BeWild: Salmon, Cedar, Rock & Rain: Washington’s Olympic Peninsula

The Mountaineers BeWild Speaker Series puts passion and adventure on center stage! Join us at BeWild in celebrating a new Braided River book—Salmon, Cedar, Rock & Rain: Washington’s Olympic Peninsula—about the incredible Olympic Peninsula. Join a vibrant collection of people with deeply held connections to the Olympic Peninsula who will share images and personal storytelling about the past, present, and future of this incredible place. 

The event will feature storytelling and a panel from contributing writers from Salmon, Cedar, Rock & Rain, including:

• Wendy Sampson, Lower Elwha Klallam Tribal member & language teacher
• Loni Greninger, Vice Chairwoman of Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe
• Lynda V. Mapes, Seattle Times journalist and author of ORCA: Shared Waters, Shared Home

In the Pacific Northwest, many of us delight in Olympic National Park, a unique and magical UNESCO natural world heritage site, located right in our own backyard. Yet the famed park is just the center of a much larger ecosystem, a wild circle of rivers that encompasses ancient old-growth forests, pristine coastal expanses, and jagged alpine peaks, all possessed of a rich biodiversity. For tens of thousands of years, humans have thrived and strived alongside this natural world. Learn more about the book at https://www.salmoncedar.org/. 

ABOUT THE BOOK cONTRIBUTORS

Wendy Sampson is a member of the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe (LEKT); she lives on the reservation with her family. She has been a Klallam language teacher for twenty years. Her career began as a high school student hired to work with tribal elders as a teacher apprentice. After attending college she returned home and earned her Klallam language teacher certification in 2003 and eventually became the program manager. She is now a teacher for the Port Angeles School District offering courses in the Klallam language as well as history classes from a tribal perspective. Wendy remains dedicated to sharing her knowledge in an effort to continue revitalizing the Klallam language and culture in her community.

Lynda V. Mapes is an award-winning journalist, author, and close observer of the natural world. She is the author of six books, including Orca: Shared Waters, Shared Home; Witness Tree: Seasons of Change in a Century Old Oak; and Elwha: A River Reborn. Lynda lives in Seattle where she covers nature, the environment, and tribes as a staff reporter for The Seattle Times.

Loni Grinnell-Greninger currently serves her people as the Vice Chairwoman at the Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe, beginning her service in January 2020. She graduated with her Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology from Pacific Lutheran University in 2012, and her Masters of Public Administration degree with an emphasis in Tribal Governance from The Evergreen State College in 2016. After spending four years working for the Washington State Department of Social & Health Services in Indian Policy and as a Tribal Liaison for Behavioral Health Services, she came home to Jamestown to serve her people. She currently serves as the Department Director of Social & Community Services. In both of her roles, she works closely with federal, state, and local governments, as well as numerous tribal and non-tribal organizations to engage in policy and cultural work for her tribe and on behalf of Indian Country.

ABOUT bRAIDED rIVER

Braided River inspires people to protect wild places through images and stories that change perspectives. Western North America's public lands are under threat. Using the power of beautiful images, we publish photography books and create visually-driven multimedia advocacy campaigns to draw attention to these critical ecosystems. A nonprofit based in Seattle on Coast Salish land, we work in concert with conservation photographers, writers, grassroots organizations and Indigenous communities to build greater public awareness, and inspire action. Learn more at www.Braidedriver.org.