By Wil Phinney of the CUJ MISSION – As temperatures dip below 36 degrees, homeless people on the Umatilla Indian Reservation will have a place to go again this winter when the Warming Station opens in November under new management. The Cmuytp’ama Warming Station will soon be open from 6 p.m. to 8 a.m. for up to seven adults, but…
Coyote Business Park unveils new logo, website
MISSION – Coyote Business Park, owned by the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR), has unveiled a redesigned logo and website as part of its rebranding efforts to promote the development opportunities of the business park. “The updated logo and website provide some new energy for Coyote Business Park,” said Bill Tovey, Director of the Department of Economic…
Wildhorse distributes food to employees
MISSION – Food was distributed each Tuesday in October and again Nov. 3 to nearly 250 employees of Wildhorse Resort & Casino, many of who were furloughed or laid off earlier this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Nine volunteers loaded into vehicles “box kits” of food in two shifts – one in the morning and one in the afternoon…
Peacekeepers on the Road
Yakama-based group delivers food, positive message By Wil Phinney of the CUJ MISSION – Quanah Spencer said he came to the Umatilla Indian Reservation, where he has several relatives, to “take away despair, anxiety, and give back hope” to the Native people struggling during the COVID-19 pandemic. Spencer, the Tribal Relations Director for BNSF Railroad Company, was one of more…
Paying respect to a Umatilla hero
There’s a sight to be seen that connects my tribe and yours. It’s one headstone among thousands at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia. Lucas White, an enrolled member of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, was laid to rest there in 2006 at age 28. I’m one of a handful of Colvilles I know to pay respects in-person.…
The freaks were out on Dogwood Lane
About five years ago Frank Lopez decided he’d create a little Halloween fun in the neighborhood and he’s been making his yard look sicker and grosser and scarier every year since. “Nobody was doing anything so I decided I’d decorate the yard and little by little … something to get the trick-or-treaters out here,” said Lopez, a Coral Aztec Indian…
ED recruitment team named
MISSION – In a tight 3-2 vote, the Board of Trustees for the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation moved forward with a number of measures toward hiring a new Executive Director. Ted Wright resigned that position in early November. The Executive Director Recruiting and Selection Committee will consist of Human Resources Director Kathryn Burke, Deputy Executive Director Charles…
COVID cases climb to 100
MISSION – The number of positive COVID-19 cases on the Umatilla Indian Reservation hit 100 as of Nov. 3, according to the Incident Command Team (ICT) for the Confederated Tribes. Meanwhile all of the staff at the Umatilla Tribal Fire Department who tested positive have completed their quarantine and have returned to work, according to information from the ICT. As…
Josephine Lavadour
Josephine Marie James Lavadour Ip-naa-sha-pii-laa-kut-stit’ Jan. 18, 1942 – Oct. 21, 2020 Parents were Stanilaus James and Eva Williams James. Maternal grandparents were McKinley Williams and Susie (Colalas) Williams. She grew up on the Umatilla Indian Reservation, spent many hours and days at “Granny’s” place along the Umatilla River. Attended St. Andrew’s Mission School and later Weston, Oregon high school.…
Tamastslikt featured in Travel Oregon live-stream broadcast
MISSION – Travel Oregon featured Pendleton and Tamastslikt Cultural Institute in an Oct. 28 live stream. “(We’re) live-streaming an Oregon experience,” Michelle Liberty of Attitude Marketing said, “as a way of generating interest so media writers might do a story or stories on visiting Oregon.” Attitude Marketing, based in Walla Walla, handles advertising for Tamastslikt Cultural Institute. Liberty is a…