “We would catch
the salmon, filet them, dry them
and sell them as filets, or we would
pound the filets into a powder
salmon-like pemmican. That’s
what we traded. So the baskets
were constantly being made, be-
cause when we would trade the
salmon we would trade a container
Community notes...
An important health care
coverage update: If you are en-
rolled in the Oregon Health Plan,
Medicaid or CHIP, and if you
are member of the Confederated
Tribes, you should check in with
a contact representative at the
Health and Wellness Center. This
is to make sure you are able to
maintain coverage.
Changes are coming soon on
April 1. You may have already
received, or will be receiving a
letter from the state about com-
pleting a renewal form.
Call the clinic to learn more at
541-553-1196. Ask for a contact
representative.
Central Oregon Community
College will host the Native
American Salmon Bake on Sat-
urday, May 13. For more details,
or if you want to volunteer, con-
tact Jeremiah Rector, COCC’s
Native American Student pro-
gram coordinator:
jrector@cocc.edu
March 22, 2023
and all.
“I always thought that was an
interesting way to keep the skill
of making baskets going.
“It’s impossible to overstate
the significance of awakening this
sleeping tradition, which restores
Indigenous wisdom and knowl-
edge, revitalizes cultural form
and function, and embodies In-
digenous values and pride in ways
that have therapeutic impact on
intergenerational trauma.”
By 1991, Pat was following a
new career path dedicated to pre-
serving of her cultural heritage.
She became a participant in
Oregon Folklife programming in
1995 during Oregon Historical
Society administration by folklor-
ists Carol Spellman and Nancy
Nusz. Pat’s work was widely rec-
ognized for artistic excellence and
merit.
She was a 2001 recipient of
the Oregon’s Governor’s Art
Award; a 2003 honoree of the
First Peoples Fund Community
Spirit Award and their 2004 Cul-
tural Capital Fellow; and the Na-
tional Endowment for the Arts
bestowed upon her the highest
honor given to traditional artists,
the Heritage Fellowship, in 2007.
She accepted numerous speak-
The Yakama Warriors Associa-
tion is inviting the public and all
veterans to the Welcome Home
Vietnam Veterans celebration on
Saturday, March 25 at Sarge
Hubbard Park in Yakima. The
event starts at 1 p.m.
Advanced Cheer condition-
ing class is this Thursday
evening, 5:30-6:30 in the Old
Elementar y School g ym. For
more information call 541-699-
9111.
How to use Narcan training
Page 5
ing and exhibiting opportunities in
the Pacific Northwest, nationally—
including the Smithsonian National
Museum of the American In-
dian—and internationally in coun-
tries including China, New
Zealand, Canada and England.
Ms. Courtney Gold’s art is ex-
hibited at the High Desert Mu-
seum, Royal British Columbia Mu-
seum, and the Peabody Museum
of Archaeology and Ethnology at
Harvard University.
Like so many of our nation’s
finest traditional artists, Pat ex-
plored her creative boundaries be-
yond traditional structures.
During Pat’s 2009 Eric and
Barbara Dobkin Native Artist Fel-
lowship at the School for Advanced
Research, Santa Fe, Pat utilized
School of Advanced Research col-
lections to research and gain inspi-
ration for what became her two-
dimensional wall hangings.
One of these weavings is
proudly displayed in the Indian
Arts Research Center vaults. A
School for Advanced Research
documentary video of Pat’s time
in residency provides a heart-
warming glimpse of the thought-
ful way she explored her culture,
her relationship with the land, and
her expressive creativity.
Pat was engaging audiences
through Oregon Folklife Net-
work programming as recently
as 2016, and giving interviews
as recently as November 2021.
In her public presentations,
Pat married the skills of a
trained mathematician and tra-
ditional artist, describing bas-
kets as spirals and twining as
binary computation.
She captivated Indigenous
and non-Native audiences alike,
weaving left- and right-brain
perspectives like cordage.
Many have been blessed by
Pat’s gifts of time and talents.
is offered ever y Wednesday
mornings from 9 until 10:30 a.m.
at the Warm Springs Prevention
program. If you are interested,
please contact Jacylene at:
jaycelene.frank@wstribes.org
Narcan, also known by its
brand name of naloxone, is a life-
saving nasal spray that reverses
opioid overdoses.
cessible to all ages, abilities, and
experience.
Everyone is welcome to partici-
pate in a Free Flow and Restore
Yoga class on Wednesday, March
29 at 5:30 p.m. at the Agency
Longhouse. This class will offer a
range of meditation and poses ac-
‘We celebrate her life and trust
that her invaluable impact on cul-
ture will endure.’
Ms. Courtney Gold
demonstrates a traditional
Wasq’u weaving technique.
The Madras Community Food
Pantry is open each Wednesdays
and Thursdays from 10 a.m. to 1
p.m. at the United Methodist
Church, 49 NE Twelfth Street.
The Madras Community Free
Food Market is open the second
and fourth Wednesdays of each
month at the United Methodist
Church, starting at 4 p.m.
The Warm Springs Farmers
Market is set to begin in June on
the Campus.
Council seeking to fill board positions
The Tribal Council seeks to fill
a number of positions on boards
of directors of the Confederated
Tribes. The following are summa-
ries of the positions:
The Telecom Board of Di-
rectors: Two positions—Class II:
non-members. Candidates should
be interested in the economic and
social development of the tribes
and membership, and possess ex-
perience in the telecommunica-
tions or related industry.
Letters of interest and resumes
of applicants for the Telco board
should submit no later than 5 p.m.
on Friday, April 7, 2023. Drop
off at the tribal administration
building, addressed to the Secre-
tary-Treasurer/CEO. Or by mail
send to: Secretar y-Treasurer/
CEO, PO Box 455, Warm Springs
OR 97761.
Please sign a criminal and credit
background check. Forms can be
emailed to you. Information will
be submitted confidentially to the
S-T/CEO.
War m Springs Composite
Board of Directors: One posi-
tion—Class III: Tribal member.
Candidates should be interested in
the economic and social develop-
ment of the tribes and member-
ship, and possess expertise in the
marketing, management, manu-
facturing, finance, banking or
some other field that would ben-
efit Composite.
The Class III directors shall
have an initial term in office ex-
piring on December 31, 2025; or
until a successor is appointed and
takes office.
Process to submit letter of in-
terest and resume is the same as
above.
Warm Springs Credit Board
of Directors: Two positions—
Class II: One Class II director
shall be a tribal member, and one
shall be a non-member. Candi-
dates should be interested in the
social and economic develop-
ment of the tribes and member-
ship, and have expertise in the
field of credit or related profes-
sion.
Process to submit letter of
interest and resume is the same
as above.
Warm Springs Power and
Water Enterprise Board of
Directors: One position—Class
I: Tribal member. Candidate
should be an enrolled member,
and interested in the economic
and social development of the
tribes and membership, and
have expertise in the field of
energy or related matters.
Process to submit letter of
interest and resume is the same
as above.
War m Springs Ventures—
Economic Development Cor-
poration—Board of Directors:
Two positions: Class I: One tribal
member and one non-member.
Term ending December 31, 2025.
Candidates should interested in the
economic and social development
of the tribes and membership, and
possess expertise in private indus-
try, finance, or banking or some
other field that would benefit the
corporation. Process to submit let-
ter of interest and resume is the
same as above.