| Folk Arts - Master Artist - Virginia Beavert
Virginia Beavert, of Toppenish, Washington, is one of few Native Americans who still practice and teach Waashat religious practices. She is the only surviving elder of the Yakama who knows the sacred songs and parables of the Waashat. She learned Waashat traditions from her family and family friends, particularly from her great-grandmother and her mother, who she describes as a phenomenal woman who lived to be 103-years-old. Beavert has consistently acted as a leader and teacher, serving as a member of the Yakama Nation and the General Tribal Council. She has received numerous fellowships, among them one from the Smithsonian Institute and another from Dartmouth College. Her work includes the completion and publication of her late stepfather’s project, a Yakama-Sahaptin language dictionary, the first of its kind. Beavert holds a Bachelor of Anthropology degree from Central Washington University and a Master of Education degree in Bilingual and Bicultural Education from the University of Arizona. She teaches the Sahaptin language at Heritage College.
As the recipient of a 1996 Folk Arts Apprenticeship grant, Beavert had the opportunity to take on an apprentice, Rudolph A. Saluskin, also from Toppenish. Saluskin, who attended Longhouse services from childhood, was taught sacred Waashat drumming, songs, and ceremonies. Through a second Apprenticeship grant in 1998, Beavert worked again with Saluskin and continued to pass on drumming, songs, and other traditions.
In 2005, Beavert received Washington State's highest artistic honor as the recipient of a Governor's Heritage Award.
In 2008, Beavert was awarded a third Apprenticeship grant. For this apprenticeship she will work with Edward James. She will teach James Sahaptin language and storytelling techniques. To preserve Sahaptin language and its stories for future generations, they plan to develop adaptations of traditional legends for children and to offer those tellings on DVD. | |||
