"My Tlingit name is Kaat a shann. My clan is the Red Sockeye from Chilkoot, and my tribe is the Raven. I was born Nov. 22, 1933, in Skagway. I grew up there, and I thought it was an advantage. I caught lots of fish in Skagway. I just loved that fish, the coho and dogs. I didn't realize till I came to Haines that the fish I ate was junk. The fish in Haines were premium, absolutely the best.

My father was Paul Wilson Sr., and his name was Dax tunk. He's from the Gaa hit House in Klukwan. My mother was Nancy Dennis; her Tlingit name was Tees Kaa. My father and mother's heritage was very rich, and I never realized it. My father was from kind of a chief heritage. He was way up there, but neither of my parents dwelled on anything like that. Culturally, I saw the artifacts, but they didn't mean anything to me. Here I had the very best grass roots you could have, and I didn't know it.

After I moved to Haines, I got introduced to the Tlingit culture and found out the way it's structured and the history. I virtually missed the boat being in Skagway. I didn't know how rich our culture was and am still trying to catch up. The way to really catch up is to speak the language. The Tlingit language tells the story much better than English. When you translate it to English it loses the spirit behind it. I don't know how to say it, but that's the way the old folks are. In their own culture, they are the very best."

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PAUL WILSON JR.: Southeast blood (The Anchorage Daily News 5/28)
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