As one of the few fluent speakers of Sahaptin, Neda Wesley, a member of the Warm Springs Tribes of Oregon, serves a key role on the reservation.

Wesley, 70, is the tribe's last "echo." She translates ceremonies into the Sahaptin language so the words can be understood by the creator.

“For her to speak it in our native language, is to tell the creator, we are still native,” Brent Florendo, a tribal member, told The Bend Bulletin.

Wesley was forbidden from speaking Sahaptin at boarding school but she held onto the language and became the tribe's echo 18 years ago. She's not sure who will replace her when she passes on.

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Warm Springs tribes face loss of a sacred burial rite (The Bend Bulletin 9/2)