Month: December 2007

Volunteers Fix Christmas Eve Dinner

Happy Camp, holiday Dinner

by Judy Bushy

Years ago, Muriel (Mooch) Ward remembered her mother’s tradition of inviting anyone who might be alone on Thanksgiving or Christmas to join her family for dinner. Mooch picked up the tradition because she had a friendly way of reaching out to people, but soon the dinner outgrew their dining room. That is when the Happy Camp Holiday Dinner began. Food and funds are volunteered, volunteers roast turkey, make dressing, and bake pies enough to feed a small army, and everyone who doesn’t have friends of family to be with for the holiday dinner, is welcome.

This year’s Christmas eve dinner was held at the cafeteria of the Happy Camp Elementary School. Just walking in was a pleasure to get a whiff of pies and turkeys and all kinds of good food preparations.

There was music for the event also, Todd Gilbert led in singing Christmas in Happy Camp for which the words were written by Mrs. Schneider’s fifth grade class is 2006.

It goes, “Crystal clear, sparkling sky, Chimney smoke, swirling high, Frosted mountains, stretching wide, tumbling creeks, trees beside. Snowflakes fall, snowballs fly, Sledding down steep mountainsides, Gather round the silver tipped tree, drinking hot cocoa, sipping out tea, Singing carols in unison, Santa comes in on a fire engine, with a ho ho ho and gifts galore. He gave his boots three good stamps, “Merry Christmas to all in Happy Camp?”

Christmas Dinner, Family Resource Center

Jesse Tree Celebrates Christmas in Happy Camp

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girls admire Christmas Jesse Tree at Fellowship

by Judy Bushy

Jesse Tree has been celebrated at the Happy Camp Christian Fellowship.This may not look like the traditional Christmas tree to you, and indeed, it is lacking the greens with sparkling lights, shiny tinsel and bright baubles. It is however, traditional in another way.

Margaret Bernhard shared an ornament with an ark on it and read Scripture that tells how Noah’s family was saved from flood, just like Jesus came to save those who believe in Him from destruction. Susan Neal hung an ornament. Vickie Simmons hung a burning bush on the Jesse Tree and read scriptures which told how God spoke through the bush, just as Jesus came to speak to us for God. Deleana read a scripture on “Son of Righteousness” as she hung an ornament on the tree and Pastor Kirk Eadie read four more scriptures.

Two weeks worth of ornaments have been hung on the tree and the rest will each be placed on the Jessie Tree on Sunday December 23rd.

H C Elementary School, Happy Camp Christmas, Jesse Tree

Family

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by Alexis

As a Happy Camp High School student, I am here to tell you about Family. I haven’t’ really been into my family, until I reached the age of 14. I finally realized if I don’t talk to my family that I would regret it.

I was never into my family when I was in my childhood. I lived far away from my family at one point in time. In that time I felt like there was a big hole in me and I never could find out what it was. One day I was sitting on the front of the house. I received a phone call and it was my mom. She said that she was coming to get me and she missed me and couldn’t wait to see me. She finally got her act together and realized I was what she wanted to help her through what she was going through. She showed up and I got my stuff and came home. Ever since I have tried so hard to keep up with my family, but some times there are too much, emotionally and physically.

My family has so much to share with me if I sit down and just listen five minutes. I feel it changes my life. These are some things I learned from my family stories, pictures, baskets, dresses, regalia, recipes movies and many more. I drifted away and mom tried to get me to go here and there with her to see family and stuff like that, but I would just stay home. I felt like the only thinks I needed was me, myself and I, but I found out the hard way, losing family I never had a chance to sit down and talk to. I lost a lot of history, and things I will never be able to recover.

People don’t realize that our elders are the most important people to our communities. These precious people hold and know many things. When I look around I see how kids act toward their elders. They may have been born in the 50’s or the 60’s but if it wasn’t for them telling us to do thing or that, just think of what the world would be like today! If we can just sit down to hear our elders out, I bet that we would have a better understanding of one another. Our elders know how to help us or teach us. If we just gave them the respect they need they won’t be so hurt or torn. We need to give our elders more respect and more love.

Sometimes some people don’t have a mom or a dad, brother or sister, but that doesn’t mean you don’t have family. Maybe you live with your auntie or uncle or grandparents, but you still have family. We all need to sit down and talk more to the people that are close to us.

Editorials, Elders, Family, Opinions, Teenagers

Largest Dreamcatcher in the World

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artists-290.jpg
Artists working to erect the dreamcatcher
on October 31, 2007. From left: Cheryl
Wainwright, James Wainwright, Lou
Tiraterra Sr, and Dennis Day.

By Linda Martin

I met Dennis Day five years ago. He sat in River Park with Lou Tiraterra Sr. discussing the plans he had for building the largest dreamcatcher in the world. At the time he’d just finished weaving his first dreamcatcher and planned to erect it in what used to be the community garden across the street from Old Town Park. The rope used was dyed with blackberry juice.

After many trials, failures, and changes, the first dreamcatcher went up and survived for a few weeks until weather and fate destroyed it. Devastated by this loss, Day left town and traveled.

Happy Camp has a way of calling people back, and after many months, Day returned, enthusiastically planning to write a book on the subversion of education. He had no plans to put up another dreamcatcher until Cheryl and Jim Wainwright offered him an opportunity he couldn’t refuse. They wanted a large dreamcatcher on their property at the corner of Davis Street and Indian Creek Road across from Parry’s Market. They promised that for his effort Day could expect a better, more supportive frame to make the new dreamcatcher more likely to survive than the last one.

Day set to work in March 2006 with about $600 worth of materials. He started the project with 900 feet of rope, which he dyed with kelly green and turquoise linseed oil based paint. He and Cheryl Wainwright collected and prepared the wood used as a frame and border. Before long Day’s work produced a dreamcatcher with a circumference of 105 feet, and diameter of about 33 feet though it varies in spots because of the shape of the wood used in the border. According to Day the design he used for this dreamcatcher is typical of that used by the Ojibwa Tribe which is from the Great Lakes Region.

arch-290.jpg
This frame for the Dreamcatcher
was designed and constructed by
James Wainwright.

spider-290.jpg
A spider donated by Bonnie
Alvarez and colorful lights
bring the dreamcatcher to life.

Plans for the future include sales of engraved tiles, a decorating event in the springtime, a dream-theme park including construction of surrounding patios and pathways with a central gazebo, and addition of a sculpted eagle with a 7 foot wingspan to the top of the archway. Lou Tiraterra Sr. has already donated a soapstone eagle sculpture which will be placed on an eastern facing patio. All Happy Camp residents will be able to purchase engraved tiles at a discount.

The three feathers hanging from the dreamcatcher at this time were all created and donated by Yreka artist Ralph Starritt. The first dreamcatcher ornament to be hung on the large dreamcatcher was placed there in memory of Janeen Anderson, donated by JavaBob and Vicky Schmalzbach. Others who wish to donate small dreamcatchers to the project are welcome and encouraged to do so.

The Arts in Happy Camp

Happy Camp Community Spirit

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To the Editor:

Volunteers! Donations of time, labor and materials! That is the kind of community spirit that built needed places for the local folks in the history of the Happy Camp area, and other towns of Siskiyou County.

Indian Creek School 1883 and 1890, log church, 1928, log high school 1933, Grange hall, (Red Cross) First Aid Station, town Fire Hall, Lion’s Boy Scout building, Library, and the volunteer firefighters, ambulance services and other community efforts. Donations of land, timber, plywood, equipment, and money, manpower and ambition…that is the kind of community spirit that built the Happy Camp Health Services.

I do not believe that local citizens will stand for seeing that Health Service taken over without a fight.

James A. Waddell

Roseville

Note: Jim is a Happy Camp citizen who moved away awhile. Five white generations of his family have been the pioneers who called this area “home” since gold prospecting and he is also a member of the Karuk Tribe of the Klamath River. He lived on the family homestead (of 1900’s) in the Happy Camp area for over fifty years and enjoyed hunting, hiking the mountains, appraising of timber, working as fishing guide and takes absolutely wonderful outdoor photographs. He helped us with technology at the Happy Camp Community Computer Center for awhile also. Lately he has been blessing us with the stories of the history of this area through tales of his family,  for which we are grateful! A cd of beautiful photos of the area is available (see ad on frontpage of Happy Camp News for further information)~jbushy

Community, Happy Camp Health Service, Volunteers
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