At our 2008 spring potluck, Suquamish Chairman Leonard Forsman welcomed members and told us that SON is now part of the story he tells visitors when he is giving tours of the reservation. At Chief Seattle's gravesite, he tells of SON's founding when the grave was desecrated. This attack on the tribe's heritage turned into the spark that brought the community together to respond to the affront. And once we came together, we were able to accomplish a great deal more, including the return of Old Man House Park to the Tribe.

The Naming of Suquamish Olalla Neighbors

I remember it well.  There was discussion on who wanted to be in the newly (still forming) group and in what way were we going to be centered, (social-justice/non-profit-geographic/activist) and what were we going to be called.  There were people from Bainbridge Island and Poulsbo, Silverdale and Suquamish, Indianola and Kingston.  There were tribal people and non-Indians.  The wounds were still raw from the desecration of Chief Seattle's monument.
     I was introducing our (Suquamish Tribe's) understanding of our territory.  I was explaining that we had many village sites from as far north as Foul Weather Bluff to as far south as what is now know as Olalla.  I explained that we had villages all over what is now known as Bainbridge Island and Vashon Island and Blake Island and the Seattle waterfront.
     I explained that Olalla is in fact a Suquamish name.  That the Olall is the Suquamish name for Cattail and that the very best cattails are from where the fresh water and salt water meet.  I explained that this mixture of fresh water and salt water gives the cattail strength and qualities that allow it to endure the weather and weaving and stand the test of time and wear for a durable protection and warmth.  I explained that this is the place to get the best cattails to make cattails mats.  I said that the town now named Olalla is one such place, where fresh water and salt water meet and an abundance of quality cattails grow there and had been gathered there.  That this is our southernmost village site, Olalla.
     Barbara Wolf then jumped up and said with full enthusiasm, "That's it!  That should be our name Olalla, for all those reasons, mixture of strength and endurance, people from all of these towns, coming together to be stronger.  That should be our name . . . "
     I believe it was the spirit of accepting all people from wherever into the group and acknowledging that from differences come strength, understanding and growth.  I believe it was unanimously accepted and welcomed as the name for the new group who came to be just that, bringing forward strength and growth through understanding from differences.

Barbara Lawrence-Piecuch, M.B.A.
Suquamish Tribe

Suquamish Olalla Neighbors celebrate 10 years of bridge building

NORTH KITSAP HERALD
By MEGAN STEPHENSON
OCTOBER 31, 2011 

SUQUAMISH — When the Suquamish Olalla Neighbors first came together in 2001, it was to address a specific issue — the desecration of Chief Seattle’s grave.
     They soon realized they had a deeper problem on their hands, issues that needed to be addressed by tribal and non-tribal members, to confront what led to the crime in the first place.
     “Ten years ago, our community was quite divided, there was mistrust on all sides,” said Sarah Van Gelder, co-founder of the organization. “Now people are quite friendly. People who work together make better...”
     The Suquamish Olalla Neighbors is a one-of-a-kind community organization that have not only turned their own community around, but have participated in mediation on other tribal reservations.
Olalla, which means “the place where the fresh water and salt water meet,” is an allusion to neighbors of different backgrounds and cultures co-existing together.
     The group hosts Canoe Journey participants every summer, and hold an annual potluck to honor members for their work that year. This year’s 10th anniversary potluck is Saturday, where Suquamish Chairman Leonard Folsom will speak and members will be honored.
     Van Gelder, executive editor of Yes! magazine on Bainbridge   Island, moved from Bainbridge to Suquamish in 2000. Soon after, she heard some of her neighbor’s opposition to a planned tribal housing project.
     “My response was that in a reservation the tribe had the right to build housing; the rest of us were on reservation land that they got for ceding large [tracts] of land,” she said. A few weeks later, when the grave was vandalized, she “expected” human rights leaders to step up. “At that point, I realized if no one else is doing it, I [will],” she said. The initial group gathered at the United Church of Christ in Suquamish, asking themselves what had gone wrong.
     Now, Van Gelder said 10 years on, “communication channels are much more open, people feel much more part of a larger community.”
     She credits a large part of their success to cultural sensitivity, guided by local tribal leaders and elder Ted George. She said George taught the group about the history and issues facing the tribe, which was then passed on to the community through the Neighbor’s message. He also shared what ways the group could communicate that would be helpful, as well as what they should not do.
     “It’s very important that a non-native group not come on too strong,” she said.
     George, who is Port Gamble S’Klallam and Suquamish and lives on his mother’s land in Suquamish, is retired as the regional director of the Administration for Native Americans, working with tribes in eight western states. He said his main task was to help tribes “recognize self-determination arise in the minds of locals,” and assist in education and technical training.
     He said this is the first non-Native organization with tribal influence he’s ever worked with. The group’s success in returning Old Man House State Park solidified the organization’s positive intentions and influence.
     In 1904, the U.S. government acquired the land where Old Man House once stood, having been burned down in 1870, to use for fortifications. In 2005, the Neighbors worked to return the waterfront where Old Man House once stood to the Suquamish Tribe.
     “The state park was the center of the Suquamish Tribe, village and nation...there’s evidence of people living there for 2,000 years,” Van Gelder said.
     “What this means is they burned our capital,” George said. “The very moment the [state Parks and Recreation Commission] made their decision, it was one of the most joyous, spontaneous celebrations ... it was an extraordinary moment for Olalla” as well as the tribe.
     George said organizations like this can help heal anti-Native American sentiments in reservation communities — over treaty rights, fishing rights and tidelands ownership.
     “Energy, synergy, leadership and full responsibility had to some from people who lived there,” he said. “We could talk about the ugliness, the mistakes, and abuses that happen. Now we’re witnessing tribes getting their own visions restored ... grasping the significance of self-determination and self-government.”
     The Neighbors have been an example of a positive partnership between tribal and non-tribal communities. When a multimillion dollar bridge project in Port Angeles uncovered an ancient Klallam village site, the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe asked Suquamish Olalla Neighbors how they would resolve issues between people.
     “They were flabbergasted at the notion ... that interested tribal members [and non] would come together and look for collective commonalities,” George said.
     Van Gelder said George once reminded her that too often, all one hears is the weaknesses in your community.
     “Every once and a while we need to hear about our strengths,” she said. “I’ve learned so much [from the tribe]. I’m honored to get involved in some of the tribe’s events.”

10th Annual Potluck & Celebration

Suquamish Olalla Neighbors

10th Annual Potluck and Celebration
held Sunday October 29, 2011 at
Suquamish UCC church

This year we proudly honored
Alie Hasset, Charissa Sigo, Bearon Old Coyote, Angeline Narte, Smithsonian 2011 Student Summit on the Ocean and Coasts, Students from the Suquamish Tribal Early College High School, and our members and friends.

SUQUAMISH MEMORIAL HONORS
CENTURIES OF SERVICE

By Tad Sooter
North Kitsap Herald 
Nov 12 2010

SUQUAMISH —Alan Deam’s name is engraved on the face of a marble canoe on a hillside overlooking downtown Suquamish.
It’s a place of honor the 41-year-old Suquamish man earned in a 20-year career in the U.S. Marine Corps that spanned the Gulf War, Somalia, Kosovo and Iraq. When Deam joined the Marines out of North Kitsap High School in 1988, he was just looking to break away.
     “I didn’t know what I was going to do with my life and suddenly I was fixing helicopters,” said Deam, now retired from the corps. “I knew I’d never find another place where I could do the things I wanted to do, so I did it for as long as I could.”
     With the unveiling of a new Veterans Memorial Saturday, the Suquamish tribe is recognizing the service of veterans across centuries — from pre-contact warriors to modern military members like Deam . . . more

See Sara Van Gelder's Photos

Suquamish Olalla Neighbors helped host 2010 Tribal Canoe Journey visitors at a  community potluck dinner on Sunday, July 11th.  These potluck dinners have become widely known and especially popular among the tribal canoe families.  We received a warm thank you.

See Sarah van Gelder's 2010 Canoe Journey photos taken at Suquamish and Neah Bay.