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About Smoke signals. (Grand Ronde, Or.) 19??-current | View Entire Issue (April 1, 2023)
sNok signflz APRIL 1, 2023 7 Tribe commemorates opening Wapato Lake refuge By Danielle Harrison Smoke Signals assistant editor/staff writer GASTON 3 It took almost 10 years, but Wapato Lake Nation- al Wildlife Refuge has officially opened to the public. Approximately 200 people, in- cluding several Grand Ronde Trib- al members, attended a grand opening event held on Saturday, March 18, in Gaston to celebrate the milestone. The Tribe has been involved with the U.S. Fish & Wild- life Service, helping to reclaim the lake as a source for the traditional orst food it is named after. Wapato Lake became a desig- nated wildlife refuge in 2013, but has been slow in opening to the public due to the lake and the land surrounding it needing rehabilita- tion, including the restoration of the wetland, lake bed and native vegetation. In April 2022, Tribal members helped plant approximately 3,000 wapato bulbs at the lake. The lake9s first stewards were the Na- tive Atfalati, who win- tered around Wapato Lake because the root vegetable prospered in the area and played an important role in sustaining the Indigenous peoples. Later, they were remanded to the Grand Ronde Reservation after signing the Willamette Valley Trea- ty of 1855. The refuge opened to the public on Feb. 1, but the ofocial celebra- tion was postponed to avoid poor weather. It was held at Gaston Junior-Senior High School and included an open house, welcome ceremony and refuge tours. Tribal members Jesse Norton and Tynan George, Tribal Council mem- ber Jon A. George, Tribal Cultural Policy Analyst Greg Archuleta and Cultural Resources Manager David Harrelson drummed and sang a welcome song. Harrelson talked about how the Tualatin Kalapuya chose Wapato Lake for themselves and it was where they wanted to stay. <This is an important place,= Harrelson said. <Out of their entire homelands throughout the North Willamette Valley when they were going to be placed in one location, the place where they wanted to be at was surrounding Wapato Lake. There were villages all around Wapato Lake. This is where the Tualatin Kalapuya wanted their Photos by Dean Rhodes Tribal member Jesse Norton staffed an informational table about the Grand Ronde Tribe during the Wapato Lake National Wildlife Refuge open house held in Gaston on Saturday, March 18, as Gaston resident John Sissoyev examines some of the material. Tribal member Tynan George hugs Wapato Lake National Wildlife Refuge Manager Rebecca Gomez Chuck after gifting her a necklace during the refuge9s open house held in Gaston on Saturday, March 18. Tribal Council member Jon A. George, left, looks on. reservation to be, but in 1855 they signed a new treaty and were re- manded to the Grand Ronde Res- ervation.= Harrelson said that when the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service ap- proached the Tribe about a part- nership for the new refuge, they insisted on one thing: wapato. <We're still linked to this place today and I remember that I was fortunate enough to be a staff person when we heard word that Fish & Wildlife was going to start purchasing property and that they were looking to do this project,= he said. <The orst thing that we told them is you have to get wapato back. We are so grateful that we've been a part of this journey and pro- cess. I hope we see the beauty of our ancestors in this place.= WAPATO LAKE Tillamook Gaston 47 Yamhill 101 Wapato Lake 22 47 N Grand Ronde Gaston Map created by Samuel Briggs III AMERICAN INDIAN TEACHER PROGRAM Then, Jon A. George and his son, Tynan, gifted Wapato Lake National Wildlife Refuge Manag- er Rebecca Gomez Chuck with a beaded necklace in thanks for the partnership between the refuge and the Tribe. <This partnership is a link for us, and we give thanks for the part- nership and the friendship that we have today,= George said. Chuck thanked the Grand Ronde Tribe and other partners who con- tributed to the refuge becoming a reality. <I am humbled by all of the sup- port from all of you,= she said. <From our residents, neighbors and our partners, and all the organi- zations that are represented here today. As stewards of this place, U.S. Fish & Wildlife is committed to working with all of you. The ref- uge is a place where all people are welcome.= Hugh Morrison, the pacific re- gional director for U.S. Fish & Wildlife, said that Wapato Lake is the newest refuge in Oregon and also has the distinction of being open year-round for public use. <I'm thrilled to be here today to be part of the welcome ceremony and the open house, and to begin cele- brating Oregon's newest national wildlife refuge,= he said. <It's also an outstanding example of con- servation built around community engagement, where it builds around community, engages with conserva- tion and provides a broad range of beneots for a variety of interests. & Also, I'm so grateful to the original stewards of this place who have been here since time immemorial.= After the opening ceremony con- cluded, attendees perused an open house in the adjoining gym or visited the refuge. Booths at the open house included the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Tuala- tin Kalapuya First Foods, Tualatin Soil & Water District, Friends of the Refuge and others. In addition to drumming for the ceremony, Norton also helped staff the booth for Tualatin Kalapuya First Foods, where he applied temporary lamprey tattoos. He also helped design the artwork for giveaway reusable bags. <I enjoyed the connection and relationship building with my fellow artists that comes with the artwork process,= he said. <Also, the continued building of relationships with our orst foods like wapato and camas.= þ