By the CUJ MISSION – Seven out of 10 students at Nixyaawii Community School graduate on time, according to the statewide 2019-2020 Report Card issued in November by the Oregon Department of Education. Pendleton High School graduates about eight of 10 Native students on time. Among other things, the report card indicates the percentage of Native American/Alaska Native students at…
Month: December 2020
WW Hatchery Construction on Schedule
By Wil Phinney of the CUJ SOUTH FORK WALLA WALLA RIVER – A new fish hatchery, which is expected to produce some 500,000 spring Chinook salmon smolts, is nearing completion on the South Fork Walla Walla River about 10 miles southeast of Milton-Freewater. It eventually will provide hatchery-raised fingerlings for the Walla Walla Basin. The Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla…
Brigham: 2020 almost over, but we must remain diligent
By Kat Brigham 2020 is almost over. It has been a year with mixed emotions. Frustration being one that many of us have felt because we are not able to see this invisible enemy to prevent its spread in the community. Our ancestors had to deal with this and now we are too. But we all know what to do:…
Watchman: Being grateful, even in the midst of chaos
We cautiously enter the holiday season, exhausted due to unprecedented challenges that we’ve all had to confront during the chaotic year of 2020, such as floods, fires, COVID, high unemployment, online education, daycare shortages, tele-work, and even toilet paper scarcity! We also lost some degree of personal liberties, such as to travel afar, to (fully) practice our venerated Tamanwit, and…
Phinney: Retiring after 24 years as CUJ editor
It’s appropriate that I’m writing this ‘swan song’ column on deadline. The CUJ is supposed to be out the door on its way to a press in Caldwell, Idaho, in a couple of hours so I’m penning this thing at the last minute. But I’ve always thrived on deadlines. I like the pressure of deadlines. And by now, after 46…
COVID IS HORRID: Tribal members share COVID-19 struggles
By Wil Phinney of the CUJ Frank and Nan Taylor suffer physically, emotionally For Frank Taylor, COVID-19 “got real” when nurses in the intensive care unit at St. Anthony Hospital suggested he might want to get his affairs in order. Frank is better, but for Nan Taylor, COVID-19 is still a nightmare. First it was a matter of life or…
Food pantry part of ‘Preparedness’
CTUIR will provide USDA commodity foods on Reservation By Wil Phinney of the CUJ MISSION – The Pandemic Preparedness Building under construction in Coyote Business Park South will include a food pantry to provide commodity foods – everything from fruit to nuts – to members of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR). About one-tenth of the 10,500…
Consolidation goal of buying fractionalized land
By the CUJ MISSION – The Confederated Tribes plan a new round of purchasing a dozen fractionalized interests on a dozen parcels, some of which have more than a dozen owners. The process can be long and cumbersome, especially if the parcels are in the probate process for owners who have died. The 12 parcels are 40-80 acres in size,…
Yellowhawk Tribal Health Center to begin COVID vaccinations this week
MISSION, OR – Yellowhawk Tribal Health Center will receive 300 COVID vaccinations this week. The clinic will begin administering the vaccine to healthcare staff, first responders and Yellowhawk patients over the age of 75 on Saturday and Sunday, December 19 and 20. “Yellowhawk staff are working hard to protect the CTUIR community and now they are starting to get healthcare…
Governor Kate Brown Issues Video Statement on COVID-19 Vaccine Arrival in Oregon
“I have said time and again that hope is on the way. Today, I can tell you that help is here.” (Salem, OR) — Governor Kate Brown issued a video statement today as the first doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine began arriving at Oregon hospitals. “In recent weeks, as COVID-19 vaccines reached the final stages of approval, I have…