Elwha Watershed Information Resource

Sports are a very important part of the Tribe’s modern culture, and both youth and adults alike are very active in sports. The Lower Elwha Gymnasium is open Monday through Friday and provides a place for people of all ages to enjoy sports. In Elwha, sports often become community-wide events. 

Youth 

The Elwha youth patricipate in a wide variety of sports. One sport is the YMCA basketball. The youth must sign up as individuals. The Tribe cannot create their own teams and submit them. At Port Angeles High School, basketball, fastpitch softball, and soccer are the sports that are offered. There are boys on the basketball team at the Port Angeles High School team which is in the AAA-Division. It is very competitive to get into that league. There are also youth that play on the football and basketball teams at Crescent High School in Joyce, WA. Joyce is a school near the upper part of the reservation. There is also a girls' fastpitch softball team coached by a tribal member and the Tribe's head of maintenance, Warren Stevens. Warren's team includes his daughter Janessa Stevens and another tribal member named Sonya Elofson. Their team went to the world series twice!

The Elwha Youth Council was also very active in planning events. For example, in 2001 they raised money along with the Tribal Council to go to a United National Indian Tribal Youth National Conference in Seattle. 

Adults 

As for adults, men and women participate in sports as well.  Currently the men participate in the Port Angeles Parks & Recreation's City League Basketball at the Elwha Systems of Care and Softball Leagues as the Young Gunz. Women currently compete in Women's Softball as the Elwha Bravettes as well as in softball tournaments held by other tribes such as a tournament in Yakima, Chehalis' Treaty Days Tournament, and Nationals which is a tournament put on by the Quinault Tribe's Jessie Stevens.  There is also a co-ed volleyball league and a co-ed softball league in the city in which members of the Tribe participate. During Makah Days the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe usually submits 3-4 teams. For the most part, people organize their own teams, but the Tribe also can sponsor them. If not financially, they especially sponsor them morally.

There are two tribal teams that usually attend Chehalis' Treaty Days Tournament. There are multiple leagues, and they typically participate in two of the leagues. The Elwha Bravettes usually bring a team, and then there is a Co-Ed team that is put together. Pictured is the inter-tribal co-ed team put together by the Elwhas that won the tournament in 2007. Back Row from left to right: Joe Boyd, Wade Francis, Jeff Purser of the Port Gamble S'Klallam Tribe, Virgil Bennett, and Nick Charles. Bottom Row: Sonya, Nylene Charles, Ralena Charles, Keeoma Messenger, and Makah's Maressa Lammie Credit: Donated by Pat Bennett

Annual Tobacco-Free Family Softball Tournament 

One of the Tribe's sponsored recreation events is the Annual Tobacco-Free Family Softball Tournament. It is usually sponsored by the Tribe's Community Health Program which gets a tobacco grant, and coordinated by the Elwha Bravettes. The Elwha Bravettes receive sponsorship from the Tribe. This is how they pay back the community. This is not really a competitive tournament as it is a fun community event. The Community Health Program has t-shirts made, the Elwha Bravettes create the brackets, umpire the games, and prepare the barbeque. It is a great event that families look forward to attending every year. During the celebration, there are two awards given to two people who live healthy lifestyles. They must be active and drug and alcohol free. There are also awards given to celebrate the sobriety of tribal members. Then there are a lot of fun prizes raffled off at the end which include tickets to see the Seattle Mariners at Safeco Field.

A Vital Role

Sports play a vital role in the Lower Elwha Community. It is a way to keep the youth focused on an activity. It builds on teamwork, social skills, and leadership. It is also an incentive for students to keep their grades up in school, because in school sports a student must keep their grade point average above a 2.0.

Also, City League softball ends up being a great way to break into summer. Softball starts in April. Many families come out and support the softball teams as they compete against the other City League teams. This is a great way to build relationships with the other tribal members.

Sports within the area are mostly played within the City League, but there are a lot of sports teams that participate in tournaments that are held by other tribes. The prizes depend on who is throwing the tournament, and what they decide the prizes are.

Other Activities 

The modern canoe journeys have been an important source of recreation for the Tribe on many levels. The pullers practice a week or two before the journey begins, practicing paddling the canoe together and learning about things like proper water safety techniques. Community artists help decorate canoes, paddles, and outfits for the event. The Elwha Dance Group practices dances that will be performed at the post-journey potlatch. Members of the host tribe prepare welcoming speeches, in native languages such as Klallam, for the visitors. As the canoes pull towards the shore, helpers wade into the water to help bring the canoes up on the beach. The Tribes are proud that the canoe journeys are drug and alcohol free and that they have become a true family event with lots of tribal members in attendance.