Fire Crews spray foam to smother accelerants. Andrew Gobin/Tulalip News
By Andrew Gobin, Tulalip News
Tulalip – Tulalip Bay, Stanwood, Getchell, and North County fire departments responded to a garage fire at Sunny Shores around 12:30 this afternoon. Firecrews arrived to find the structure fully engulfed in flames.
With limited water, fire crews were able to extinguish the fire, but not until the structure was almost completely gone. Andrew Gobin/Tulalip News
“There was nothing left of the roof, the walls were almost completely gone, the metal door had melted down, and the car was gone,” said Tulalip Bay Fire Chief Teri Dodge.
Water tenders brought water down the one-lane access road, because there are no hydrants in the area. After extinguishing the fire, crews sprayed foam on the scorched remains to prevent accelerants from reigniting the blaze.
Dodge explained, “Garage fires tend to burn very quickly. Once the fire breaches the roof or the walls, the oxygen feeds it. Most garages have accelerants inside as well, which make garage fires that much more devastating.”
In addition to limited access and limited water, there was a downed power line that crews had to work around until Snohomish County PUD was able to cut power to the line.
The garage burned completely to the ground, leaving only the floor and what remained of the vehicle inside.
Firemen test the burnt out floor to reach the remains of the vehicle. Andrew Gobin/Tulalip news
The fire was discovered by homeowner Heidi Atterson who then called 911. Her husband, Steve Atterson, arrived on scene shortly there after. The cause of the fire has yet to be determined, though it is suspected to have began as an electrical fire.
Ruins of garage fire caked with extinguishing foam. Andrew Gobin/Tulalip News
Andrew Gobin is a reporter with the See-Yaht-Sub, a publication of the Tulalip Tribes Communications Department. Email: agobin@tulaliptribes-nsn.gov Phone: (360) 716.4188
Tulalip tribal elder and Elders Panel member William Shelton, now deceased, explains how the diversion program works to the Indian Law & Order Commission in their visit to Tulalip Tribal Court in September 2011. Photo/ Brandi N. Montreuil, Tulalip News
By Brandi N. Montreuil, Tulalip News
TULALIP, WA – The 2012 Annual Tulalip Tribal Court Report states 415 criminal cases were heard in court. Included in that 415, are 24 newly filed criminal alcohol charges and 69 disposed, meaning judicial proceeding have ended or a case that has been resolved. Also counted in that 415, are 76 newly filed criminal drug cases and 126 disposed. Helping to tackle these numbers is a group of volunteer Tulalip elders, who are teaching offenders accountability in a traditional way, and saving the court thousands of dollars.
In it’s sixth year, Tulalip Tribal Court’s Elders Panel is a diversion program that uses traditional Tulalip culture and the wisdom and experiences of Tulalip elders to reach first-time offenders and eliminate re-offending.
The panel meets every two weeks with non-violent first-time offenders, ages 18-42, who have been charged with minor criminal offenses such as possession of alcohol or marijuana, or criminal mischief. Currently the panel consists of Donald Hatch Jr., Lee Topash , Dale Jones, Arthur Hank Williams Sr., Eleanor M. Nielson, and Katherine M. Monger.
Enrollment in the program is voluntary but comes with a large incentive to complete it. Defendants receive deferred prosecutions on their criminal charges for the length of their enrollment in the program, usually a year. Upon successful completion of the program, charges are dismissed. This is the one of the largest incentives a diversion program can offer a first-time offender; it is a chance to rebuild a life.
“If many of these offenders went through the regular process they would be in jail,” said Topash about the opportunity the program provides for participants. “We don’t cut them any slack. The one thing we encounter is attitude, especially with the young folks, they try and get things by us, but they quickly realize what it’s all about.”
The panel requires defendants to actively engage in their community and culture to learn the impact their actions create, not just in their life, but the lives of their family members and community members. Requirements include regular appearances before the panel, writing letters of apology, community service, substance abuse treatment, curfews, UA’s, anger management classes, mental health evaluations, and no new violations. Cultural participation can include family research and traditional spiritual activities.
“Coming here, has been the best thing for me,” said a current client. “If I hadn’t come here I would have lost my kids. I struggled at the beginning and I slacked off. I didn’t take it seriously and didn’t finish all my community service hours and I had to go to jail for a few days. Listening to the girls in jail it made me think about the opportunity I have in this program. I didn’t want to be in there. This program has changed me a lot and I am grateful, because this is the longest that I have been clean and sober in a long time.”
According to court estimates, the panel typically handles 10 cases a year, saving the court an average of $20,000 a year in judicial and probation time, including jail cost, which can run the Tribe $67.92 a day for each incarcerated tribal members, sentenced through Tulalip Tribal Court, and a $97 booking fee.
“There are costs that we cannot measure in terms of costs to society when young offenders are before Elders Panel and follow the sanctions sentenced by Elders Panel, and are not committing any new crimes,” said Tulalip Tribal Court Director, Wendy Church.
“We like to play the role of the grandfather and grandmother because we want to give advice that a grandfather or grandmother would give,” said Hatch about the cultural approach portion of the program.
Many of the positive changes in a defendant’s behavior early on in the process can be attributed to regular meetings. In small communities such as tribal communities, it is not unusual for participants to be familiar with elders on the panel. This eliminates the clinical judicial feel experienced in typical judicial diversion programs. This can be considered the program’s greatest keys to success.
“Indian people traditionally do not have good feelings about court systems,” explained Tulalip chairman, Mel Sheldon Jr. “This program shows the young people that we all make mistakes but here are ways to recover from them.”
Although some offenders will re-offend, Elders Panel sees an 87 percent success rate in participants.
“The loss of this program would be huge in this community,” said Hatch. “We have saved the Tribe close to a million dollars over the past six years. If we were not here a lot of our children would be in the court system and it would increase the cost to the court and to the Tribe. We would also lose all the good work through community service that helps our community, but more importantly we would lose helping our people.”
In 2009, the Tulalip Tribal Court’s Elders Panel was recognized by the Washington State Bar Association (WSBA) for the Local Hero’s Award. The WSBA Board of Governors searches statewide for noteworthy programs that have made substantial contributions to their communities, this recognition is bestowed upon non-lawyers.
For more information about the Elders Panel or to volunteer to be on the panel, please contact Tulalip Tribal Court at 360-716-4773.
Brandi N. Montreuil: 360-913-5402; bmontreuil@tulaliptribes-nsn.gov
Tulalip, Washington — Tulalip Resort Casino invites fans to rock to the pulsating sounds of Queen and Boston, on Sunday, May 25. Starting at 8:00pm in the Orca Ballroom, the Resort will host “Rock the Empire,” a tribute style concert with classic music from two of the greatest bands of the 70’s and 80’s. Groupies can sway to the lively beats while sipping on cocktails from the no-host bar.
Queen Nation – Queen Tribute Band
Queen Nation was formed in 2004, and consists of band members: Joe Retta or Gregory Finsley on vocals and keyboards as Freddie Mercury; Mike McManus on guitar as Brian May; Pete Burke on drums as Roger Taylor; and Parker Combs on bass as John Deacon. The group’s mission is to carry on the musical torch and pay homage to the golden age of vintage Queen concerts. Music lovers can jam to ultimate Queen songs such as “Cold Stone Crazy,” “Tie Your Mother Down,” “Somebody to Love,” “Crazy Little Thing Called Love,” and more.
Third Stage – Boston Tribute Band
Borrowed Time hails from Seattle and will make their debut as “Third Stage” at Tulalip. They play the greatest hits from the band Boston, filling the show with great renditions and the enthusiasm that is reflective of the band’s personalities. Not a look alike act, but a rocking and melodic band that faithfully recreates the magic of Boston, concert goers will enjoy classics like “A Man I’ll Never Be,” “Something About You,” “Smokin,” and many more. Band members and the characters they play are Arny Bailey as Brad Delp on vocals; Aaron Cheney as guitar wizard Tom Scholz; Bryan Woolley as Fran Sheehan on bass; David Shore on keyboards; Dave Farrell as guitarist Barry Goudreau; and Marc Montagnino as Sib Hashian on drums.
This event is limited to those 21 and over. Tickets go on sale March 28th at the Resort’s Rewards Club desk or Ticketmaster. They are priced at $15 per person in advance or $25 per person at the door.
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About Tulalip Resort Casino
Award winning Tulalip Resort Casino is the most distinctive gaming, dining, meeting, entertainment and shopping destination in Washington State. The AAA Four Diamond resort’s world class amenities have ensured its place on the Condé Nast Traveler Gold and Traveler Top 100 Resorts lists, as well as Preferred Hotel and Resorts membership. The property includes 192,000 square feet of gaming excitement; a luxury hotel featuring 370 guest rooms and suites; 30,000 square feet of premier meeting, convention and wedding space; the full-service T Spa; and 7 dining venues, including the AAA Four Diamond Tulalip Bay Restaurant. It also showcases the intimate Canoes Cabaret and a 3,000-seat amphitheater. Nearby, find the Hibulb Cultural Center and Natural History Preserve, Cabela’s; and Seattle Premium Outlets, featuring more than 110 name brand retail discount shops. The Resort Casino is conveniently located between Seattle and Vancouver, B.C. just off Interstate-5 at Exit 200. It is an enterprise of the Tulalip Tribes. For reservations please call (866) 716-7162.
TULALIP – Gardeners in training took part in a transplanting extravaganza on Sunday, March 16, at the Hibulb Cultural Center.
A new partnership between the Tulalip Tribes and the Washington State University Snohomish County Master Gardeners Foundation is making it possible for participants to learn the nit and grit of greenhouse gardening.
During Sunday’s event, 40 gardeners of all ages transplanted 75 flats of broccoli, kale, and chard seedlings into larger pots. These seedlings will be part of a crop grown to aid local food banks, such as Tulalip Food Bank, and other Snohomish County Master Gardener food bank gardens.
Tulalip tribal member Gisselo Andrade Jr., helps transplant broccoli that will be harvested for the Tulalip Food Bank during the Greenhouse Gardening class hosted by the Tulalip Tribes and Washington State University Snohomish County Master Gardeners Foundation on March 16, 2014. Photo/ Richelle Taylor
“We all got to know each other more and shared our passion and enthusiasm for gardening,” said Veronica Leahy, Diabetes Educator at the Tulalip Karen I. Fryberg Health Clinic. The gardens began with the clinic’s diabetes management care and prevention education as the ‘Gardening Together as Families’ program. The program expanded through the Rediscovery Program at the Hibulb Cultural Center to incorporate traditional plants and traditional foods
“Even in the rain we were warm and comfortable inside the greenhouse, enjoying each other’s company,” said Leahy.
An additional class was held on Wednesday, March 19, that focused on proper transplanting, water, and sanitization techniques, along with how to seed and label plants, and protecting young plants as they grow.
For more information on ‘Gardening Together as Families’ program at the Hibulb Cultural Center, please contact Veronica Leahy at 360-716-5642 or vleahy@tulaliptribes-nsn.gov.
Brandi N. Montreuil: 360-913-5402; bmontreuil@tulaliptribes-nsn.gov
Photo/ Richelle Taylor
Seventy-five flats of broccoli, kale, and chard seedling were transplanted during the Greenhouse Gardening class hosted by the Tulalip Tribes and the Washington State University Snohomish County Master Gardeners Foundation on March 16, 2014 at the Hibulb Cultural Center. Photo/ Richelle Taylor
Inez Bill discusses how to gather Nettle. Photo: Francesca Hillery
By Andrew Gobin, photos by Francesca Hillery
The nuisance in the back yard known for its annoying sting and pungent earthy smell, nettle is not the most desirable flora of the Pacific Northwest. For northwest tribes, however, nettle is a cultural and traditional staple. The Rediscovery Program at the Hibulb Cultural Center began their spring harvest of nettle sprouts March 12th, working to reintroduce the use of nettle into the community and continuing the revitalization of our culture.
Inez Bill, who has spent the last ten years learning about how to use nettle, harvested nettle sprouts on the bluff above Arcadia on the Tulalip Reservation. Derek Houle, who has been involved with the culture program for most of his life, and Lauw-Ya Spencer, who became involved in 2012 through the summer youth program, joined Bill as they gathered the sprouts to use in the rediscovery program. They then process the nettle sprouts for use in foods and preserve some nettle for continued use throughout the year.
“Nettle was a staple for our people for hundreds of years,” explained Bill, “It has tremendous health benefits. For food you have to harvest the sprouts in the spring, or in the summer you can harvest the tops of the nettle, the stock gets too hard. Here at the museum we have expanded the uses. We make nettle tea and different flavored lemonades with nettle tea. We also have created Hibulb Bread, which is like buckskin bread, only more healthy and nutritional.”
Bill and her husband, the late Hank Gobin, learned to harvest and prepare nettle and other traditional flora from Valerie Segrest, Elise Krohn, and the late Bruce Miller, whose dedicated themselves to cultural revitalization and educating about traditional flora. Bringing that knowledge to the rediscovery program, Bill continues their work in revitalizing traditional plant use. As a girl, Bill’s elders instilled in her the respect and reverence for these traditional plants as foods and as medicines and she hands down those teachings throughout the rediscovery program. She also gets creative, incorporating nettle into many recipes.
“The Hibulb bread is diabetic friendly. It is made with ground almond meal instead of flour, and without salt or sugar. Ground nettle is added, but we had to play around with how much was the right amount.” said Bill.
A true superfood, nettle is packed with nutrients. It can be ground up and added to almost any dish for a healthy boost. The cultural center makes a seasoning, ground nettle for recipe ingredients, blanched and frozen nettle for later in the year, nettle stock, nesto (nettle pesto), and so much more. As a cultural staple, beyond food, nettle was traditionally made into twine and nets, it is one of the stronger natural twines.
To learn more about the rediscovery program, or to participate in activities, contact Inez Bill at the Hibulb Cultural Center at (360) 716-2638.
Sidebar:
Nutrients of nettle mg/100g (About 1 Cup)
Calcium 2900
Magnesium 860
Iron 41.8
Potassium 1750
Vitamin A 18,700 AU
Vitamin C 83
Thiamine .54
Riboflavin .43
Niacin 5.2
Chromium 3.9
Cobalt 13.2
Phosphorus 447
Zinc 4.7
Manganese 860
Selenium 2.2
Sodium 4.9
Protein 16.5%
Andrew Gobin is a reporter with the See-Yaht-Sub, a publication of the Tulalip Tribes Communications Department. Email: agobin@tulaliptribes-nsn.gov Phone: (360) 716.4188
Food handlers class Thursday, March 27th at the Tulalip Administration Building. Anyone preparing or serving food on the reservation is required to have a current food worker card. Upon completion of the class and a passing test score, a food worker card will be issued which will be valid for three years from the test date. This card is valid for employment on the reservation only.
Spring Nettle harvesting Photos by Francesca Hillary
Tulalip News Facebook, March 12, 2014
TULALIP, WA – Inez Bill, coordinator of Rediscovery programs at the Hibulb Cultural Center and Natural History Preserve, took a few helpers to harvest early spring Nettle on Bluff Road in Tulalip.
She was joined by Tulalip tribal members Derek Houle and Lauw-YA Spencer. Lauw-YA, a summer youth worker in the Rediscovery program in 2012, discovered she loves to be in the forest helping to gather cultural items.
Nettles are rich in vitamins A, C, iron, potassium, manganese, and calcium and Inez uses them in recipes such as the famous “Hibulb bread” and even in a Fettuccini pasta dish, using nettles which she calls “nesto” instead of pesto.
Tulalip Chairman Mel Sheldon Jr., emerges from the waters of Tulalip Bay during his 2014 Winter Challenge, where he also nominated staff at the Tulalip Administration Building. Photo/ Mike Sarich, Tulalip TV
Winter challenge takes on Coast Salish life in Tulalip
By Brandi N. Montreuil, Tulalip News
TULALIP – If you are like millions of users who checked their Facebook newsfeed obsessively this past week, then you may have noticed a few of your friends posting videos of themselves dunking in frigid waters, yelling something about 24 hours. If you haven’t, then you may not know about the latest craze, the 2014 Winter Challenge.
It was started by a Vancouver Island, B.C. teen as a way to get her video-loving, outside-resistant brothers to separate from their beloved couch. “At first I wanted to go sledding, and nobody wanted to go sledding, and I thought that was so crazy,” said Kira Jacks to ChekTV News about the origins of the challenge, which requires the challenged or nominee to make a snow angel in a bathing suit. “We posted it to Facebook and then nominated some of our cousins to do it, and it just went from there.”
Melody Hatch braves the cold waters of Tulalip Bay to complete her 2014 Winter Challenge. Photo/ Mike Sarich, Tulalip TV
True to Internet’s viral nature, the challenge exploded to astronomical numbers spreading into the United States and making quite a pit stop in Washington State.
Anyone familiar with Coast Salish people know they like to represent their culture in everything that they do. This characteristic morphed the challenge into a Coast Salish style, requiring the challenged to take a plunge into bodies of water, usually an inlet, river, or if you were in Tulalip, into the bay. All with a 24-hour deadline.
There was even a Facebook page dedicated to Lummi 2014 Winter Challenge videos.If you were anywhere near Tulalip during the height of the challenge, then seeing people of all ages jump, run, or dunk themselves in the bay was common sight; you even grew nervous to check your Facebook notifications, afraid of multiple nominations.
“When you get called out in front of everyone you don’t want to chicken out and show everyone you’re scared,” said Drew Enick, who was nominated four times.
Photo/ Mike Sarich, Tulalip TV
The rules were simple, video record yourself thanking the person who nominated you, challenge your friends and family to either a snow angel or a dip in the water (you needed to fully submerge yourself to make it count) then yell ‘you have 24 hours!’ Most nominees personalized their challenge to match their personality, some wearing favorite swimwear, compling elaborate stunts while entering the water, or in some cases going au naturale.
“I think it is cool that people are getting out and being interactive with each other,” said Tulalip tribal member Kesha Fryberg.
“This is just a fun thing for us to do, and with our connection to the water it just makes it even better,” said Tulalip tribal member Waynetta Iukes.
Even Tulalip Chairman Mel Sheldon Jr. received his fair share of nominations, returning the favor on March 6, by nominating the staff at the Tulalip Tribes Administration Building.
“As you can see, I have tried to dress appropriately to jump in the water today,” he said in his challenge video, before he leaped off the free dock at Tulalip Marina.
As the weeks go by and the Winter Challenge packs up zigzagging itself across Indian Country, Natives continue to represent themselves and their culture in the most modern of times. ‘You have 24 hours!’
Brandi N. Montreuil: 360-913-5402; bmontreuil@tulaliptribes-nsn.gov
