18
S moke S ignals
MAY 15, 2017
Wink married high school sweetheart
ELDERS FEATURE
continued from front page
Council from September 2005
through September 2011, was
raised by his mother on his grand-
father’s dairy farm that was located
where the current Grand Ronde
Community Water Association
office is on Highway 18 near Spirit
Mountain Casino.
Wink’s mother was Clarinda
Maxine Quenelle and her parents
were Fabian Frank Quenelle and
Matilda “Tillie” Winslow.
Wink’s father was William Jo-
seph Soderberg Jr., who bestowed
the nickname on him.
“My dad, his sisters used to call
him that,” Wink says. “That was
his nickname. He didn’t care for it
that much as he got older, so when
I was born he stuck it on me. And
then later, when I was thinking of
getting rid of it, the kids wanted
to call me ‘Winky’ and I said ‘No,
you can’t do it.’ … So they started
calling my middle son Wink, but
he’s out of it now so I’m the only
one. Where I go, the name is going
with me.”
Wink’s brother, Arthur Francois
Soderberg, walked on in 2007 at
the age of 77.
“My mom and my brother and I
were always pretty close,” Wink
says.
Wink’s mother was a nurse and
a popular barber in Grand Ronde
when he was a child.
“My mother was very talented,”
Wink says. “She used to cut hair
on Saturdays and all the loggers
would come down. My brother and
I were very enterprising. We would
go down there with her in the morn-
ing and we would get in the line.
When she opened up there would
be a long line and we would sell
our spot in the line for a quarter.
A quarter was pretty good money.
The loggers thought that was pretty
good so they went along with it.”
Wink and Arthur were sent to
boarding school and they would see
their mother when she visited to cut
hair for the other school children.
Wink says it was his mother who
instilled in him a love for the Tribe
and its people, and when he was
told about Marvin Kimsey, Merle
Holmes, Margaret Provost, Dean
Mercier and Darrell Mercier work-
ing on getting the Tribe restored, he
knew he wanted to join the effort.
Wink says a discussion with
Kimsey on what needed to be ac-
complished prompted him to drive
from his Lake Oswego home with
his wife Kathy. Wink says they
attended every meeting the Tribe
held and sometimes they were
driving to Grand Ronde as much
as three times a week.
“I told him (Kimsey) about my
business experience and he said,
‘We will find something for you to
do,’ ” Wink says. “And that’s how
the whole thing started.”
Wink says the early days were
about raising money for the Tribe’s
future.
“We had to raise money for any-
thing we wanted,” Wink says. “Most
of that money was raised through
cake sales and raffles. I wanted to
atrist with a Seattle prac-
tice and Dave is the head
of an architecture firm.
Steven says he remem-
bers coming to Grand
Ronde with his father in
the early 1980s to attend
meetings at the Tribal
Cemetery office.
“I was in my early 20s,”
Steven says. “We would go
over to the cemetery to the
little office they had over
there. People would bring
snacks. I probably went
to three or four meetings.
Nobody was doing it for
any money.”
Steven says the tone of
the meetings was calm,
but there was excitement
Courtesy photos
among the people even
From left, Marvin Kimsey, Wink Soderberg, Merle Holmes and Dean Mercier work on
though they had nothing
Restoration efforts at St. Michael’s Catholic Church in Grand Ronde circa 1975.
yet.
“People were wondering
Soderberg, and his wife Ronnie
be involved in an Indian organiza-
if it could really be done and if
live next to Wink in Grand Mead-
tion. My mother kept track of all
restoring the Tribe was even pos-
ows and have five sons and three
of our stuff and I thought at least I
sible,” Steven says.
grandchildren. Steve, 59, works
can be involved.”
Wink says being part of the Tribe
at Spirit Mountain Casino in the
in the days before Restoration was
Finance Department.
Surrounded by family
a crucial time for the membership.
Wink’s son Gary lives in Alaska
Wink has been married to Kathy
He says people were motivated to
and has two daughters. Gary, 57,
for almost 61 years – they are high
see all their work toward Resto-
was a logger for 20 years and now
school sweethearts who met while
ration succeed.
strings lines for the local power
Wink was attending prep school in
“They were committed,” Wink
company.
Mount Angel and she was enrolled
says of the members working on
Wink’s son and namesake Wil-
at a nearby girls’ academy — and
Restoration. “There was one thing
liam Joseph “Bill” Soderberg III
they have three sons, nine grand-
that people thought about – you
is 55 and lives in Seattle with his
children and three great-grand-
could see it in their eyes when they
partner Dave and they have two
children.
were in those meetings, you could
adopted children. He is a psychi-
Wink’s son, Tribal Elder Steven
see the passion. I was always tired
going home, but I was kind of exu-
berant because that carries over.”
Wink says he enjoyed being part
of something so important.
A Navy veteran
Wink is a Navy veteran, having
served during the Korean War era
from 1951-54. He served on two
different ships: A refrigeration
ship that supplied Navy depots
and a survey ship that charted
little-known portions of the Carib-
bean Sea.
After working 26 years for the
Postal Service, Wink had several
businesses usually involving sales.
He spent time as a printing broker,
wholesale broker, Amway salesman
and he owned a Books Are Fun
business before returning to Grand
Ronde and eventually running for
Tribal Council.
“The post office was my landmark,
but I always had other businesses,”
Wink says. “I read a million books;
self-help books, business books and
I had a garage full. I would listen to
tapes all the time. I just learned.”
Wink says it was the book busi-
ness that eventually prompted him
to return to Grand Ronde after
living his adult life in Lake Oswe-
go. He and Steven displayed their
books in the Education Department
and at the health clinic, and at one
of the local schools.
Kathy says it was the couple’s
desire to be closer to Kimsey and
his late wife Michelle and Wink’s
desire to be closer to the Tribe that
brought them home to Grand Ronde
Wink and Kathy Soderberg are high school sweethearts and married in
Mount Angel on Oct. 20, 1956.
See ELDERS FEATURE
continued on page 19