Longtime language teacher, librarian retires

By Danielle Harrison

Smoke Signals editor

When asked what her favorite memory is after working 22 years for the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde, Kathy Cole doesn’t hesitate.

“Just the relationships that I’ve built with everyone throughout the years,” she said. “Some of the kids I taught in preschool, kindergarten and high school…just watching them grow up and come back to the Tribe…to continue to have that relationship with them. It’s been really rewarding and fulfilling. Even the kids that don’t come back to the Tribe, just watching them going out in the world and making a name for themselves is just very rewarding.”

Cole, a Tribal Elder, retired in February from her position as Tribal librarian due to family circumstances. She spent 22 years working for the Tribe in various capacities, with many of those years spent as a Chinuk Wawa language teacher, instructing students in preschool through adult classes.

Cole also worked at Chachalu Tribal Museum & Cultural Center as a cultural education specialist and museum director. Her last position was as the Tribe’s librarian, which she began in 2020, right at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I loved all of my jobs but that job was like the best of the best,” she said. “You still got to see all the kids and the Elders, it was great.”

Her favorite memories of working at the library include compiling the summer reading packets, having events such as Blind Date with a Book and hosting different performers.

“The reading packets were a lot of work but people loved it,” Cole said. “It connected them to the library because they had to come to the library to pick up their packets. That was something we started during COVID because we weren’t open for in-person visits, so it was something we could provide. … The performances helped connect people to literacy. … Giving books away, getting those into people’s hands, just made me really happy.”

A major highlight was when Cole won a top librarian national contest for an all-expenses paid trip to Boston to meet with children’s author Jeff Kinney, known for his mega-bestselling “Diary of a Wimpy Kid,” series.

Although her granddaughter’s illness resulted in Cole canceling the originally scheduled trip to Boston in June 2024, she was able to go with her son, Chris, later that summer after Kinney arranged a make-up visit.

Cole was nominated for the top librarian honor by Tribal Family Partnership Coordinator Rebecca Ambrose.

When Ambrose heard Cole was retiring, she emailed Smoke Signals the following statement.

“I’m going back through my emails and finally found that initial form I sent to nominate Kathy Cole for the ‘Diary of the Wimpy Kid’ All-Star Librarian contest,” she said. “Her services to the Tribal Library will continue to inspire Chinuk Wawa language revitalization and future generations.”

Shawash-iliʔi Skul (Chinuk Wawa School) Administrator Justine Flynn first met Cole through her grandmother, Tribal Elder Jackie Whisler, who started Chinuk Wawa classes at the Tribe and walked on in 2007.

“I met her when I was young and she was the kindergarten teacher for my brother,” Flynn said. “She taught the high school Chinuk Wawa class, my sister was in the first class that went through (the program). She was very good friends with my grandma. Then I worked with Kathy when I first came back and worked with the language program.”

Flynn said that Cole has, “given her career to the Tribe in many different capacities.”

“She was instrumental in getting the (Chinuk Wawa) dictionary together,” she said. “She was integral in working with language and being a teacher. … She also served as the director of Chachalu, she’s always had her hand in education and always around youth. When she came back to the library, I think she found her niche a little bit and really jumped into that and tried to get the community engaged and visiting the library.”

Flynn added that many of the staff who work for the Shawash-iliʔi Skul have a close relationship with Kathy.

“We will still continue to work with her and engage with her in language because that’s kind of where her passion has always been,” she said. “She’s always been in a role where she’s in service to the community and she does that thanklessly. I wanted to acknowledge how much work she’s done and how much she’s contributed.”

Tribal Library Aide Crystal Bigelow worked with Cole for several years and said she has a passion for Tribal culture.

“(It was) evident in everything she did at the library,” Bigelow said. “She had a vision to weave our culture, history and language into the library’s programs, decor and collection. She has a passion for working with kids and brought so many engaging story times to our little ones. She wanted to make a connection with the kids so they would enjoy coming to the library and want to come back for years to come. Through her dedication, books were translated and new ones were written; because of this, our people now have access to cultural stories.”

She continued, “I learned so much from her, not only about our history and culture, but also about the impact a person can have on a community. It was truly a joy to work with Kathy, someone so devoted to building up the library as a center for our people. Whether helping a child find their new favorite book, supporting a colleague or welcoming our Elders into the library, she made the library an inviting place.”

When asked what her retirement plans were, Cole said she wasn’t quite sure.

“I don’t feel like I’m done,” she said. “I feel like I still have stuff to give and there are still things I can do. I just haven’t decided which route to take yet.”