KWSO Friday Morning News: Remembrance of Chief Joseph Moses, Local Community Events, Wildfire & Air Quality Updates, and El Niño Drought Concerns

The Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs are mourning the loss of Paiute Chief Joseph Moses, who passed away on Thursday after dedicating decades to public service, including three terms on Tribal Council and serving as Paiute Chief since July 2001. Chief Moses’s long legacy of tribal leadership extended well beyond Warm Springs, as he advocated statewide for Native American educators in public schools and served on the Sapsik’wala Advisory Council at the University of Oregon. His life work focused heavily on expanding youth development, supporting regional native students, and advancing tribal gaming and enterprise boards. Funeral services begin Monday, August 31, at 1:30 p.m. with a dressing at the Agency Longhouse, followed by open denomination services, dinner at 5:30 p.m., and Washut services at 7 p.m.; burial will take place Tuesday morning at Simnasho Cemetery following a 7 a.m. breakfast and 9 a.m. procession.The Warm Springs Thursday Market hosted another successful event at the Campus Pavilion, featuring a free clothing, toy, and household item giveaway hosted by Emergency Management, along with a visit from Warm Springs Little League regarding upcoming board elections; two weeks remain in the season, with the final market scheduled for September 10th. Additionally, Early Childhood Education is gearing up for the school year and accepting applications for Head Start, while next week’s market will feature a clothing giveaway from the Mount Hood Meadows and Mt. Hood Meadows Loss and Found collection.The CTWS Higher Education Office reported that 72 applicants for the Oregon Tribal Student Grant currently have incomplete submissions, mostly missing Tribal Enrollment Verification forms or FAFSA paperwork, with six students yet to apply at all. Applicants are urged to verify their status online immediately to ensure funding is secured prior to the September 30 deadline.About 20 local youth wrapped up the season with a Warm Springs Community Center field trip to Langer’s Entertainment Center in Sherwood, where they enjoyed arcade games, neon bowling, and rock climbing. Organizer Carol Sahme noted that the outings give local youth a chance to experience new activities and build lasting memories, with the next planned trip being the annual Pumpkin Patch adventure in October.An Air Quality Advisory remains in effect through noon Friday for Warm Springs and the surrounding region as lingering smoke from regional wildfires creates potentially unhealthy conditions. Residents are advised to limit strenuous outdoor activity, with children and individuals with heart or lung conditions encouraged to take extra precautions.The nearby Austin Fire, burning roughly 35 miles southeast of Estacada and 5 to 7 miles west of the Warm Springs Reservation, has expanded to an estimated 9,823 acres. Aerial operations resumed Thursday after morning inversions cleared, allowing helicopter crews to drop over 22,200 gallons of water to support ground crews working on containment lines.With 91 percent of Oregon currently experiencing drought, water managers express concern that a forecasted strong El Niño could lead to warmer winter temperatures and early snowpack melt, according to Jason Cox of the Oregon Water Resources Department as reported by KLCC’s Zac Ziegler. Cox warned, “The watchout in either scenario, when you have the warmer-than-usual winter, is that the snowpack melts off earlier than usual,” threatening lower water availability for the state next summer.Oregon State Senator Todd Nash, who represents Warm Springs in the legislature, recently led a bipartisan tour of Eastern Oregon housing projects to help shape future rural housing policy following the defeat of his previous development bill. Expressing his vision for local control, Nash stated, “In the end, I really like decisions to be made locally,” citing successful developments like a 99-home subdivision in Stanfield as a potential model.Oregonians are reminded that the deadline to register to vote in the upcoming election is October 13. State residents who are U.S. citizens and at least 16 years old can register or update their voter details online at oregonvotes.gov, though voters must be 18 to receive a ballot.Central Oregon will see sunny weather through the weekend with highs in the mid-70s to mid-80s, cooler breezy conditions on Saturday, and a return to the upper 80s by Monday. Expect lingering smoke through Saturday afternoon alongside northwest wind gusts reaching up to 30 mph.