Page 3 - September 2011

Barbecue Brings Families Together to Spend a Fun-Filled Evening 3 Celebrating with Our Elders By Nancy Romero, Elders Coordinator What a hot summers evening flled with for everyone to participate anywhere from Dustin Klatush kicked off the softball our families together for a wonderful event fun activities on Thursday, August 25 in the throwing darts, ring toss, toilet toss and game creating special memories for together to have fun and enjoy the nice parking lot in front of the Elders Building. knock’em over. They also provided an added everyone. Many Elders showed off their summer weather! The plan is to continue It was a unique opportunity to bring Elders, treat of popcorn, cotton candy and snow hitting skills while their runners ran and make this an annual event! adults, children, grandchildren and great- cones for all to enjoy. The snow cones were from base to base. Yes, the elders had a grand-children together to visit alongside a hit on the hot ninety-fve degree weather! convincing win, but everyone just went out Thanks to the staff and volunteers to each other. The watermelon and pie eating contest there and had fun. Laughing and cheering make this a successful event—THANK What started out to be a small BBQ for was something new that would bring loads together during the game flled with so YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! the Elders turned out to be fabulous! Elders of laughs, and it sure did! From Josephine much fun and memories. The Elders that Lucky Eagle, Scarlett Romero, were able to invite their own family! And Aldrich, Bones Gleason, Gloria Jones, Marie played baseball were: Jeanette Whiteclaw, ChristyBeth Dodge, Charlene Abrahamson, what a good time it was. Bird, Priscilla Jones, Jeanette Whiteclaw and Josephine Aldrich, Art Medina, Lynn Frances Pickernell, Cody Revay, Gail Hurst, The Lucky Eagle provided a barbecue many more that hopped into the watermelon Hohiesel, Levi Sanchez, Annie Jones, Tony Olney, Valerie Romero, Heather meal of hamburgers and hot dogs. Some of eating and pie eating contests. Boy talk Francine Joe, Evelyn Penn, April Reynolds Hoyle, Dustin Klatush, Dawn Boley. AND the Elders brought a side dish to fnish out about pie in your face!! Gloria Jones won and Cindy Andy—GO ELDERS!! ANYONE I FORGOT! To Ray Secena and the meal. It wasn’t your usual cooks either the watermelon eating contest and Francine As the evening wound down everyone his crew as always were there to help set with some of the managers serving the meal. Joe won the pie eating contest. Congrats and wore smiles on their faces as they spent a up. THANK YOU! YOU ALL ARE THE The Party Outftters games provided thanks for the laughs! wonderful evening with the Elders. Bringing BEST! Fun Activities at the Elders Barbecue Watermelon and Pie Eating Contests Elders competed Elder Evelyn against Penn shows adults and off her dance youth in the moves during watermelon the Cake Walk eating game. Following contest. It her are other was such Elders: Winona good clean Youckton, Bette fun! Not and Mike Tanner. fair what Elder Hector happened Canales to hands Elders, adults and youth were seen laughing, tosses behind your and cheering by the crowd during the pie the ball as back. eating contest. Talk about “Pie in your face!” volunteer Charlene Abrahamson Baseball Game Highlights cheers for Elder Cindy Andy him to win a does her Ichiro prize. stretch as she points her bat in Elder Linda preparation to hit Daniels puts on Elder Sally the ball. a hitting clinic Pikutark takes aim as her grandson in the baseball Chylar prepares toss trying to to start running Knock ‘em over to first base. game while her sister DeDe Devlin watches Youth Shayna Pickernell Elder Art Medina takes a gives his grand- mighty Youth Savanna Bird daughter a big huge swing during holds her hair back hug after she scores the Elders as she successfully a run in the baseball baseball bobs for an apple. game. game. Education Staff Profles: My name is William Thoms, tribal member theatre. My favorite workday ever required and recent hire of the K-12 program as an that I sit in the Hollywood hills with a world- Greetings! My name is Tracy 7. I will try almost any food Education & Intervention Specialist. I grew famous flm director, drinking Coca-Colas, up on the outskirts of Oakville and the rez, and discussing Bigfoots. Not a bad way to Bray and I am the Education once. I have tried liver, cow and have lived here in fts and spurts my make a living. and Development Director tongue, bull fries, (which are whole life. I didn’t spend a tremendous I spent several years at a music and flm for the Chehalis Tribe. I live cooked Rocky Mountain Oys- amount of time on the rez as a child, but academy that I founded with a few Native out here on the reservation ters) and smoked eel to name some of my fondest memories are of crazy friends whom I met in the flm industry. with my husband Kevin Bray, a few. days in the summer rec We would travel to different our six children and one program. Life has a funny way reservations throughout grandchild. 8. I cannot read music or sing of circling back on you; this California and Nevada teaching Most of you know me (or on key, but I am addicted to media literacy, performance, Rock Band and play it with my past summer was my frst as an think you do..ha ha) so to not band mates (Kev, Harry, and administrator with the summer and production. I always found bore you with a long paragraph Tracy Bray, Steph) almost every Friday program. My new position it very rewarding. When the about myself I have decided Education and night. has also landed me back in opportunity arose to join the instead to list TEN Weird but Development Director Oakville schools, where I will Education Department for True facts about Tracy…so 9. I read excessively. I read be assisting with attendance the tribe, I thought it would here goes: about 4 books a week on average. and truancy efforts. be great to lend my previous 1. Kevin and I moved to our home here on 10. My frst year of college I was a pre-med I left small-town living the William Thoms, experiences to my own the reservation in 1997, I was only 23 student because I wanted to be a Foren- frst chance I got, moving to community. I had never really Education & years old. sic Pathologist (think Quincy MD). My New England the week of my Intervention Specialist participated much in our community and have always 2. I grew up on a Hog Farm…yes I raised work-study job was to remove all of the eighteenth birthday. I attended felt like a bit of an outsider here. Since a prestigious college in Boston, receiving my pigs for a living. In fact, we raised our skin from a male cadaver. Bachelor’s Degree in Motion Picture Studies, taking this position I have met and re-met own vegetables (which meant harvest- which set me on my long, strange journey. a lot of old friends and relations. It’s been ing, canning and freezing in the fall) and I hope you enjoyed getting to know meat, baked bread and the whole works! me better and I would enjoy getting to I’ve lived everywhere from NYC to L.A. and enlightening to say the least. I look forward It was quite the adjustment for me when know you better too...my offce is in the have had many satisfying and unusual jobs. to helping our youth express themselves and I had to start shopping in a grocery Community Center in the Education portion, I’ve been paid to read scripts on the beach, fostering their talents in whatever forms they store. to be another person’s voice in national take. my email is tbray@chehalistribe.org and commercials, to train Australian parrots, to I enjoy studying social economics, design 3. When Kevin and I got married my my offce number is 360-709-1871. I look rock and roll, to digitally paste heads onto and innovation, cryptozoology, sequential children’s names were: Kaleb and Jor- forward to working with you and your other people’s bodies, to operate a carousel, art and the logic of images. I also spend time dan; and his children’s names were Kai- family for all of your educational needs. to dress sets on some “art house” flms, and creating sounds, renovating my house, and leen and Jordan. Both of our mother’s even to act like an Indian as part of a dinner racing Italian sports cars. names are Janice. All of our kids have middle names after one of their grand- parents. My name is Sam Heller. I am the Juvenile can make a difference within the community. the youth. I try to instill goals into them, so Probation Offcer for the tribe. My job as a Not just looking at small goals but things like that I do not have to see them on the other 4. It took me 15 years from when I gradu- probation offcer goes many routes. I am here using their education and experience within side of my page. If I do see them I still try ated High School to get my Masters to help youth that are in the criminal court the tribe to work and grow the community. and push them to degree. (I have a Master Degree in system as well as working side by side with I graduated from Oakville High School own up to their Public Administration.) the “at-risk” youth. The “at-risk” youth are and joined the Army Reserves. I am still in responsibilities those that need a push in the direction of how the reserves and have been for 8 years now. and give back. 5. In 1995 I walked onto the Bellevue important their education is to themselves College Women’s Basketball team and I have worked as a manager at a gas station, became the starting forward. as well as for the tribe. The focus is on their which gave me the skills with talking to attendance, academics, and extracurricular people. I worked as a sales representative 6. Recently when I dyed my hair black activities. This all helps the tribe as a whole another skill with talking to people. Sam Heller, all of the blond highlights I had turned due to the youth wanting to push for goals I enjoy working here at the tribe Juvenile blue! (I did not have blue hair on in their future, and showing them that they because I get a chance to interact with Probation Officer purpose!!)