LAPUSH — Frederick “Sonny” Woodruff, a Quileute elder and former chairman of the Tribal Council who 20 years ago helped revive the tradition of canoe journeys into the annual event they are today died of a heart attack Saturday.
Mr. Woodruff died at the age of 58 in Seattle.
“Sonny’s contributions to the revival of the Tribal Canoe Journeys 20 years ago were instrumental to its current-day success,” said Jackie Jacobs, tribal publicist.
In July, during this year’s Tribal Canoe Journey, Mr. Woodruff called the event a “rebirth of our culture.”
Tribal Chairwoman Carol Hatch, Mr. Woodruff’s niece, praised her uncle for his work with the younger members of the tribe.
“Sonny was a strong leader and mentor for our youth, encouraging them to walk a clean, alcohol-drug-free path,” Hatch said.
“He understood the significance and importance of sharing our cultural and spiritual values with the younger generations, so they would always have a solid foundation from which to stand.
“In addition, he was dedicated to teaching our tribal organizations to respect and embrace traditional, ancestral protocol.”
Mr. Woodruff was committed to blending traditional and contemporary life, the Quileute tribe said in a prepared statement.
“He was everything to our tribe,” said his niece, Bonita Cleveland, vice chairwoman of the Quileute Tribal Council.
“We were so close, like brother and sister. We grew up together, and I have never known anyone like him.
“He never, ever asked for a thing, but always gave recognition to all. He was a strong leader, someone who made sure all things were right.”
Memorial service
A memorial service will be held at noon Thursday in the A-Ka-Lat Center in LaPush.
A traditional dinner and burial will follow. Harper Ridgeview Funeral Chapel in Port Angeles will handle the arrangements.
In addition to reviving canoe journey traditions, Mr. Woodruff, a Forks High School graduate, also worked to retain the tribal culture at the weekly Wednesday night healing drum circles at the A-Ka-Lat Center, the tribe’s statement said.
Cleveland said that Mr. Woodruff believed strongly in youth, and in the importance of using Quileute culture as a way to help young people heal and move to a more stable life.
He helped many young people work through addictions to drugs and alcohol, she said.
In addition to his tenure as Tribal Council chairman, Mr. Woodruff served on the Quileute Tribal School Board, the Quileute Housing Board, the Fisheries Committee, the Tribal Planning Board, the Cultural Committee and as a natural resource policy representative for the Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission.
He was a fisherman who often used a dugout cedar canoe and was master operator of heavy equipment.
Mr. Woodruff was preceded in death by his parents, Fred Woodruff Sr. and Sarah Hines Woodruff, his brother, Doug Woodruff, and his sisters, Pearl Conlow and Shirley Cleveland.
Mr. Woodruff is survived by his wife, Jill Woodruff; two sons, Dakwa Woodruff and Rick Woodruff; three daughters, Sharrah Woodruff, Brandy Woodruff and Maria Erickson; one brother, Russell Woodruff; five sisters, Pat Matson, Delores Woodruff, Bertha Wallstedt, Mary Eastman and Donna Jamie; and numerous nieces, nephews and grandchildren.
For more information about the memorial service, phone the Quileute Tribal Center at 360-374-6163.
