Grand Ronde woodsman works on longhouses and master's degree

0 Comments | Indian Country Today (Lakota Times), February, 2005 | by Johnson, Jean

Johnson, Jean Indian Country Today (Lakota Times) 02-09-2005 PORTLAND, Ore. - Should the world of pre-fab houses and store-bought tools take a dive, at least one man on the Oregon coast will know how to get folks in out of the rain. Working with wood and stone is in Don Day's blood, and the University of Oregon has given him its blessing.

Day completed a bachelor's degree in Anthropology in 2003, and now he's working in an interdisciplinary master's program on a thesis, the centerpiece of which will be the traditional construction of a cedar longhouse using primitive technologies. A member of the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde in Oregon, Day points to both his heritage and his 18 years in the woods as a logger for inspiration. "I have the woods...