8 JANUARY 1,2012
Smoke Signals
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Photos by Michelle Alaimo
From left, Tribal Council Secretary Jack Giffon Jr., Tribal Council members June Sherer and Steve Bobb Sr., Tribal Council Vice Chair Reyn Leno, Tribal Council
members Toby McClary and Kathleen Tom, Tribal member and Tribal Cultural Protection Coordinator Eirik Thorsgard, Tribal Council member Chris Mercler and
There were no shades of differ
ence about the common goal.
"It was clear from the start that
Tribal Council and the Tribal mem
bership wanted to see the fish
restored to Agency Creek," said
Dirksen.
With Tribal Council on board,
Natural Resources had all the
support the department needed,
Dirksen said, to improve habitat
and lure the salmon back.
The Tribe won a grant to build the
fish weir that Natural Resources
uses to count, assess, record and
mark fish coming back upstream,
all in the service of evaluating
fish run numbers, which in turn
validate the success of the Tribe's
habitat improvement.
Thorsgard retold traditional
stories at the weir and in the gym,
where Spirit Mountain Casino
served a traditional meal.
One story, involving a bet between
salmon and lamprey, explains why
salmon have so many bones while
lamprey have none. Another talked
about the tradition of returning
the first caught fish as skeletons,
and sometimes as whole fish, to
the river or creek where they were
caught as a sign of appreciation for
the fish giving up their lives.
"We return the bodies of the fish
so they can go back out to sea,
resurrect and come back to help us
again," Thorsgard said. "Traditional
culture has a different explanation,
but just as big a punch."
And the meal prepared for the
event brought back some of the
best in traditional foods, including
cedar plank salmon, fall mushroom
crusted beef tenderloin, roasted
root vegetables, finished with rolls
and butter, cookies and dessert
bars.
Grand Ronde Royalty Princess
Elizabeth Watson-Croy hands out
packages of chocolate fish as a
gift to attendees of the Salmon
Celebration after a meal in the Tribal
gymnasium on Friday, Dec. 16.
Tribal Chairwoman Cheryle A. Kennedy participate in the Salmon Celebration at the Tribal fish weir on Friday, Dec. 16.
CELEBRATION continued
from front page
Dirksen, "but we get 4 to 4.5 percent
of all the Coho in the basin."
Factors that led to this dramatic
habitat improvement included
installing 13 new culverts, re-opening
20 miles of stream, and placing
hundreds of logs and fish carcasses
into the creek.
"One of the things that gets lost
is the relationship between us and
the fish," said Tribal member Eirik
Thorsgard, Tribal Cultural Protec
tion coordinator.
Driving home the point, Thors
gard told traditional Native stories
that place salmon at the heart of
Indian culture.
"Grand Ronde has always been a
fishing Tribe," said Tribal Council
Chairwoman Cheryle A. Kennedy
in welcoming a crowd that included
government representatives, advo
cacy group leaders, historians, edu
cators and the public. "There used
to be drying racks in all the houses
around here, and there were always
newspapers on the floor because of
the rich oil the came out.
"The 28 years going without this
kind of celebration (now that it's
here) it's well worth the wait."
Those 28 years mark the time
since Restoration, when the Tribe
began the long process of restoring
federal recognition and regaining
as many traditional rights as the
state would allow. Along the way,
the Tribe also began the process of
reclaiming the local environment
and addressing drastic needs, such
as health care and social services.
The Tribe has been re-kindling its
culture lost during the Termina
tion years.
Tribal Council Vice Chair Reyn
Leno said he sees the return of
gathering and ceremonial hunting
rights and the salmon celebration
as part of one effort.
"It all fits together," Leno said.
"It amazes me to see things com
ing back."
The memories of fishing during
those years showed how families
viewed that part of the culture dur
ing Termination.
"I grew up here," said Tribal
Council member June Sherer,
"and we never had these types of
ceremonies."
"The ceremony has always been
here," said Tribal Council Secretary
Jack Giffen Jr., "but we didn't have
fish to celebrate."
"Small, family-centered celebrations
have taken place," said Thorsgard.
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JANUARY 1,2012
Smoke Signals 9
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The Grand Ronde Canoe Family sings a welcome song at the start of the Salmon Celebration at the Tribal fish weir on Friday, Dec. 1 6.
"The neat thing about it," said
Executive Chef Richard Burr, "is
we were able to get line-caught wild
Chinook salmon. They were this
beautiful orange red, nothing at all
like these pond-raised salmon."
The work over the last 10 to 15
years to improve the habitat around
and within Agency Creek has been
an effort of partners.
"We have a number of cooperative
programs with the Tribe," said Dan
Edge, chair of the Oregon Fish and
Wildlife Commission that in 2008
returned ceremonial big game hunt
ing rights to the Grand Ronde Tribe
and also invested with the Tribe in
lamprey research. "It is just a kick
after all these efforts that the fish
are back in the creek. These are real
and positive results."
Edge also is department head at
Oregon State University's Fish and
Wildlife Department.
"(This success) really demon
strates Grand Ronde's leadership,"
said Kari Rosenfeld, development
director of Rural Development Ini
tiatives, Inc.
"We need to let people in rural
areas know the good things you
are doing," said Jill Rees, Public
Affairs specialist with the federal
Department of Agriculture.
"Thanks for coming to the table
as we try to protect the fish," Giffen
told Tribal partners and staff.
"Our people have been taking
care of the forests for time immemo
rial and now we are continuing that
here," said Tribal Council member
Kathleen Tom.
"Grand Ronde does take its stew
ardship very seriously," said Tribal
Council member Chris Mercier.
"I would like to thank the Elders
for keeping these traditions alive
and for passing them on to our gen
eration," said Tribal member David
Lewis, manager of the Cultural
Resources Department.
"This is a very special day to
honor the fish that feed our fami
lies," said Tribal Council member
Toby McClary.
Grand Ronde singers Tribal
members Thorsgard, Marcus Gib
bons, Brian Krehbiel, Travis Mer
cier and Greg Leno, as well as
Chucky Fryberg (Tulalip and a
Tribal spouse) performed a bless
ing song for the event.
Help in preparing for the celebra
tion came from Tribal staff and
community members, including
Tribal Elder Kathy Provost and her
husband, Don Hendricks, Tribal
Elder Frank Simmons, Tribal Elder
Margaret Provost and her daugh
ter, Jackie Many Hides, Tribal
members Wendell Olson, Lisa
Archuleta, Perri McDaniel, Jose
phine Ingram and David Harrelson,
Tribal Elder Bob Tom and Tribal
Council staff member Lauri Smith,
as well as Cultural Resources and
Public Affairs staff.
"I thought it was a wonderful cel
ebration," said Tribal Elder Kathy
Provost, who is chair of the Tribal
Culture Committee. "It was attend
ed by a lot of people who can help
our Tribe get our rights back."
"I think it was time for it to
happen," said her husband, Don
Hendricks. "There's no end result,
though. This celebration is just go
ing to go on and on."
Among others in attendance
were Karen Quigley, director of
Oregon's Legislative Office of
Indian Affairs; Chip Lazenby, a
member of the Spirit Mountain
Community Fund Board of Trust
ees; Peter Booth, director of the
Willamette Heritage Center at the
Mill in Salem; Roy Elicker, direc
tor of the Oregon Department of
Fish and Wildlife; Chris Whea
ton, manager of the Northwest
regional office for ODFW; METRO
Councilor Carlotta Collette; and
representatives of Ecumenical
Ministries of Oregon and the Uni
versity of Portland.
"This is only the beginning of
the great things ahead for us and
our partners," said Siobhan Tay
lor, Public Affairs director for the
Tribe.
"To be a fisherman is a gift from
our Creator," said Kennedy. "(From
some fisherman) you hear about
the ones that got away, but our
fishermen always came back with
a good bounty for family and Tribe.
We want to give thanks for this gift
the Creator has given."
500ICrOR5ALE.
"The Kalapuyans:A sourcebook on the Indians of the Willamette Valley"
by Harold Mackey, Kh.U.
tSti
Name: .
Address:.
City:.
State:.
Zip:
. of books x S 1 5.95 each
Checks only.
total.
This book, through collabora
tion between the Cultural Re
sources Department, Mission
Mill Museum, an4 the Mackey
Family, has been re-release4
in a second edition with a new
cover, an updated bibliography
with more current an4 accurate
sources, new photographs, and
3 new afterward explaining the
Grand Ronde Tribal perspective.
$13.00 per book
Books may be purcbase4 (torn the
Tribe's Cultural Resources Department
located on the second floor of Tribal
Building 14- (Adult Education Build
ing) for $13. OO each. To have an order
mailed to you, please fill out this form
and include an additional $3.00 for
shipping cost per book.
Mail this form to:
CTGR Cultural Resources
The Kalapuans
9615 Grand Ronde Road
Grand Ronde, OR
97347
Grand Ronde
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