POCATELLO-Olympian Suzy Chaffee wants to give back to the people she says have shaped her life.

Chaffee said she fell in love with American Indian culture when her father would tell her stories he heard while fishing with Indians in Canada. Her first ski coach, who showed her the way to downhill race in the 1968 Olympics, was Abenaki Indian Joe Jones.

That is why Chaffee, co-founded the Native American Olympic Team Foundation, an organization that uses sports to bridge culture gaps and help American Indian youth.

"She's been able to open many doors to the Native Americans," said Native American 2002 cultural consultant and spokesperson Rose Ann Abrahamson.

Chaffee, along with Indian tribes in Colorado, Utah, Washington, Oregon and Idaho, has been hosting healing ceremonies at ski areas across the West. In the ceremonies, tribal members dance and bless the ski mountain. In exchange for the blessing, Chaffee teaches the singers and dancers to ski.

The ceremony, Chaffee said, helps people understand nature in a different way.

"These are the guardians of Mother Earth, " she said, "When we did the mountain blessing, people said they saw the mountain in a different light."

Recently, members of the Shoshone-Bannock tribes and others took part in a healing ceremony at the opening of the World Cup ski races in Park City, Utah. The ceremony, Chaffee said, will help show the Salt Lake Olympic Committee the importance of Indian culture in Olympic ceremonies.

"It's all been talk for five years and now we had an event at an Olympic site," she said. "If people don't have any experience with Native Americans, that beginning is crucial. For two cultures that haven't been together for 400 years, this is big."

After the huge success of showcasing Aboriginal culture on the 2000- Olympics, the Salt Lake Olympic Committee is looking to include Indian culture in their events.

Although things are sill in the planning stages, Abrahamson said Native American 2002 and the Salt Lake Olympic Committee are making great progress.

Adding an Indian touch to the Olympics will be popular for many Europeans, who love the culture of the West, Abrahamson said.

"No.1, they want to see the Indians. No. 2 they want to see the West," she said.

Chaffee sees the Olympics as a chance for the United States and Indians to bridge communication gaps.

"Here we can bring American together. This is a great opportunity for our country," she said.

Suzy Chaffee, left, and Rose Ann Abrahamson, right, are working together to include American Indian traditions in Olympic ceremonies.

Idaho State Journal, Thursday, November 30, 2000

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