Suquamish Tribe Honors Black History Month

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Proclamation for Black History Month
Suquamish Tribal Council
February 2022

 

The Suquamish Tribe joins President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, other government leaders, and millions of others across the United States in celebrating Black History Month 2022.

We acknowledge the African heritage that exists in our Tribe and recognize Julia Jacobs, a tribal matriarch born in 1874 at Port Madison Mill and adopted as an infant by Treaty Signer Chief Jacob Wahelchu and his wife Mary Jacob.  Raised in the Suquamish culture, Julia was a fluent speaker of Lushootseed and expert basket maker who passed along her knowledge and skills to the next generations, who are today among our most important cultural practitioners, leaders, and teachers.

We celebrate the arrival of thousands of African Americans who came to this region during the Great Migration to escape the racist violence of the South and to contribute to the nation’s war effort by working at the Bremerton Shipyards.

We are grateful for the support of African American activists who supported us during the “fish wars,” including the comedian and civil rights leader Richard Claxton “Dick” Gregory, who was arrested for aiding in “illegal” net fishing on the Nisqually River in support of treaty fishing rights, and went on a hunger strike while serving a jail sentence.

We honor today’s contributions from our region’s Black neighbors and leaders in education, public service, government, and enterprises, and in their ongoing stance for justice and equity. And we celebrate our ongoing partnership with the Marvin Williams Center in Bremerton, a locus of recreation and culture in Bremerton that centers the city’s African American community.

We are proud to have stood shoulder to shoulder with the Kitsap’s Black community in proclaiming that Black Lives Matter, and Native Lives Matter, in the wake of the police killings of George Floyd, Stonechild Chiefstick, Manuel Ellis, and many others, and in celebrating Juneteenth and other occasions of importance to the African American community.

We celebrate our joint work, including the campaign that resulted in the passage of landmark Climate Change legislation in the Washington Legislature.

We recognize that Black people, in common with Indigenous people, suffer from health challenges that have been exacerbated by the COVID pandemic, and that our communities are the hardest hit by the pandemic and by the associated impacts on our wellbeing of interruptions in education and employment opportunities, and by social isolation.

Indian people suffered from the legacy of colonialism, the seizing of our lands, the massacres and diseases, the devastating attempts at assimilation — a legacy that occurred in parallel with the enslavement and the mistreatment of peoples of African descent. We are grateful for the support we receive from the region’s African American leaders who stand with us in respecting Tribal rights and we pledge to likewise stand with the Black community as you continue to seek your rights.

Therefore, we proclaim February 2022 Black History Month on the Port Madison Indian Reservation, and celebrate the theme of this year’s commemoration: Black Health and Wellness. We look forward to working with the African American community to create a just, healthy, and equitable future for all Black, Indigenous, and people of color.

Signed,

Leonard Forsman, Chairman

Suquamish Tribal Council

February 9, 2022

General Council 2022 Handbook Submissions

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Kraken Tickets Raffle — Enter Here

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The Seattle Kraken is giving the Suquamish Tribe 10 upper bowl tickets to Indigenous Peoples Night at the Kraken game on Dec. 6, 2021, at 7pm. Enter to win a pair of tickets below. We’ll choose the five Tribal members whose numbers come closest to a pre-selected random number to each receive two tickets.

One entry per Tribal member, please.

Note: All who attend must wear a mask, and all who are age 12 or older must bring proof of vaccination.

 

Healing of the Canoe Survey

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Healing of the Canoe is working on an adult version of the Youth Curriculum. This survey will help us better understand what adults in the Tribe want to see included. These questions come from initial focus groups with Suquamish Elders, Cultural Committee, and Suquamish leaders.

We appreciate you taking 5 minutes to complete this survey.

 

Suquamish Tribe Distribution Survey

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As the Suquamish Tribe continues with drive-thru distributions, we would like to better understand dates, times, and distribution items that work best for you and your family. We appreciate you taking 5 minutes to fill out this survey to help us improve future tribal distributions.

 

Update your SUN contact info

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IMPORTANT: If you are trying to sign up for SUN for the FIRST TIME, please click here.

If you want to change an email address or cell phone number, or adjust which communities you receive texts and emails on, updating your SUN info is easy.  There’s no need to fill out the entire form below, just enter the parts you want to change.

NOTE: If you stopped receiving SUN texts, you can usually turn them back on by simply texting the word “ALERT” to 22300. 

If you have any questions or are unsure what to do, send an email to communications@suquamish.nsn.us and we’ll get in touch with you as soon as possible.

Update Your SUN Contact Info

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

  • What info would you like to change?

    Fill in only the sections you want to change.
  • If you want to change your cell phone number, enter your new number here:

  • If you would like to add a new email address, enter it here.

  • If you want to change your postal code, enter your new zip code here:

  • Please check ALL the groups/communities you are a part of and would like to receive updates on.
  • Anything else you want to tell us to get your information up to date?
  • This information is used to verify Tribal enrollment in order to send exclusive information meant for Suquamish tribal members only.

 

Seeking Tribal Members to Serve on Suquamish Boards and Commissions

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The Suquamish Tribal Council is seeking applications from Tribal members for appointment to Executive Boards and Commissions positions that expire on December 31, 2021.

Appointments are for three-year terms. Board members are paid stipends as allowed by charter or ordinance.

Normally, Tribal members would have had an opportunity to sign up to serve on boards and commissions during the General Council meeting in March. As a result of the drive-thru General Council meeting, and the ongoing pandemic, the applications process has shifted online.

To apply for an appointment or re-appointment to any of the following boards and commissions, please complete the form below.

In addition to the form, you may submit letters of interest to Rebecca Purser, Tribal Council Executive Assistant, by mail at PO Box 498, Suquamish WA 98392, or by email to BoardsCommissions@Suquamish.nsn.us. The online form plus any supporting material must be submitted by the end of business on December 6, 2021.

If you currently hold one of these positions and would like to apply for another term, please complete the same process.

All Tribal members who submit an application will automatically be submitted for consideration. Decisions will be made by the end of December 2021 and announced at the last scheduled Tribal Council meeting of 2021.

 

Comment Sought on Proposed Tribal Code Changes

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Read more

Suquamish Night at Mariners Game to Recognize 1921 Suquamish Team’s Tour of Japan

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Free Tickets Available for Tribal Members

100 years ago this month, a baseball team from the Suquamish Tribe traveled to Japan on a months-long tour of the nation playing Japanese teams in cities and towns throughout the country as goodwill ambassadors of the game. To celebrate the centennial anniversary of their overseas adventure, the Seattle Mariners will recognize the team and their enduring legacy at the Aug. 26 game against the Kansas City Royals at T-Mobile Stadium.

A representative of the Suquamish Tribe will throw out the first pitch. The gates open 5:10 pm and the game starts at 7:10 pm.

The Suquamish Tribe will provide two free tickets to every Suquamish Tribal member 16 years old and above who would like to attend the game (while supplies last.) If you would like to go, please send an email to craigmiller@Suquamish.nsn.us no later than Aug. 19.

Please include your full name and Suquamish Tribal ID number in your email when requesting tickets.

Tickets will be available for pick up on Aug. 23 at the Fitness Center.

Elders who would like to attend the game but need assistance with transportation should contact Della Crowell by Aug. 6 at (360) 394-8417. Please note: In order to reach your seat in the stadium there is a lot of walking and plenty of stairs. The stairs are steep and there are often no rails to hold on to. Also, masks will be required while in Elders transportation.

Everyone attending the game should also know there is no longer special seating for vaccinated people at Mariners games. The Suquamish Tribe encourages everyone, who is able to, to get vaccinated. Please weigh the risks to yourself and others when considering attending events in crowded spaces.

For WA State Tribal Fishers: NOAA Cares Act Relief Payments Coming Friday

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Relief Payments from NOAA Cares Act State Funds coming Friday for Washington state ceremonial/subsistence fishers as well as for commercial fishers.

Note: this is NOT part of the COVID-19 Hardship Assistance program recently announced by Suquamish Tribal Council. This is a completely separate program.

Payments will be issued Friday, July 30, for all Tribal members 18 years old and above as part of NOAA Cares Act STATE  funds earmarked for subsistence and/or ceremonial fishers. Because all Tribal members are subsistence fishers, this payment will go out to all Tribal members residing in the state.

Payments will be made to those who were at least 18 years old prior to June 30, 2020, as that was the deadline for harvestable species dates required within Jan. 1, 2020 to June 31, 2020 window.

Payment will also be made to commercial fishers as part of Cares Act STATE Funds paid out by species catch. Each species payout will be per species for clams, halibut, and geoduck.

Payments will be made by mail or direct deposit. If you’ve had an address change, please be sure to update your records with enrollment by Sept. 20, 2021 to receive your payment. We encourage everyone to make sure their address is current.