Rachel Louise Boskey Knight

Yurok Tribal Elder Rachel Louise Boskey Knight, 101 years of age, passed away December 20, 2010 at her home on the Yurok Reservation at Weitchpec. Her parents were Margret Bosky and John Frank. Her brothers were Bill, Ray and Alfred. Her sisters were Effie and May. Her mother worked for the mine as a cook. Rachel was raised until the age of 5 by her grandma and medicine woman, Soney Boskey. There was a life changing incident at age 5 when she broke her leg on a washing tub. She was sent to the military hospital in Hoopa and was told to stay nearby for treatment. The Marshal family took her in during her recovery period. She had many fond memories during her stay with the Marshal family. About the age of 12, Rachel was sent, as most Native kids were at that time, to the Sherman Institute in Riverside, California. After graduating from there she was offered a 2 year scholarship to Redlands Christian College. The catch was she would have to study religion as her major. She wanted to continue with her education so she accepted the offer and graduated. After completing her educational goals she made her way north to San Francisco to look for a job. One obstacle for getting a job was her graduation certificate which read, "from Sherman Indian Institute." Many employers did not give her a job because they were skeptical of someone coming from an "institute." She did however get a job working for Sees Candy dipping chocolate. She was told that she could have all the chocolate she wanted for one week. After eating it for 2 days she understood why. She was sick of chocolate. She worked for the Hearst family for a while, and then eventually got a job working for the Russian Embassy. One of her duties was to take the dogs for a walk. She enjoyed taking them for walks in Golden Gate Park. A military policeman stopped her regularly to tell her dogs were not permitted on the park grounds. She continued walking them at the park. Apparently there was some kind of a connection between a military policeman and Rachel. They ended up having dinner together. Lawrence Knight married Rachel in 1937 and moved to the Presidio where they lived until moving back to Rachel's home, Weitchpec. They settled in and built their home in Weitchpec in 1940. She involved herself in improvement activities such as working on the national election board. She worked for the Yurok Tribe setting up the water system for new Weitchpec Village. She was a member of the Yurok Cultural Committee identifying ceremonial sites and grounds as well as village sites. She was an active participant in the Jessy Short Case. Another selfless task she involved herself with was testifying lineal descendantsy for tribal members. Throughout Rachel's adult life an enormous number of professional people; anthropologists, archaeologists, medical students, educators, college students, and tribal members as well as non tribal people came to her for historical and cultural information. She was always able to provide knowledge and understanding about Yurok tradition. Rachel is preceded in death by her husband Lawrence V. Knight and her son Larry Raymond Knight. She is survived by her two daughter, Marie Marye and Frances and husband Eddie Vedolla Sr.; grand children Victor Knight, Nina Lavender and husband Dunn Eggink, and Eddie Vedolia, Jr.; great grandchildren Julius Vedolla, Torreya Vedolla and Azariah Vedolla. Rachel has many nieces and nephews who live throughout the country that are too numerous to list. A Memorial Service will be held at the Yurok Tribal Facility starting at 1:00 pm, on Sunday, January 2, 2011. Care is under the direction of Paul's Chapel, 1070 H Street, Arcata, California. To leave condolences for the family, please visit www.pauls chapel.com Please sign the guest book at www.Times-Standard.com, click obits.