Silas Caleb Whitman, of Lapwai, entered into rest on Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024. Born in Lewiston on Jan. 30, 1942, to Nellie Ezekiel Gray and Caleb “Tony” Whitman, “Si” spent his remaining days being cared for by loved ones at home.
He grew up ranching on family land in Tutuilla, Ore., a small community just outside of the city of Pendleton. It was here where Si connected with his cultural and familial ties to the Cayuse, Umatilla and Yakama.
As a member of the Nez Perce Tribe, Si carried three names Tu’psluk’upsíimey “Governed By North Star,” Sáplis ‘ilp ‘ilp “Red Whirlwind,” and Himíin kúckuc “Little Wolf” — names given by various elders based on personal qualities, lineage and suggested roles.
During his late teens, Si relocated to the Nez Perce Reservation and lived in Lapwai, where he finished high school and worked service industry jobs in Lewiston.
In the years that followed, he played Lewis-Clark State College baseball, trained in boxing, managed the Strokin’ T’s baseball team and danced pow-wow. He played the keys for a local blues band with his uncle Roy White and cousins Del White and Leroy Seth, all of Lapwai, and all of whom would become lifelong collaborators. These cross-cultural experiences cultivated a distinct interest in education, tribal relations, activism and bridge-building across various communities.
After studies at Portland Business College, Lewis-Clark Normal School and the University of Idaho, Si grew as a business owner, consultant and cultural advocate. Si spent the 1970s and ’80s working for various tribal groups such as the Nez Perce Tribe, the Muckleshoot Tribe of Washington, and other tribes of the plains and southwest. This led him to the role of executive director for the National Congress of American Indians in Washington, D.C., where he worked to heighten visibility of tribal needs and relations at the federal level.
Work would eventually lead him back to the west coast, and then the Nez Perce Tribe. He began managing the Nez Perce Tribe’s Department of Fisheries Resource Management and collaborated with tribes across the Pacific Northwest, and fostered discussion among rural and urban communities around watershed and salmon restoration.
Later in his career he worked as an independent consultant in Portland, Ore., a business owner in Las Vegas, and ultimately returned home and served as chairman of the Nez Perce Tribe. He also served as co-founder or board member to various cultural and natural resource organizations within traditional Nez Perce homelands in Idaho and eastern Oregon.
Si cherished his final work with esteemed peers as chair of the Tribe’s Circle of Elders, and held a seat on the Nez Perce Athletic Commission. Such lifework granted him an honorary doctorate from the University of Idaho and a Lifetime Achievement Award from Lewis-Clark State College.
Silas is survived by daughters Ermith Whitman, Yvette Whitman, Patricia Whitman, Koni Kincaid, Jonelle (Jack) Yearout and Roberta Whitman; sons Ezra Whitman and Bradon Parker; grandchildren Taricia Moliga, Celiisa Allena Booker, Thyais Whitman, Cyra Cunningham, Cobi Bisbee, Derek Joseph-Emanuel Acosta, Morgan Alexis Kincaid, Gabriela Whitman, Tayen Parker, Mercedes Villalobos, Diamond Villalobos, Darek Whitman, Arlen Whitman, Seth Whitman, Jaice William Wata’aspa Penney, Abigail Whitman, DaviJo Whitman, Dawson Whitman, Josie Yearout and Tinahsa Yearout. He is preceded in death by son Marc Whitman and daughter Letitia Whitman. Just as precious is the list of extended family who called him dad, uncle, brother and mentor.
Malcom’s Brower-Wann Funeral Home of Lewiston is in charge of arrangements with dressing and viewing taking place at 11 a.m. Thursday, Oct. 3, at that location. Wahlàsat services will take place at 7 p.m. at the Nez Perce Longhouse on the same date. Sunrise service is scheduled for 6:50 a.m. Friday, Oct. 4, at the Longhouse, with burial immediately after at Spalding Cemetery located in the Nez Perce National Historical Park.
