By John Barkley of the Department of Natural Resources While the western United States is alit with mega forest fires exacerbated by extreme drought and record-setting high temperatures, water resources are precariously evaporating and dwindling, threatening our environment and economy. Over one million acres are on fire; some close to home in our aboriginal lands that can have devastating impacts…
Category: Opinion
Guest column: Remembering elite firefighters killed in the line of fire
This fire related story begins decades before I was born in August of 1963. During the late 1940s-60s, my grandfather, the late Walter Gene Pond, became a supervisor of fire crews for the BIA, after he served four tours in the Phillipines during World War II. Thereafter, my father Ron Pond picked up the fire torch to become the first…
Brigham: An update from the Chair of the Board of Trustees
First would like to let everyone know that the BOT wants to congratulate all of our students who graduated in 2021 including Head Start, 8th graders, high school and college/university students. 2020/2021 was a very difficult school year but when we saw you graduating you sure made us all very proud. On June 18th the BOT had lunch with about…
Willamette Falls is a Part of Our Heritage for Many Reasons
By The CTUIR Board of Trustees The Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR) has a long history of traditional use of Willamette Falls and the surrounding region, a history spanning from time immemorial to today. Willamette Falls was and is an inter-tribal fishery utilized by tribes throughout the Pacific Northwest, including but not limited to the CTUIR, the…
Message to Tribal members, ‘RE: Absentee Ballots’
Hello Tribal Members, we are entering another CTUIR election season. The Tribal Election is on November 9, 2021. All Board of Trustees Officer and At-Large positions and all General Council Officer positions will be on the ballot. Candidates seeking these positions must pick up nomination petitions from the Election Commission and submit those completed petitions by August 31, 2021. Tribal…
Coyote Stories: R.I.P. DMX
If you’re from an Indian reservation and were born between the 1970s and 90s, there’s a good chance DMX’s music played a big part in your life. Earl Simmons — also known as DMX — was one of the most prevalent storytellers of my generation. Tragically, he passed away on April 9 at age 50. Most of my 35 years…
Uniquely Umatilla: Prayer Power in the Rotunda
NPR and a iHeartRadio were silently and then loudly conflicting as I attempted to get a miniature sound bar working in my new office on March 22. As I resolved the issue that morning, I heard an overpowering sound in the distance. There was a bell, a few booming voices and a slow migration to a small circle in the…
CUJ Editor Cary Rosenbaum
Coyote Stories: New editor remembers Ross
Usually an editor’s first column feels like an overview of a resumé: Here’s who I am. Here’s what I’ve done. Here’s what I plan to do. Since landing the job, I can’t stop thinking about Ross. No, not the iconic discount store that provides wardrobe upgrades at a fraction of the cost. I’m talking about Ross Baulne, a friend and…
Boots Pond
Pond: Insight – the month where it would all begin
At the time it did not seem like the calm before the storm. Near the end of February last year, it seemed like the community was heading toward a year with much to look forward to. It was a recovery phase for those who lived by the river after the devastation the floods brought. Tribal members laid out plans to…
Chair of the CTUIR Board of Trustees
Brigham: Reflecting on COVID and the Snake River dams
I can remember the call on March 2, 2020 informing me that we had a COVID-19 case on the CTUIR. The first act of the Board of Trustees was to put the community’s health and safety as the priority. We temporarily closed Wildhorse Resort and Casino, the Education and Day Care facilities in order to allow all of them to…