Category: Top Story

By Micheal Rios, Tulalip News

Lushootseed, ancestral language of the modern day Tulalip Tribes, was the supreme language of the land seven generations ago. From the Salish Sea to the Cascade Mountains, from the Nisqually River to Vancouver Island, tribes of the plentiful Pacific Northwest shared a common tongue. Then arrived colonization. Followed by assimilation.

The shared language of the Coast Salish people nearly vanished after decades of brutal treatment inflicted upon generation after generation by the U.S. government and its various forms of enforcement police after the Treaty of Point Elliot was signed. ‘Kill the Indian, save the man’ was the name of the game, and the colonizers played it well.

Various laws and federally enforced policies, such as the Indian Removal Act (1830), Religious Crimes Code (1883) and General Allotment Act (1887), intentionally sought to to strip Native people of their culture and connection to place. It can be argued the most successful part of the assimilation process was boarding schools because the innocent children forced to attend couldn’t defend themselves. Their hair was cut to military standards, their traditional clothes replaced with church designed uniforms, and in horrific fashion they were helpless as they watched classmates beaten for speaking Lushootseed.

In the Declaration of Independence, we are referred to as merciless Indian savages. The use of merciless couldn’t have been more accurate as it foreshadowed a determination and sheer force of will to survive. Yes, colonization happened. Yes, assimilation was effective. However, it can’t be overlooked or understated that our ancestors survived. They were in fact merciless. If they weren’t then we wouldn’t exist today; part of a thriving tribal ecosystem consisting of 574 federally recognized tribes. 

Within that thriving tribal ecosystem exists the Tulalip Tribes’ Lushootseed department tasked with increasing awareness of Lushootseed within the community and beyond, as well as restoring the language to everyday use. This is a colossal undertaking, but one intending to make the ancestors proud. Proud that generational healing is taking place on the same grounds where missionaries and government officials inflicted so much harm. Proud that the same Lushootseed language they were punished, beaten and even jailed for having the audacity to speak while attending boarding school is spoken today by our own culture bearing educators and their spirited students. 

At the 25^th annual Lushootseed language camp, which took place from July 11 to July 22 at the Kenny Moses Building, over 120 Tulalip youth became an integral part of Lushootseed revival. Led by our own committed crew of language warriors and their support staff, the children participated in eight different daily activities: technology, weaving, art, play, songs, traditional teachings, games, and play. In doing so, Tulalip’s next generation embraced their culture while learning vital traditional teachings, stories, and, most importantly, the language of their ancestors.

The photos accompanying this article illustrate Tulalip pride and a strength of culture as only our beautiful children can elegantly emit while participating in the annual Lushootseed camp. However, it’s in the words and background stories of their fully self-aware educators where we can grasp what it takes to create such a Lushootseed-rich environment. Educators like Tulalip’s own Sarah Miller, Nik-ko-te “Nikki” Oldham, and their tech guru Dave Sienko have dedicated their livelihoods towards a dream of Lushootseed being spoke at work, in schools, and in the homes of every Tulalip family. 

Sarah Miller

“I became interested in Lushootseed when I was about 15-years-old, when I took a Lushootseed class taught by Toby Langen and Tony Hatch at Pilchuck High School. I had a great time learning and it’s one of my fondest memories of high school. I enjoyed speaking the language and wanted to do more with it, but at the time didn’t know what more I could do. So there was a many-year gap in my language learning. 

Nearly ten years ago, I decided to switch jobs from the newspaper to the language department. I took college level Lushootseed and started teaching preschool kids. It was fun teaching the kids. Eventually I worked my way up to teaching the college level Lushootseed classes, and in doing that, I began to understand the language even more. It is a passion for me. I take every opportunity I can to use the language and to teach it to others.

At this year’s 25^th annual Lushootseed camp, my station is Language. Our theme is seasons, so my partner Michelle Schmaus and I teach the kids about the various seasons using Lushootseed. After that, we have the kids decorate the season tree with leaves, snowflakes or flowers, depending on the season. I hope the kids take away from this experience how our ancestors used to live from season to season. I want them to understand that we used to live off the land and the land had everything we needed to survive from season to season.

What I look forward to most about camp is the kids developing a passion and interest in their ancestral tongue. I hope they walk away understanding more about what it means to be Indigenous. I look forward to them taking what they’ve learned home to their families and sharing it. This is how we keep our culture alive. 

Camp time is a wonderful but stressful time because we only get one week with the kids. It’s kind of a rush to teach the kids as much as we can and hope that some of it sticks. I hope the experience is nourishing to their spirits and they will be eager to learn more.

In the future, I’d love to incorporate families into the camp element so the parents can learn their language alongside their children. I think it would strengthen relationships and bonds and further our mission to keep the language alive.”

Nik-ko-te “Nikki” Oldham

“My background with language is a sort of unique because I grew up hearing both Lushootseed and Absentee Shawnee words and phrases spoken by my great grandma, grandparents, aunts, uncles and mom.

• What time is it? – ʔaləxʷ k̓ʷid
• Be quiet – x̌ʷubiləxʷ
• Sit down – gʷədil
• No – x̌ʷiʔ
• Drink – sqʷuʔqʷaʔ
• Knock it off – gʷəƛ̕əlad
• Dog – sqʷəbayʔ
• Cat – pišpiš
• Frog – waq̓waq̓
• Eagle – yəx̌ʷəlaʔ
• Deer – sqigʷəc
• Crap – sp̓əc

These were common words to me at a young age. I have always loved the language, but I became very inspired learning that my great grandma Marya was one of the last fluent speakers.

At this year’s camp, I am managing the weaving station with Jasmyne Diaz. We are teaching the kids to make wool headbands. I hope they learn to never give up, that it’s ok to mess up and start over because that’s the basis for all learning, and the more you practice, the better you get. I also want them to learn our tradition of giving away an item that you made for the first time.

I look forward to seeing everything that the kids create. It’s difficult to describe hearing them speak the language and understand new words, especially for first timers. It makes my heart so happy to see the kids do the closing ceremony play and hear them speak the language. Being a Lushootseed teacher isn’t always easy, but hearing the kids speak the language of those who came before them makes it all worth it.”

Dave Sienko

“I’m just a cog in the team, trying to increase the learning and use of dxʷləšucid. I started in the department 17 years ago when the need was creating resources beyond the archive recordings made by Thom Hess and Leon Metcalf.  We started making CDs and then video recordings of elders. Then we focused on creating our Tulalip Lushootseed website was the next thing we created. Trying to increase the number of language resources available to the community is a key need the department focuses on. 

The biggest challenges over the years has really been the rapidly changing technologies. It’s always a challenge to stay current.

At language camp, I always run the technology station. When I first started, we used older computers, then Nintendo DSi’s, and now we use Samsung tablets. The kids can use a variety of language apps, including the Lushootseed Alphabet app, Lushootseed Phrases, and Word Quizzes, as well as Our Table, a family orientated Language App. Teachers from different stations tell me what they are doing and I try to develop material that focuses on these key items.

Preserving and encouraging the use of the language is one of the most important things about the work we do, and it’s one of the reasons I took the job at Tulalip. I really enjoy working with the younger kids because of their high level of enthusiasm. There are always several camp participants that we witness their growth in the language surge over the week.

For the teachers and camp staff, this is also an opportunity to create or nurture bonds the kids that can last a lifetime.  Watching the youth develop that spark of excitement in speaking dxʷləšucid clearly brings so much joy to not just me, but our teachers and the families as well. When young tribal members grasp the language early, they can develop a happiness and strength from their cultural self-confidence that is truly awe-inspiring. I’m humbled to be a part of this.”

The Lushootseed department has so many resources available for our people who desire to learn their ancestral language beyond the annual youth camp. Their website tulaliplushootseed.com offers videos, common words and phrases, and all sorts of traditional stories told in Lushootseed with accompanying text to follow along. If you’re a more hands-on learner, then Lushootseed staff would remind you that they offer classes through NWIC and community outreach programs. 

Lastly, tribal members are always welcome to stop by the Lushootseed department and ask for hard copies of work books, CDs and various learning materials intended for beginners. It’s never too late to join in on the language warriors’ mission and make your ancestors proud by speaking the same words, in the same syllables they once did.

By Shaelyn Smead, Tulalip News

What started off as just any other day, on July 20, another stray dog was being posted on the Tulalip tribal members Facebook group. I’ve learned that I’ve grown accustom to seeing the frequently posted ‘found’ pets on the reservation. Whether it be someone’s family dog getting out of their possession, a cat traveling just a little too far, or the unfortunate situations of pets being dumped on the reservation by neglectful owners. 

The gentle giant we now call Lola, had first been posted about around 5:00 p.m., and it wasn’t until 11:00 p.m. at night, as I’m crawling into bed, that I see she had been posted about again. The time stamp between the two posts illustrated that she had been on the streets of Tulalip for at least 6 hours. With a high temperature of 82 degrees that day, it makes you wonder how long she was out wandering for, and how much longer she would made it out there on her own. 

Sweet Lola weighs almost 120 pounds, and is assumed to be a Mastiff of sorts. According to many Mastiff expert sites, Mastiffs also have a very low tolerance for hot and humid weather, and are prone to suffer from heat strokes and overheating. Even in situations of a causal stroll outside, their short snouts make it difficult for them to breathe. So in cases of increased temperatures, Mastiffs have twice the likeliness to overheat and die than a dog like a Labrador that have longer snouts.

After spending about 30-45 minutes searching for her, we found her. She unfortunately had no collar, or any leads as to who she might belong to.  She looked exhausted, and was panting heavily. She was not interested in any food, only the water that we had brought for her. She easily climbed into the kennel, already entrusting that we were there to help and were her new safe place.

The next few days consisted of us acclimating her into our home and with our other two dogs. We quickly went out to buy her a bed of her own, and a collar. We scanned her at two different shelter locations looking for a microchip, took her to the vet for a wellness check, and have posted abundantly on lost pet sites/groups/pages, and registered her as a ‘found’ pet at the Snohomish County animal shelter. In the midst of all the chaos, she quickly adjusted into our home and her personality began to unfold more and more every day. After all our efforts, no owners have come forward, making us ponder the question, was she dumped?

Unfortunately, the pandemic brought a multitude of problems for people in the world, but is also created an opportunity for all their pets. With everyone being forced to stay home, pets were receiving the most attention from their owners that they’ve ever had, and some families even took this as time to build their fur families. According to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA), with more than 23 million American households, nearly 1 in 5 nationwide adopted a pet during the pandemic. 

But since many government restrictions have since lifted, and people have started to go back to in-person work, pet owners are facing the harsh realities of the expenses, time, and effort that it takes to take care of a pet while working a full-time job. Now having to worry about paying for dog walkers and pet sitters to watch their pets while they’re at work, or on vacation. And with many dog boarding and daycares being waitlisted months out, many people are being forced to find other options like a friend or loved one that will take the time and effort to watch their pet. 

People are also realizing the difference in costs of food from an adolescent pet to an adult pet. Unfortunately, in a lot of cases, people get caught in the excitement of having a new pet, but lose sight of the many years of commitment and love that a pet requires, and because of this are left with pets they can no longer take care of. But as something to keep in mind about pets, wildlife photographer, writer, and wildlife preservationist Roger Caras said, “They might only be here a part of our lives, but to them you are their whole life”.

In any case, where there is a lost/found pet or someone is looking to forfeit their pet, the Tulalip Police Department is able to help. In these situations, Tribal members can call the Tulalip Police Department dispatch team and Animal Control will come pick up the dog and take it to the Everett Animal Shelter. The department also has a contract with the Everett Animal Shelter, so tribal members have direct access. If a tribal member can see that the dog is safe to go near, they can pick the dogs up themselves and take them to the Everett Animal Shelter and the shelter will bill the tribe and cover all the cost of turning in the pet. 

When asking Sgt. Chris Gobin from the Tulalip Police Department how often lost/found pets get reported he said, “At least half a dozen calls a week.” He continued to talk about how much of a safety issue this is, “There’s always a possible threat of dogs being vicious and biting someone who is out running, or kids who are playing. They can sometimes attack other people or other pets. But it’s also a safety issue for the dog. A lot of times dogs will run into the streets not seeing cars and get hit by them, or they risk themselves get attacked by another dog that’s running loose.”

Though there are no laws pertaining to pets consistently running loose, the tribe does have its own animal code surrounding issues like animal neglect.  Chris said, “Some cases it’s just about us helping educate someone on how much dogs should be getting fed, how much shelter they need, or how often they need to exercise. But if a tribal member has found a missing dog or a dog they feel like they can’t take care of, they can contact the police department and we can help surrender the dog to the animal shelter at no cost to them.”

When thinking about how often these situations happen out on the reservation, it makes you wonder, how can we prevent lost and found pets and any possible neglect? Some helpful resolutions include getting pets neutered/spayed, microchipped, and providing fencing for the pet. Spay and neuters are helpful because they stop the rapid reproduction of litters that are produced and people are not able to take care of. Microchips are helpful is the case of lost/found pets because its acts like an ID tag inside of a pet where the owner can be more easily found and contacted. And fencing created a physical barrier to lessen the likeliness that a pet can get outside of your property. 

Recently, in the efforts to help with these solutions, the Tribal Police Department has partnered with a non-profit called Pasado’s Safe Haven. Together, the Police Department and Pasado’s provide events for tribal members to bring their pets, receive free spay/neuters, and vaccines and microchipping for just a $10 copay. With four events already successfully held, the department plans to continue with more. 

What seems like easy solutions for such a reoccurring problem, may still be hard for some, but the Tulalip Police Department is here to help mitigate the needs of these animals. For anyone needing help with an animal, or dealing with a lost and found pet, please call the Tulalip Police Department dispatch at (360) 716 – 4608. 

And though after searching high and low for Lola’s owners and having no such luck, we are still continuing to keep her safe in our home, where she lives an active, loving, and fulfilled life.

Next party happening August 1

By Kalvin Valdillez, Tulalip News

If you happened to visit the Tulalip Administration Building on July 18, you may have heard the unmistakable sound of laughter, that only Indigenous aunties and cousins can seem to produce, erupting from the first-floor conference room. For some much-needed relief from the everyday grind, about thirty Tulalip tribal members and employees trickled into room 162 during their respective breaks throughout the day to see a few familiar faces, have a few laughs, and to cast their ballots for the 2022 political races. 

“I love Tulalip’s ballot parties,” exclaimed Theresa Sheldon, Tulalip tribal member and former Native American Political Director for the Democratic Party. “As soon as people get their ballots, they start asking where’s the ballot party and when is it? Tulalip constantly doing ballot parties is empowering our citizens and saying that your voice actually does matter, and that individual vote does count, as well as removing all the barriers to make it as easy as possible.”

During election season, Tulalip regularly holds ballot parties for not only their membership, but also their citizenship and employees. By taking something like voting, that may otherwise seem like a chore to some, the Tribe turns it into a social gathering where people can drop in, have a snack, and share a few ‘ayyyees’ with their relatives and community. 

Although it is a party, and good times are had all around, some very important work is also happening during the ballot parties. With laptops, tablets and printers at the ready, the crew working the event, which includes the Tribe’s Events Coordinator Malory Simpson and the Tribe’s Director of Treaty Rights and Government Affairs Ryan Miller, takes the time to assist individuals with voting registration and online voting. And if somebody requests additional information regarding the voting process or has general inquiries about the election, they are always willing to share their expertise. This thereby creates and increases well-informed votership at Tulalip. 

The hope is that in turn, those voters will tell their people about the next ballot party and the votership and Native voice will continue to amplify each election season. And that is important if we want to impact change and bring attention to some of the topics and issues that are taking place on tribal lands in both the Northwest region and throughout the nation. 

“Every election they say it’s the most important time to vote. But right now, when you see white nationalists running for office, it’s so important that we use our voice by voting,” said Theresa. 

In 2018, a NCAI voting movement called Native Vote came to Indian Country and toured reservations throughout the states. Their mission was to increase the Native votership overall by providing voting access to the Native American population, so that tribal members nationwide could easily place their votes. Many states do not allow voting by mail or online and require you to visit the nearest polling station during elections. And more often than not, those polling stations are located miles away from the reservation. Another issue that effects the Native votership are bogus laws stating that tribal-IDs are not an acceptable form of identification, or that you must have a permanent address and cannot list a P.O. Box in order to register to vote. Never mind the fact that most reservations utilize the post office box system as their primary option to send and receive mail, and that USPS or even companies like Amazon do not deliver to the residence of those tribal members because their home may not even have a physical address. 

The Native Vote movement, and recurring local ballot parties such as Tulalip’s, helps many Indigenous citizens by assisting them through the registration process during each of their gatherings. According to the most recent study that the Native Vote included in their 2018 brochure, 34% of the Native population who were eligible to vote at the time, were not registered. Of course, that number may have changed throughout the past four years but the problem of voter suppression in Native America still remains a problem. 

With the knowledge that the Native vote has one of the lowest turnouts in mind, the ballot party team offers to check to see if the people who attend the party are currently registered to vote. If an individual is not registered, the crew makes sure to walk them through that process. Many people arrive with their ballots already filled out and sealed, and after the event, the crew turns the ballots in for those voters. If somebody is registered to vote and they do not have their ballot on-hand or did not receive their ballot at all, the ballot party crew offers them a laptop or a tablet so they can log on and place their vote through the wonders of technology.  

Ryan stated, “We want to get people registered to vote, we’re not here to tell people how to vote. They can vote however they want. But a big part of our push is that the Tribe wants not just it’s members, but it’s employees and all the people in our community to exercise their right to vote. We’re lucky that we live in a state where you can register to vote in multiple different ways – you can register in person at most government buildings, you can register by mail, you can also register online as long as you have a driver’s license. 

“There was a law passed a couple years ago, that said that you’re supposed to be able to register to vote online with a tribal-ID. But there’s been some problems with implementation. So, we’re in the process with the Secretary of State, whose position is up for election right now, to make that a reality so that our tribal members who don’t have driver’s licenses can still register to vote online without having to go do it in person or do it by mail, which takes more time and that usually means that people are less likely to do it. All we’re trying to do is just make voting as accessible as possible and give people as much information as we can so they can make educated decisions for themselves.”

As we covered a few paragraphs ago, Native American voter suppression is an obstacle that we are trying to get through, and since that 2018 study it would appear that we are beginning to show up when it matters most. Over the past couple years, we have seen several Indigenous leaders rise to positions where they can affect change on a congressional level and our voice can be heard on issues that are important to our people such as defending tribal sovereignty, protecting Mother Earth, and ensuring that all the MMIWP victims and survivors receive justice. US Secretary of Interior Deb Haaland recently vowed to uncover all the unmarked graves of the children from the boarding school era, and she also created a Missing and Murdered Unit within the BIA to help find and bring home all of our missing relatives. Ryan shared that the Native vote actually played a big role in the last presidential election.

He said, “There’s a lot of really recent evidence that shows that the Native vote is super important, including the presidential election in 2020. The swing states that went for Biden and made sure that Trump wasn’t going to be reelected, were really won by the Native communities and the Black communities in those states. Like Arizona for example, there was a huge Native population there. And if you look at the numbers, they voted overwhelmingly for Joe Biden. Georgia – same thing, the Black and Native population there, and in Michigan, Minnesota, tons and tons of Native people over there, and they made a huge difference. Those are the kinds of examples that show us how much power we actually have.”

Here at home, if the Native vote shows out at Tulalip like it has within other Indigenous territories, we have a chance to send in another one of our heavy hitters to the political equivalent of the big leagues. If you live within the 38^th District, which encompasses the Tulalip reservation as well as parts of Everett and Marysville, you may recognize a name on this year’s ballot. Tulalip tribal member, treaty defender and environmental icon, Daryl Williams, is running for Washington State representative. Daryl has decades of experience under his belt, working in the Tulalip Natural Resource’s Treaty Rights Office for over forty years. In that position, he was instrumental in making sure that bill proposals did not violate treaty rights before they hit the senate floor. Daryl’s vast amount of knowledge and hands-on experience makes him the perfect candidate to follow the blueprint which John McCoy left behind upon his recent retirement. 

“On a local level, the tribal members who live in the 38th (district) have an opportunity this year to vote for a Tulalip tribal member to represent them in the state legislature,” explained Ryan. “That is something that we had for many years in John McCoy, first as our representative and then as our State Senator. I think we took for granted having someone there who can speak about tribal values and represent us in that way. We now have an opportunity to have that again. John retired a few years ago, and we haven’t really had that in the state legislature since.”

He continued, “Representation matters. Not just for getting the policies done that help protect tribal sovereignty and tribal treaty rights, and all the social services that the tribes provide, but also for our youth to look and see that this is something that they can do in the future. When I was a kid, we never saw a Native person elected to anything. It never even crossed my mind that that was a possibility. And then, of course, John gets elected, and I think that was the first time, for a lot of Native kids, that they saw somebody who looked like them and who was elected to something. I think there’s so many reasons why that representation is important, and we have to take those opportunities where we can.”

The Tulalip Tribes will be hosting one more ballot party on August 1^st, the day before the primary election, from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. If you are planning to vote online, be sure to bring your driver’s license to the party. And as always, there will be some fun door prizes and a raffle for those who simply drop by and say hi. So be sure to visit Malory and Ryan in Admin Room 162 and get your vote on.

After delivering her ballot, Theresa shared, “It was great to be able to vote for Daryl Williams today. It’s beautiful to be able to be a part of that and to support him. And hopefully seeing a candidate who’s representing Tulalip and running for state legislature, inspires everyone to turnout, fill out their ballots, turn in their votes, and get out there and support him.”

By Kalvin Valdillez, Tulalip News

“The salmon is an important part of our upbringing, we’re people who relate to the water,” expressed Tulalip elder, William Williams. “This distribution is helpful to me, my family, to everybody. A good way for all of us to get in touch with each other, by getting a hold of, and sharing, this salmon.”

Nearly one month ago, Tulalip tribal members engaged in a ceremony to honor the yubəč, the king salmon. This important traditional event is held at the start of every fishing season to thank the salmon for providing sustenance to the people and to bless the tribal fishermen. Salmon are a key element to the Salishan diet and have been for generations, stretching back to the start of time. It’s no wonder the Tulalip people hold the delectable and nutritious species in such high regard. 

“It’s what we lived-off of,” said tribal member, Melissa Gobin. “It’s coming back to our original diet and helping our tribal fishermen at the same time.”

In an effort to provide traditional foods for the people and connect the community to the tribe’s way of life, Tulalip purchased hundreds of pounds of king salmon for its membership. And to make a wonderful gesture even greater, the Tribe bought the salmon directly from the tribal fishermen. 

Tribal members over the age of 18 were eligible to obtain one whole salmon each. Distribution days were held on June 30^th, and July 5^th and 7^th from 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. Elders were offered preference and were also encouraged to go to the front of the line to receive their salmon. 

“This is something the Tribe has been wanting to do for a while,” explained Tulalip’s Natural and Cultural Resources Executive Director, Jason Gobin. “We were able to get some funds this year. We’ve done smaller distributions in the past, of hatchery surplus fish and whatnot, but this is the first big distribution. Hopefully we’ll be able to continue this on a yearly basis for the membership.”

The salmon were distributed to Tulalip tribal members at the parking lot of the local marina. A steady line of cars trickled-in throughout the cloudy, yet warm, summer afternoon of July 5^th. The people happily exchanged good-humored banter with the crew handing out the fish and conversed about the recent holiday. The salmon were in large crates of ice, and one-by-one they were scooped out and placed in strong plastic bags for the people to transport to their homes with the least mess possible.

Numerous families traveled to the marina together and picked up their fish in bulk, and many people got out of their vehicles to check out all the salmon in the crates.

“I came out to get fish to share with my mom, that way she can eat some healthy fish. I think it’s really awesome and cool that the Tribe is giving back,” exclaimed Joseph Hatch as he waited patiently in a line of cars, tribal-ID ready in-hand. 

While getting his personal cooler out of the back of his pick-up, Tribal member Alan Cortez shared, “I used to work at the hatchery and bring salmon home all the time. Now that I’m retired, it’s a blessing to get this. It’s an important part of our diet, it’s just like me going out hunting.”

The salmon distribution is a great way to feed the community at large and in-turn is creating an opportunity for families to pass down traditional teachings, in regards to preparing the salmon for consumption. 

“My husband seasons and broils it, we just love salmon!,” said Sonia Sohappy. “I believe it’s more healthy for you than the stuff we usually eat, and I’m trying to get my family to eat more healthy, so it helps us out. Win-win.”

After picking-up her salmon, Katie L. Jones stated that she knew exactly what she was going to do with her share of the distribution. “I am going to teach my boys, and other people who want to learn, how to can. I learned through Gayle Jones. We’re going to can salmon and give to people who need it, and keep some for ourselves. This helps feed our Indian and gives us traditional foods that we can enjoy at home.”

Jason explained that the fish distro is a good opportunity for non-fishing families to indulge in an integral piece of their traditional diet, as salmon may be a little more challenging to acquire for those who don’t have the ability, means, or necessary teachings to go out on the water. 

“I’m fortunate enough to go out and catch my own. But this distribution, this salmon we’ve been able to get, is important to the community because it brings traditional foods to the table,” he said. “Especially for the elders who don’t have family members who are fishing. It’s important to be able to share with the community and share with the families. The salmon is not just for that one person, they’re taking that home and they’re going to share with their entire family. This really brings the community together – sharing in that salmon as they eat it, smoke it, use it, and do whatever they’re going to do with it.”

As Jason stated, this is the first major salmon distribution and it is something that the Tribe hopes to continue going forward. 

When asked how he felt after receiving his salmon, Tulalip elder Marvin Jones simply put, “It feels real good anytime that you get a fish, because this is such an important part of our culture.” 

By Kalvin Valdillez, Tulalip News

“It is that time of year again,” exclaimed a young teen, wearing a huge grin as he greeted his group of friends at the gravel lot behind the Tulalip Resort Casino. As he finished exchanging high-fives and daps with his peers, a loud boom rocked the entire area. “Whoo! That’s what I’m talking about. You guys ready?” One of his friends chuckled and replied, “we were just waiting on you!” And with that, the group of four young adults hurried down a row of stands, looking to find the best deal on their first purchase of the holiday season.

The Northwest pyrotechnic capital known as Boom City officially opened on June 22^nd this year, to the excitement of many firework enthusiasts, die-hard American patriots, and business-minded tribal members alike. 

If you grew up locally, then Boom City is practically synonymous with summertime fun. Each summer, for nearly the past fifty years, Boom City has been the go-to place for people to purchase their favorite fireworks in the Snohomish County region. And of course, thanks to tribal sovereignty, Boom City vendors offer many fireworks that are not available to the public at stands located off reservation. 

By permitting their membership the right to buy and sell federally legal fireworks at Boom City, Tulalip has provided an opportunity for tribal entrepreneurs to earn another source of income for their families. And not to mention, gain some experience in commerce and business ownership. 

Close to one-hundred stands are currently open for business at Boom City this year. The stand owners have innumerable types of fireworks available for purchase including cakes, firecrackers, bottle rockets, sparklers, Roman candles, fountains, smoke bombs, pop-its and many more, sure to make your Independence Day a blast. 

This year, we asked a handful of stand owners about the theme behind their vibrant and creatively designed stands.

“My theme is ‘Light It Up’, which means a few things,” explained Jennifer Ashman, who is also the manager of Tulalip Remedy. “I love lighting fireworks and I sell cannabis. I had Dalton Shay do my art, he’s a tribal member and he also did the art at the [Remedy] store and that’s how I knew his work. I love it. I had all these cool ideas and he brought them to life.”

Eli Ruiz, who helps run a jungle-themed stand with his wife Danielle, said, “Our stand was painted by an artist named Lou. He did it back in 2018. He painted it twice. The first time we liked it, but it was called Wildthing. I wanted to change it because I felt that it was not just about the stand, I wanted it to also be about our products which are Wildthings. Our zebra-print is our signature, and we are the very first ones with the zebra-striped countertop.”

One stand owner, William Moses, proudly showed-off the back of his stand. Painted at the center is a Native man, donning traditional regalia. The most prominent article he is wearing is a headdress made of feathers. “It really is a good name,” he expressed. “War Bonnet Fireworks. It is famous, I think it’s cool and it is a part of our tradition. One of my buddies painted it, I probably had it for about seven or eight years now. It looks real good!”

Near the center of Boom City, is a red stand with a cupid theme and a downward slanted roof. When asked about her stand, Sylvanna Brinson shared, “I’m the only backward stand with a metal roof. My younger brother had some crazy wild idea that it would be better for me because I’m short. I still have to use a ladder on the inside, but I can maneuver my own shelves and I know where everything goes.” 

Sylvanna also has five words painted on the front of her stand: Crazy, Unsafe, Psychotic, Insane and Dangerous. Each word represents a member of her family. “When I was younger, my mom Theresa had a firework stand that was called Unsafe and Insane. One day, when we were painting this stand, I realized I didn’t have a name. I said, well I’m crazy, everyone calls me crazy. My brother was there, and he said he was psychotic. And dangerous is Sophia because she is young. Crazy, unsafe, psychotic, insane and dangerous – I always say those [words] describe the fireworks, not people. But really, that’s how we came up with our name.”

Many of the stand owners at Boom City have a unique and entertaining story behind the artwork, name, and theme of their stands. And hearing those stories and seeing all the hard work that goes into decorating the stands, is almost as much fun as sticking a punk to a wick and running a safe distance before your fireworks burst into the sky – almost (wink emoji)!

Boom City also offers a designated area so you, your family and friends can enjoy those fireworks safely and legally. Several food vendors are stationed at Boom City as well, serving up treats such as kettle corn, Hawaiian shaved ice, frybread and tacos! 

Boom City is open daily, 8:00 a.m. – Midnight, until July 4^th.