University of Washington Career Day for Tribal Youth

About 100 Native American youths and tribal educational leaders from the Makah, Quileute, Hoh, Quinault, Lower Elwha, Klallam, and the Jamestown S’Klallam tribes gathered at the beautiful Olympic Natural Resources Center facility in Forks for the University of Washington's Native Career Planning Day.

Articles from the Peninsula Daily News and the Forks Forum

Did you know that the architects of the Olympic Natural Resource Center, when designing the structure for the 40-acre site:

     - had to consider rainfall up to 50 inches per month and winds reaching 100 mph

     - chose outdoor walkways to reduce the circulation of muddy, wet boots on slippery hallway floors

     - honored the idea of "Working Families = Working Forests" by evoking a timber image without using old growth wood.

 

Art Class Choice 1

The QTS Classroom Alongside the River has been so fortunate to receive lessons from knitting volunteer-teachers every week for the past two years.

Rowena Jongeward and Roseanne Lindenmuth have persevered through the storms and stress of Middle School, and they even had 100% engagement at one point last year with Angel, CC, Julia, Madison, Storm, Cordell, Eugene, and Katherine (and Forney!).  CC, picking up double-stitch crochet faster than it takes me time to type it, made most of the headbands given on Elders Day 2011.

This year, the 5th and 6th grade girls are now rocking the knitting circle regularly, and Julia has been our leader, creating hats with rib-stitch, purses with stripes, and washcloths with cat patterns.  

I have so much appreciation and admiration for Miss Rowena and Miss Roseanne for their dedication, perseverance, and generosity, donating their time and energy to teach the Quileute youth knitting, crocheting, needlework, and "ha-has" like:

A cop pulled alongside a speeding car on the highway, and he saw that the woman behind the wheel was knitting. The trooper cranked down his window and yelled, "PULL OVER!"  The knitter yelled back, "NO!!  IT'S A SCARF!"

Art Class Choices 2 and 3

It's all about differentiation.

Much appreciation goes to Karen White and Dave Wilson, Master Carver from Lummi.