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Korean War veteran and Lingít culture bearer Ray Wilson passes away at 93
Dance group leader remembers him during Southeast Alaska Native Veterans Day ceremony, says his knowledge will live on in future generations
By Jasz Garrett
Juneau Independent
A wreath traditionally laid by Lingít elder Dr. Aanyáanáx̱ Ray Wilson was placed instead by Marcelo Quinto at the annual Southeast Alaska Native Veterans Day ceremony on Wednesday. Wilson passed away on Monday.
“He was a part of this tradition for many years,” said Southeast Alaska Native Veterans Cmdr. Ozzie Sheakley, noting the wreath-laying is done by the eldest veteran present.
He said he checked on Wilson every month. No matter how Wilson was feeling, he always showed up to the Veterans Day ceremony, Sheakley said. He said he will be missed.
Wilson, 93, was a Kiks.ádi clan leader of the Raven moiety G̱agaan Hít (Sun House) and a culture bearer. He was born in Hoonah and passed away in Juneau with his family present. A celebration of life is scheduled by the family for Sunday afternoon at the Juneau Tlingit and Haida Community Council building located near the hospital.
The event description encourages attendees to bring sides, drinks or desserts to the potluck reception.
“Dr. Wilson dedicated his life to preserving, strengthening and sharing Lingít language, culture and traditions. Despite experiencing discrimination and the challenges faced by generations of Alaska Native people, he remained steadfast in his commitment to ensuring our cultural knowledge and ways of life would endure,” a Facebook post Tuesday by the Central Council of the Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska states.
Wilson was a strong supporter of the Lingít language being revitalized through music. He devoted more than 25 years to the Lda Kut Naax Sati Yatx’i (All Nations’ Children) dance group and the Yaaw Tei Yi (Herring Rock) dance group.
The Yaaw Tei Yi dance leader Andy Ebona said Wednesday he decided not to move forward with a planned Veterans Day performance in honor of Wilson’s memory.
“Today because he passed, and because our group was founded by the Kiks.ádi, we don’t sing happy songs because of his passing for up to 40 days and sometimes up to a year,” Ebona explained. “That’s culturally what we have to do — all of the clan members — out of respect for him and his participation with us.”
Ebona said the dance group has performed at the Veterans Day ceremony for many years and is also asked by the Southeast Alaska Native Veterans to perform on Memorial Day.
“We really appreciate it because obviously I’m a veteran, and we have several members in our dance group that are veterans, and so the invitations here are pretty important for us,” he said. Ebona is a U.S. Navy veteran and served just over four years at Naval Air Station Lemoore in California during the Vietnam War as an aircraft engine mechanic.
He said the dance group is primarily the Kiks.ádi clan, but they also sing and dance Lingít songs from other clans.
“Whenever we sing a song from another clan, we have to thank them for allowing us to use their song,” Ebona said. “So it’s a way of teaching respect for other clans that we sing their songs and we thank them for it. That’s part of the cultural teachings that people like Ray have taught us.”
He said Wilson taught young people traditional dance, songs and cultural protocols, often by bringing cultural knowledge into schools.
Ebona said both he and Wilson began involvement with the dance group when it was created in 2000. Since then Yaaw Tei Yi has performed at every Celebration in Juneau, across the state, the country and overseas. Wilson’s last dance performances with Yaaw Tei Yi were on Memorial Day and Celebration this year, Ebona said.
“I think that the primary responsibility of our group was to be able to pass on the culture and the dances and the language to young people,” Ebona said. “So we have a lot of younger people that participate with us and a few elders, including myself. And so we think it’s important for us to be able to teach young people so that we can carry on the culture into the future.”
He added Wilson was heavily involved in helping the dance group leaders of Lda Kut Naax Sati Yatx’i to teach young children how to take over their role in the future.
Ebona said one of his favorite memories with Wilson was a trip they took to Washington, D.C., when they performed for former President Barack Obama’s inauguration.
“We did a performance at one of their banquets. There was some other dance groups that were there from other tribes, and they had an elder get up and he was dancing and showing off. And Ray looked at that, and he got up, and he went up on stage and he did his portion,” Ebona recalled. “He danced really great and everybody cheered him. We really enjoyed that when he did that, because he demonstrated that Tlingit people are still carrying on their culture as well.”
His cultural work expanded beyond Southeast in other ways.
Wilson worked with the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History and the American Museum of Natural History to restore a sacred Kiks.ádi sculpin hat.
He was also instrumental in efforts to repatriate the Raven helmet of K’alyáan, the Kiks.ádi warrior who led his people in the Battle of Sitka in 1804, according to Tlingit and Haida’s Facebook post.
“As a U.S. Army veteran himself, his dedication to bringing home the helmet of a warrior who defended his people and homeland more than two centuries earlier carried special significance. Through these efforts, he honored the sacrifices of his ancestors and the responsibility to preserve their legacy for future generations,” the post states.
In May, Wilson received an honorary doctorate from the University of Alaska Southeast for his role as a culture bearer in community and education.
“We started calling him doctor,” Sheakley said with a smile.
He was also presented with a Charlie Joseph Sr. (Kaal.ātk’) Award by Shee Atiká during a Veterans Totem Pole unveiling ceremony in June, which recognized his preservation of traditional knowledge and sharing cultural values.
“Throughout his life, Dr. Wilson led with humility, generosity, humor and an unwavering love for his people. His greatest legacy lives in the generations of young people he mentored, the cultural knowledge he helped preserve and the countless lives he touched,” Tlingit and Haida wrote.
• Contact Jasz Garrett at jasz@juneauindependent.com or 907-723-9356.
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