Nika Bartoo-Smith
ICT + Underscore Native News
Citizens of the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians, joined by elected officials from both the tribe and the city of Salem, gathered to celebrate the opening of Kloshe Illahee Haws affordable housing project on Sept. 29 in Salem, Oregon.
With a ceremonial ribbon cutting, they opened the 39-unit affordable housing development project, built on 8.8 acres of trust land.
Three Siletz citizens started the event by offering a hand drum song, with a prayer from tribal council member Loraine Butler that followed, as the skies welcomed the crowd with a light misting of rain.
“These lands were walked by our ancestors,” said Delores Pigsley, chairman of the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians. “‘Kloshe Illahee Haws’ means ‘Good Valley Homes.’ These were built for our people to be able to provide low income and affordable housing.”
The units include four-bedroom, three-bedroom and two-bedroom homes, with half of the units reserved for residents who make below 80 percent of the median income, meaning their rent payments will not exceed 15 percent of their adjusted monthly household income.
Construction of Kloshe Illahee Haws began in 2021 after Siletz secured funding, including money from the Indian Housing Block Grant, through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and Tribal resources.
The project, four years in the making, began with listening to the needs of community members and a directive from tribal council, according to Sami Jo Difuntorum, housing executive director for Siletz.
“[Tribal council] said, ‘We need to build and bring our people home.’ I thought that meant Siletz, but the longer I worked here, the more I understood Siletz people were in a lot of places, and our second largest population center is actually here,” Difuntorum, a citizen of the Shasta Indian Nation, said. “So we started focusing on how to bring services, and particularly in housing, to where people actually live.”
For Vera Vasquez, Siletz, Kloshe Illahee Haws is a chance for housing security after years of struggling, including experiencing being unhoused.
“It means my son gets to stay in the same school, my brother and my kids and I will have a safe, stable home,” Vasquez said, her daughter shedding tears and smiling at her from the audience. “What I’m excited about the most, though, is the community. I felt isolated at times from my Siltez people, but now I’ll be surrounded by other tribal members.”
Salem has always been home for Vasquez. Her grandparents first moved to the city for work in the late 1970s. She described a childhood deeply impacted by assimilation, and her journey to reconnect to her culture for her kids.
Preparing to move into her new four-bedroom home later this week, Vasquez is excited about the opportunities to help create a community garden, and learn about first foods and take classes like regalia making at the tribal offices nearby.
“It’s been a long, hard road, I’ll tell you that,” Vasquez said.
Four people were squeezed into two-bedrooms where they lived before. Now each of her kids will have their own room.
“I’ve been paying $1,450 for a two-bedroom in a dump,” Vasquez said. “So a brand new home nobody’s ever visited? That’s incredible.”
As community members toured some of the new housing units, Vasquez and her three children led the way to the house that will soon be theirs. Vasquez pointed out which kid would get each room as her son danced in excitement in the living room in his socks.
“This housing is more than just a roof and four walls,” Vasquez said. “It’s an opportunity to heal, reconnect and grow. It’s a chance for my family and I to thrive as tribal members in our own community.”
