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About Smoke signals. (Grand Ronde, Or.) 19??-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 15, 2005)
JANUARY 15, 2005 University of Oregon Longhouse Dedication , ww?.. .Jw ' i i' c . ( "I'-y "We Can Come Here In Peace" J : r r': ' vNs y Completion of the longhouse raised many different " 11" iirti- s f' images during the dedication. Some focused on JT f Gf l",rT--v community, others focused on dreams. For Tribal f l 'r"J ' , i Council memberJackGiffenJr.it was about peace. .'4 A She Looks Right Through You Rebecca Easton and her daughter Sonya (photos above) attended the dedication for the newly built, 3,000 square foot longhouse at the University of Oregon. Easton explained that Sonya was fascinated with Native American culture and "had to be here for this." The longhouse was built for Native ceremonies and a place that families could go and feel comfortable. The dedication took place on Tuesday, January 1 1 in Eugene. Mon Foe: Hew U off O LongS&omse group. A year ago, he suffered a massive heart attack and doctors doubted he would ever do either again. "These ceremonies began a long time ago," he said. "This is a piece of history that continues to unfold." He added, "There are many stories here today as our history con verges." "(Native people) have the fore sight of looking out many genera tions," said Tom Younker, Vice Chair for the Coquille people. The challenge posed by the building, he said, is for Indians to "build memo ries." Taking off on that idea, Sheker Robertson added, "When we bring our memories to this place, we leave with new ones." To give the longhouse strength, Proudfoot placed a wood crafted house given him years ago by the Kinh Tribe of Vietnam into the fire place and burned it. Oregon Tribal leaders also weighed in on the meaning of the new longhouse. "The longhouse has always been a sacred part of our lives," said Delores Pigsley, Chair of the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians. "This will be a happy central gathering place for our people for years into the fu ture." Burns-Paiute Chair Barbara Sam called the building "a great ac complishment for the Native American people." "Students worry about losing their culture at the university," she said, noting that her own daughter is a student at UO. "This is a place to come and keep in touch with our culture." The building "bridges a very important gap between cultures," said Klamath Chair Allen Foreman. It was accomplished, he added, "because you dared to dream." The Tribal fam ily gives a child roots, he said, and the university gives a child wings. When Umatilla Chair Anton Minthorn stood to speak, his mobile phone rang. The ring came in the form of the William Tell Overture, which as probably only the Elders in the group remembered, was the theme song for the 1950s television west ern, The Lone Ranger, one of the great pieces of popular American history that of course rode into the sunset on a fairy tale version of the actual history. "This was going to be serious," Builder, Dreamer The Many Nations Longhouse design continues a tradition of suc cessful Native buildings for Architect Johnpaul Jones. Minthorn told the tittering crowd when the ringing stopped. "I'll find out who made that call," he prom ised. The 3,000 square foot longhouse is the second one for the UO cam pus. It replaces a barracks-type facility half its size. UO graduate and Grand Ronde Tribal Council member Chris Mercier said that he never knew about the older longhouse during his time in Eugene. As a reporter for Smoke Signals, Mercier covered the dedication of a Native longhouse at Oregon State Univer sity, and wondered when UO would follow suit because the Ducks have long prided themselves on "multiculturalism and diversity." The facility is part of UO Presi dent Dave Frohnmayer's Native American Initiative that also in cludes the Center for Indigenous Cultural Survival and a tuition resi dency program for all members of the 44 bands whose ancestors once lived in Oregon. Many Nations Longhouse In terim Steward Gordon Bettles (Kla math) presented Frohnmayer with the keys to the longhouse. A grate ful Frohnmayer had just put the keys, held on a string of sorts, around his neck when Bettles went on with good humor: "Just return them before you leave the building." 3
