Members of the AHS Native American Student Union, the AHS Equity committee, Shane Abrams, Dan Wahpepah and others came together for the first step in installation of the Otterlifter Canoe, a traditional canoe donated by the Wahpepah family as a reminder of the land and the waters, an acknowledgement of the original inhabitants and our history, and the importance of a regenerative way of living for our children and our children’s children. Otterlifter represents all the River People and was blessed by Takelma Elder, Grandma Aggie. The installation signage is in English and has a QR code to a website in English and Spanish with the full story of the canoe, its meaning, and the beauty of this gift to the community and schools. The canoe will formally be celebrated with a ceremony on Thursday, October 6, 2022, preceding the Indigenous Peoples Day weekend.
The Ashland School
District is extremely grateful for this gift to our community and students, now
and in the future, and to all those that contributed to landing it on our
campus.
