FEBRUARY 1, 2006
Smoke Signals 7
flies, teaching agility, speed and
patience. The child was praised for
catching the butterfly, but praised
even more for catching it and re
leasing it unharmed. Adults recog
nize such activities as a child's
special talents: "You're going to be
a great fisherman one day."
Eight: Choices
in Parenting
Today, Indians have very differ
ent challenges than those facing
traditional Tribal people. Indians
face racism and other barriers to
housing, jobs and family issues.
Indians have to overcome stereo
types that were once far more pro
lific than they are today, but they
continue to infiltrate everyday life.
Indians who would preserve the
Fire Takes Grandchildren Of Tribal Member
Tribal member Terry Houck and family mourn the loss of three young boys.
By Ron Karten
By 4:00 a.m. on Monday, Janu
ary 23, the Salem Fire Depart
ment was on its way to the
Sprague Court Apartments in
South Salem.
At the same time, Jeremy
Arendt, son of Tribal member Terry
Houck's wife, Betty, was crashing
through the window of his bedroom
to first escape the inferno that had
been their home, and then to try to
reach his two boys, Zachary, 6,
Ryan, 3, his daughters,
Mariah, 8, and Brittany,
22 months, and their
cousin, 4-year-old Alex
Shipley, who was sleep
ing with the boys.
Arendt's wife, Tonya
Hegwood, was staying
the night with her
mother in Salem.
Zachary and Ryan
perished in the fire, and
Alex died at
Doernbecher Children's
Hospital later in the
morning.
Sometime during the
night, three-year-old
Ryan had come into
Jeremy's room to sleep
with his dad, but when
Jeremy was awakened
by the smoke and when
he opened his bedroom
door, the incredible
heat drove him back
into the bedroom. He
broke out of the bed
room window without
noticing that Ryan was
still in the room, still in
his bed asleep.
In the hospital with
"his lips black, his face
black, he was so
freaked out," said his
mother, Betty.
"He said he failed his
children," she said.
"He almost went into cardiac ar
rest four times. He said, 'Momma
don't leave me. Why did God take
my boys?' It was like he was los
ing it. He kept asking how Alex
was? (Alex) was hanging in
there."
In fact, Alex may have been
brain dead by the time they got
him out of house but his heart kept
beating and Betty said, "In my
heart, I knew that Alex hung in
I mm
Ibj LJ
old ways have to work to make
that happen. Almost every
thing in today's society leans to
ward mainstreaming
everybody. That translates to
day into having to learn to live
in two worlds at the same time
that social problems compound
the difficulties of getting along
day to day.
And finally, Indians face early
childhoods of want that taught
many not to need, not to feel and
not to trust.
"It's not about bringing back
the old days," said Joseph, "but
about integrating the old ways
into fulfilling new needs."
"It's exceptionally valuable to
family members in our colony
there to give everybody else hope to go
on."
Because Alex's mom, Danielle
Arendt, had given birth to preemie
triplets late last year, and had health
issues of her own, Alex had been almost
living with Jeremy's family.
"Jeremy remembers waking up
coughing and disoriented," said his
mom, Betty Houck, a few days later.
Jeremy and his sons have suffered with
breathing problems and allergies in
the best of times, said Betty. In fact,
she added, Jeremy had very recently
come out of surgery for his adenoids
and tonsils.
"He said that this was the hardest
thing he ever had to do," said Betty.
"My son, Christopher (who is six),
and Zachary were pretty close," said
Tribal member Terry Houck Jr., 28,
of Sheridan. "It was pretty much an
annual thing for them to go together
to see the monster trucks. They did it
every year for the last four years."
wwtti n mrnrm rwrnn r -,t wrr--limit' ft jl wWw i fi
I1 f
Teaching NICWA Executive Director
Terry Cross instructed another three-day
seminar on child protective services. Cross
developed the NICWA in 1 987.
The show is coming again this month
and the families already had tickets.
"Christopher took it pretty hard,"
said Terry Jr. "He curled up in a ball."
The families four children from
Jeremy and Tonya, and four from
Terry Jr. and his former wife, Sandi
got together regularly, said Betty.
Mariah, 8, and Terry's daughter,
Rebecca, also 8, played together.
The kids all had nicknames, too.
Ryan was Ry-guy. Rebecca was "my
little Victorian princess." Zachary was
A Tragedy Tribal members Terry Houck Jr.
Qeft) and Terry Houck Sr. (right) with Terry Sr.'s
wife, Betty, in the center, came to Smoke Signals'
offices last week where they described the ordeal
that took the lives of their grandchildren.
Top left Mariah, bottom left to right Brittany,
Zachary, Ryan Arendt at Christmas in 2005 (not
pictured Alex Shipley).
Photo courtesy of the Arendt family
the Zach-attack. "Little Brittany was
just into ruling the world," said Betty.
Mariah was the "little Tasmanian
devil."
"Even though those boys lives were
short," said Betty, there wasn't a day
that they didn't know they were loved."
The girls love to go to Play World at
the casino, said Betty. "They'd ask
their grandpa for money to play the
games and he would ask: 'Do you want
the money for your college fund.' 'No!'
because it presents parenting skills
in a way they can relate to without
feeling threatened," said Judith
Campanaro, Social Services Direc
tor for the Reno-Sparks Indian
Colony in Nevada.
"It allows parents to be who they
are and encourages them to allow
children to be who they are." It helps
the colony acknowledge a parent as
a beautiful person and a loving par
ent even if they have encountered
other problems along the way.
In one of the storytelling exer
cises, Yakama HeadStart Teacher
and Case Worker Marlene Simla
(Yakama) told a story in which she
showed how the stars are in apples.
Looked at that way, the apples were
almost too good to eat.
the girls scream. 'For Super
Play!"
"And grandpa couldn't tell them,
'no."
"Alex was always go go go go,"
said Betty.
On Zachary's fourth birthday,
we asked him to tell us four reasons
why everybody was over," said
Betty. One of his answers, she
said, was, Tuz I'm so cute."
The Zach-attack also boasted
about being able to count to 400.
What Betty remembers
is having to listen all
the way through.
No cause had been
determined for the fire
at press time.
Jeremy's employer,
Taco Bell, has been
more than generous in
spirit and with financial
help, said Betty. They
told Jeremy that his
checks would keep com
ing though he was in the
hospital, and they set
out collection centers at
Taco Bells throughout
the area, said Betty.
They also were on hand
at the hospital and con
tributed to the cost of the
joint funeral for the
three boys, scheduled to
be held at the West Val
ley Baptist Church in
Keizer on Saturday,
January 28.
The Washington Mu
tual Bank has set up a
fund in the name of
Tonya M. Hegwood. U.S.
Bank, through Taco Bell,
has set up the Jeremy
Arendt Fund. In addi
tion, the families need
clothes and toys and per
sonal items like toiletries.
Feel free to call our office
(503 879-5211)fbr clothes
sizes for the family members, and to
drop offerings for the family at the
Tribe's Central Telephone Station.
An exhausted grandfather,
Terry Sr., took a couple takes to
get out his thoughts on the mat
ter. They were overwhelming. He
fought back tears three times try
ing to get them out.
"Spend as much time as you can
with your kids and grandkids," he
said. "Always make time for them."