Healing of the Canoe

The Healing of the Canoe Project is a collaborative project between the Suquamish Tribe, the Port Gamble S’Klallam Tribe and the Alcohol and Drug Abuse Institute (ADAI), University of Washington. This project uses the Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) model to work in partnership to plan, implement and evaluate  culturally grounded interventions to reduce health disparities and promote health in both Tribes. Suquamish and Port Gamble S’Klallam have identified youth substance abuse and the need for a sense of cultural belonging among youth as primary issues of community concern. The Healing of the Canoe partnership seeks to address these issues  through prevention and intervention with youth, while tapping into existing community resources. For more background and information about the project, visit our history page.

Project Logos

The Suquamish logo was designed by our former Youth Peer Educator, Lisa Jackson-Nickel, who is a member of both the Suquamish Tribe and the Lummi Indian Nation. The logo was chosen by the Suquamish Cultural Co-op to represent the project.

The Port Gamble S’Klallam logo was created by Mellynie Ives Griggs who was inspired by Tribal Elders memories of See-ah’s teachings.  See-ah She-cha-po-ulth takes her grandchildren to pick blackberries near Hawks Hole by Port Gamble Bay.  Her canoe had a collapsible sail, which she would raise while whistling a beautiful song. A gentle breeze would come and make the paddle home easy and they would return just in time to prepare the evening meal.  See-ah stored some of the berries in a tightly woven cedar basket layered with ferns, then would bury them in the cold, cold mud of the nearby creek.  Those berries would stay fresh to enjoy all through the winter months.

G. Alan Marlatt, PhD

We would like to acknowledge the contributions of G. Alan Marlatt, Ph.D., to the Healing of the Canoe (HOC) project.  As the Director of the Addictive Behaviors Research Center at the University of Washington, he and colleagues worked in a collaborative partnership with the Seattle Indian Health Board to develop a life skills and substance abuse prevention program for American Indian/Alaska Native youth in urban settings.  This work, Canoe Journey Life’s Journey: A Life Skills Manual for Native Adolescents (LaMarr & Marlatt, 2005), served as the foundation for the cultural and tribal-specific adaptation by the Suquamish and Port Gamble S’Klallam Tribes in the Healing of the Canoe.  Dr. Marlatt was a member of the HOC research group prior to his untimely death in March, 2011.  His vision, passion, mentoring, and wisdom helped set a course for our journey with our tribal partners.  We raise our hands in thanks for his many contributions.