More than 190 area agencies and organizations will receive a total of $2.4 million in vital operational funding from the 2018 Nisqually Indian Tribe Charitable and Local Government Program. Grant recipients were announced today by the Nisqually Tribe.

“I am honored to be a part of giving back to our surrounding communities and organizations,” said Julie Palm, Nisqually tribal council member and treasurer. “It feels good knowing the Nisqually Tribe is helping to make a difference and we are able to help so many nonprofit organizations, multiplying the positive effects of these funds.”

The program includes three types of funding. Financial support is awarded to 501(c)3 tax-exempt organizations dedicated to public safety, children’s services, community health, cultural preservation, veteran’s support and environmental protection; these recipients are selected in a competitive application process. Scholarship funds and community groups also participate in the program. Local government funding provides for police, fire, emergency services and other public safety needs.

Nature Nurtures Farms is grateful for the support from Nisqually for their farm. “This funding will be used to bring young people and animals together to build empathy, teach responsibility, and inspire hope. This award will help us broaden our support for youth who have been affected by trauma by teaching them multiple strategies for managing overwhelming emotions, including: The power of social support and positive relationships, nonverbal expression such as music and art, and, of course-the warm benefits of friendship with the many loving rescued and rehabilitated animals at the farm,” said Carrie Stringer, Director of The Resilience Project and Otters at Nature Nurtures Farm.

A list of 2018 funding recipients can be seen here:
http://bit.ly/ntnfeb2019

To learn more about the Nisqually Indian Tribe, its people and programs, visit www.nisqually-nsn.gov. Nisqually Red Wind Casino is located 15 minutes east of Olympia. For more information, visit www.redwindcasino.com.

We Wear Our Name Proudly
By Cecilia Svinth Carpenter 9-18-1993

“Origin of the name Nisqually”
The word Squalli is the Nisqually Indian name for the prairie grass that once grew in abundance on the Nisqually Plains.
Our river took its name from the prairie grass and became the Squalli River. An Indian place name usually always describes a geographical feature of the area.

Our Indian people who have for centuries lived along the Squalli River on the vast prairie lands called themselves The Squalli-absch, the People of the Grass Country, the People of the River. (The ending “absch” means “the people of”.)

In 1833 when the people of the Hudson’s Bay Company established their fur-gathering fort near the mouth of the Nisqually River, they named their fort after our people and added the prefix “Nes” to our name. They called us the Nesqualli.

Later, when the American settlers came into our country, the spelling of the prefix was changed to “Nis.” Somewhere along the way the “i” at the end of our name was changed to a “y” so that today we are known as the Nisqually.

However, in the hearts and minds of our people, we are still The Squalli-absch, the People of the Grass Country, the People of the River. The bond that was formed many centuries past continues to remain firmly intact today – the land, the river, our people – a bond of lasting respect and concern for each other.

Today, when we hear the word Nisqually, whether it is to designate our tribe, a river basin, a fort, a town or a newspaper, our thoughts stand at attention as we remember that for which it stands. WE WEAR OUR NAME PROUDLY!