Clarinda Underwood, Quinault Journalist
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Clarinda L. Underwood
Quinault Indian Nation
Community Relations Officer
Editor, Nugguam
[edit] Native Background
I am an enrolled Quinault Indian. My ancestry includes Quileute, Hoh, Chehalis, Chinook and English. My maiden name, “Underwood,” comes from the Yakama Tribe, and I wear it proudly. Being the oldest grandchild on both sides of my family was supposed to make me the most responsible. If all the siblings and cousins were playing together and something happened that was not good, guess who got into trouble? To try to keep us out of trouble both grandparents took us to church, and we had to get up in front of everybody and sing. I believe that much of what happens in our childhood while we are growing up - these years have a huge impact on who we eventually become. Well, both my grandmothers had a major influence on my life. My mom's mother, Gramma Vi told me that I was going to college, and I was the first in our family to actually finish college. My other Gramma Bunny toted me around to the Indian meetings as a teenager; whether it was a health or housing meeting I was supposed to do a report on these meetings, so there you got it I became a reporter. And then there was my mother, who handed me a camera everyday when John Wayne was in town for two weeks when I was 15. She told me to get his picture and she proceeded on her way to work with my task at hand. There you have it I was a paparazzi becoming a photographer. I believe my auntie Margie gave me my first diary I used to write in it everyday and begin by saying, “Dear God.” I was shy, so writing helped in expressing me. I lived with all these different relatives moving me off and on the rez, this gave me the white man’s perspective on life and the Indian way. I lived with all these individual role models while growing up.
[edit] Education
In high school, I would get out of some classes just to try and get our annual done at the end of each year. Our graphic arts and newspaper teacher taught for 35 years by the time I was a senior in 1977. Our high school annuals were made in house. It was the most enjoyable class! It was inevitable and written in the stars and on my heart, to be a journalist and photographer. I had changed my mind in college about between 5-10 times what I wanted to become because I really believed I could not major in something I enjoyed so much until they demanded me three times to declare my major. I graduated from CWU in 1983, Public Relations major and minors in Communications and Mass Communications. I wanted to become a nurse, teacher, PE teacher, coach, Physical therapist, languages, Musician, dancer, gymnast, D.J. and then after I graduated I wanted to become an alcohol counselor. But, I was sick of college by then.
[edit] Father’s Impact
Even though my dad didn’t seem to be around much while growing up he is the reason I have a nickname. He originally called me “Punky” and then over time it turned into Punkin Pies and it shortened to “Pies”. However, his influence and his natural talent came in as well because I love to play sports, love music, dancing, singing, and playing guitar I even played clarinet all throughout school and I was going into communications because I thought to be a D.J., what an ideal job to sit around and sing and dance all day. My dad is no longer with us he passed in 1981 at the age 43. I came home after trying to live off reservation and to work off reservation as long as I could and then finally came home in ‘89 and eventually became the editor of our tribal newspaper.
[edit] Pa Pa Joe’s Influence of Becoming a Workaholic
I do not recall any of my relatives giving me money. When I did get it there quarters in my piggy bank a couple dollars. And I was showing it off to my friend “Piggy” and she stole it from me and I cried. So to get money I knew I had to make it. Which made me a very good babysitter and I didn’t baby sit. I played with them. There other jobs I’ve done since age 11 like many years of babysitting, waitressing, DSHS Asst., the Aberdeen newspaper; The Daily World, BIA; Realty, Chehalis Tribe, Personnel Asst.; elder assisting, and other college jobs in communications, and YOP jobs. To become a good journalist in the older days meant having other jobs to clue you in on life - this giving you a better perspective on what life is all about. I also enjoy being different because my bio is backwards. I mean, I believe the majority of individuals would like to primarily put their resume up. And I do have a real short one attached to this bio.
[edit] Dysfunction Turned Around to Become a Healing
One of my main missions in life is sharing what I learn to others to whoever wants to learn. Alcoholism has played a major role in my life. It had its hold on me for a period of time, my father died from it and my youngest brother who at the age of 21 was stabbed to death on the Skokomish Reservation in 1984, leaving two kids and that environment was alcohol related. My uncle had committed suicide prior to my brother passing, and did it in front of my youngest brother. My uncle left a daughter. The enemy has claimed many lives of my family, relatives and friends. I believe the task at hand through my many years of healing from abuse and domestic violence is to pray and forgive. From this I am a divorcee but have come a long way. If I ever get involved in another relationship I know I have healed enough to be more aware of my past mistakes and I believe I have learned from them. Over the past 10 years, I have wholeheartedly begun to find self-help healing books. The ones that have truly made a difference in my life are “Beauty for Ashes” by Joyce Meyer and “A More Excellent Way” by Henry W. Wright. I believe 80% of the diseases such as diabetes, strokes, heart attacks, and cancers are spiritual and the number one block to healing is forgiveness.
[edit] My Favorite Lesson: Becoming Proud of Being Indian
I grew up ashamed of being Indian and that turned around when I came back home, by reading and learning about the history of my people. I became proud of who I am. An event had just happened; my cousin Lisa married in traditional Indian style using a brand new canoe, just newly carved. The canoe is named after my Grandma Bunny, “little rabbit,” my cousin just recently married a Quileute and the Indian name of the canoe is pronounced like this “Kwidee Dokwis.” They made it on the front page of the White man’s newspaper, “The Daily World.”
[edit] My Favorite People
When I first came home one of the best times I had was interviewing our elders. I just walked down Front Street and knocked on the doors of our elders going from home to home. I also enjoy photographing our little people who are children; they are real and have little experience in the games people play. I have the honor of being a Sunday school teacher; I teach all ages in the summer but my main class I teach are the pre-schoolers and the Kindergarteners. I have been doing that since 1989. I also have the honor of playing my guitar and being on the worship team at our local church. I have been doing that for the past four years confidently, the longest I have ever played is three weeks in a row in the last revival we had with David Woods being one week in Hoquiam and two weeks in Taholah.
[edit] Conclusion
My life’s journey has taken me through an identity crisis. People have had trouble with my name over the years and have murdered it. And it made me change it for a while to “Cara”; I call it my White name. But, my grandma Bunny on her death bed was still pretty upset over it and I promised her I would change it back and I did that before she died in 1999. At the same time, she told me that the newspaper I worked for “Quinault Nation News” needed to be back to its original name, “Nugguam” which means “To Talk” in Quinault. Over the last eight years, my healing has led me to become bold and to be more assertive and confident in my prayer life and to be able to read my Bible, which is God’s Word. I apply His Word to my life. I am very proud to be a Native, our people are very spiritual and it’s very natural for me to sing praises and worship to my Lord Jesus Christ who deserves praise because he is OUR CREATOR! He is the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords; He is the Alpha, the Omega, the Beginning and the End. HE is MY EVERYTHING!
[edit] Resume
Clarinda L. Underwood P.O. Box 66 Taholah, WA 98587
Phone: (360) 276-4450 Fax: (360) 276-4661 Email: cunderwood@quinault.org
[edit] Special Skills
Microsoft Word, Microsoft Publishing, Adobe Photoshop 7.0, Photography, Writing, Editing, and PDF and FTP Formatting.
[edit] Awards
1995 Washington Press Association “Communicator of Promise"; 1996 Communicator of Excellence Award “Honorable Mention” PR Printed; 1996 Communicator of Excellence Award First Place Publication Regularly Edited by Entrant, Internal Publications Quinault Nation News; Award of Appreciation for Outstanding Work with the Taholah Schools December 2003.
[edit] Organizations
NAJA - Native American Journalists Association 1989-2007; LFC – Lighthouse Fellowship Church, Guitarist, and Sunday School Teacher, 17 years; QPC – Quinault Planning Commission Secretary 1990-1991; QLTE – Quinault Land and Enterprise Board 1990-1999.
[edit] Education
North Beach High School graduated 1977, Moclips, WA; Grays Harbor College graduated A.A. degree 1980, Aberdeen, WA; Central Washington University B.A. degree in Public Relations, Communications and Mass Communications 1983, Ellensburg, WA.
[edit] Workshops
Tribal Government 1980; National Fisheries Meetings 1980; National Congress of American Indians NCAI Meeting 1980; Forestry Symposium 1981; Word Processing I, II, II 1984; Developing Title Status Reports 1986 PAO; Word Perfect I, II, 1994; Word Perfect Design and Layout 1995; Newsletter Workshop SPIPA, 1996; NWIFC Newsletter Workshop, 1996; Supervisory & Management Skills, May 1997 and 1998.
[edit] Employment
Quinault Indian Nation Community Relations Officer 1991 – 2007; Quinault Planning Technician 1990 - 1991; Quinault Self-Governance Editor / Writer – 9/1989 - 8/1990; The Daily World Advertising Sales and Layout Artist 12/1988 – 6/1989; Department of Health and Human Services Public Relations Assistant / Volunteer 1/1988 – 4/1989; BIA Realty Clerk & Technician & Realty Specialist 3/1984 – 3/1987; Chehalis Tribe Personnel Officer 6/1983 – 12/1983; Quinault Communication Intern (QDNR Magazine) 4/1982 – 12/1982; GHC Employ: Caregiver and Waitress 1979 and 1980. Central Washington University Employment: CWU Varsity Sports Statistician, Dining Hall Laborer and Communications Assistant. NBHS: Tutor Taholah Summer School 1975, Quinault Housing Authority Clerk/Secretary/and Counselor 1975-77; and Co-Editor newspaper in High School, Produced Annual 1974-1977.
[edit] Interests
Love to play sports such as volleyball, basketball, softball, and walk on the beach. Enjoy reading, writing, photography, organizing, music such as singing, guitar playing, Indian land issues, Sunday school teaching, Native American history, culture and language and love to learn about topics such as animals and God’s creatures he made, such as us, and all kinds of colors of the very special creatures He calls people.
