March 8, 2007 Celilo honors falls' past Events continue Saturday and Sunday at village By KATHY GRAY of The Dalles Chronicle Remembering Celilo Falls takes more than a village, and this weekend Celilo Village will fill with visitors come to commemorate the Celilo legacy. For centuries uncounted, Celilo Falls boiled and foamed through a narrow, twisting descent. As the huge salmon battled their way up from the ocean, or down from spawning grounds, and through the seething waters, native fishermen waited atop platforms with dipnets to capture the river's wealth. Fifty years ago this Saturday, the raging falls came to an end, submerged beneath the backwaters of The Dalles Dam, 10 miles downriver. Celilo Village residents, tribal dignitaries and government officials from afar will honor the memory of Celilo Falls with events both Saturday and Sunday. Celilo legacy events will include solemn ceremonies, traditional feasts, a powwow and exhibits telling the story of the falls. Films of the falls will be held at Celilo Park on the riverfront. Traditional salmon dinners are planned both days, and food vendors will also make traditional foods available. Wy-am Chief Olsen Meanus Jr. invites the public to all events both days. "A lot of people talk about the falls, non-Indian and Indian alike," said Meanus, chief for the past two years following his grandfather, Chief Howard Jim. At 47, Meanus is a few years to young too remember the falls himself, but grew up on its stories. "[The elders] talk about the falls - the experience, the meaning, the feeling of how it was to fish the falls," Meanus said. "Everything I have experienced through their stories." Those who do remember the falls recall the suspended trams that pulled the fishermen across to the islands, but before the tram lines, they crossed the trecherous waters on heavy, dugout canoes. So Celilo Legacy ceremonies start Saturday with a canoe ceremony, where Meanus will greet the Puyallup canoe on the banks of the Columbia. A number of other Pacific Northwest tribes will also participate in the canoe ceremony. "We'll welcome them here to the land and then have traditional opening ceremonies," Meanus noted. The Wash'ut service at 10 a.m., is the official opening ceremony, both days. Silent films and slide shows portraying the falls and its people will run throughout both days as part of the celebration. "We're hoping that a lot of the pictures, displays and films will spark the memories of our elders," said Bobby Begay, also a grandson of the late Chief Howard Jim. Begay is a coordinator of the event and the preceding planning process, which included many of the village residents, as well as representatives from surrounding tribes. Begay also extended his welcome to weekend visitors. Traditional displays will be featured at the Wa-na-pa Village at the in-lieu fishing site at Celilo Park. "It's an educational village," explained Begay. Traditional ways of cooking salmon, creating nets, making tule nets and stories of Coyote legends are among the events planned at the park. Celilo Legacy Schedule Saturday: 9 a.m. - canoe ceremony 10 a.m. - Wash-ut service (opening ceremony) 10:30 a.m. - Honoring ceremony Speakers include Yakama Nation Chair Lavina Washines, Wy-am Chief Olsen Meanus, Jr., Wy-am sub-chief Raymond Colfax, Columbia River Chief Bronsco Jim, Jr., Columbia River, Sub-chief Damien Totus, Confederated Warm Springs Tribes Chair Ron Suppah, Confederated Umatilla Tribes Board of Trustees Chair Antone Minthorn, Nez Perce Tribe Chair Rebecca Miles, U.S. Corps of Engineers General Strock, Deputy Regional Administrator EPA Region 10 Ron Kreizenbeck, NWPCC Vice-chair Joan Dukes, Columbia River Gorge Commission Chair Judy Davis. 11 a.m.-3 p.m. - traditional dancing in the dance arbor from the Warm Springs 4-H club and the canoe tribes. 2 p.m. - traditional salmon dinner 4 p.m. - Give away and Celilo memorial 4-6 p.m. - open floor 7 p.m. - Celilo Legacy Powwow and stick games All day - Celilo Falls history exhibit and tribal, salmon and river displays at Celilo Park Sunday: 10 a.m. - traditional Wash'ut service 12 noon - traditional salmon dinner 3 p.m. - Remembering Celilo: Elders share their memories and recollections of Celilo Falls and Celilo Village All day - Celilo Falls history exhibit and tribal, salmon and river displays at Celilo Park Information taken from http://www.thedalleschronicle.com/ Incoming and Outgoing messages protected by Trend Micro PC-cillin program