BY GARRET JAROS/YachatsNews
Revered for his passion and commitment to the Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw – Chief Donald ‘Doc’ Slyter, who also served as a bridge to healing with the Yachats community – died Saturday surrounded by family at his home in Coos Bay. He was 72.
Slyter had been diagnosed and under treatment for esophageal cancer since in 2021.
Slyter was of the Hanis Coos band. His lifelong involvement with the Confederated Tribes gave him the opportunity to witness the tribe’s return to recognized status in 1984, followed by 39 years of growth and success.
“His lifelong perseverance, up until the very end, would certainly make our ancestral Warriors proud,” read a statement on the tribe’s website. “Never one to back down or admit defeat, he fought for what he believed was right.”
He was an outstanding chief, said Yachats resident Joanne Kittel, who Slyter made an honorary tribal member last spring. Their relationship began in 2009 when Slyter came for the first time to the Amanda Trail and in 2022 when he brought 30 other tribal members for its official dedication.
“He played his flute at the Amanda bridge and it was a precious and intimate moment,” Kittel said. “And from that point on we became very good friends, as I did with his wife, Debbie. And he became, over time, a very close friend with the community of Yachats.”
Chief Slyter became a huge advocate of the Amanda Trail, attending every peace hike until his cancer diagnosis in 2021. He also did presentations in Yachats, sometimes with Kittel, about his ancestor’s history, the culture of his tribes, the cruelties at the U.S. Army’s Alsea Sub-Agency in Yachats, and forced marches memorialized by the Amanda Trail.
“He was able in a very loving and open way to convey the pain that he continued to carry as a result of the genocide of his ancestors,” Kittel said. “And he was also able to lead a number of his tribal members to reconcile with the Yachats community by saying the Amanda Trail was not only a solemn and spiritual trail, but had become a healing trail too. And he sincerely meant that from his heart.”
Slyter went beyond making Kittel an honorary tribal member, one of only two in the last 39 years, during the Governor’s Conference on Tourism last spring.
“It is one of my most precious memories,” Kittel said. “He reached out and held my hand and said ‘But more importantly, Joanne is my sister.’ And that was an incredible moment for me. And he was my brother, we were that close.”
Slyter was born on May 25, 1951. He served in the Army and in Vietnam. After that he worked with the tribe and for the telephone company until his retirement. He ran unopposed and was elected chief in 2020 “because everyone wanted him to be chief,” Kittel said. He also served twice on tribal council.
Slyter is survived by his wife of 50 years, Debbie; sons Tyler and Scott; one grandson and two step-grandchildren.
“He was an incredibly important person in my life and the Yachats community, and his tribes and throughout the state and beyond,” Kittel said. “He was an incredible human being. I will miss him forever.”
The family has not yet announced any memorial gathering.
Joanne you will never be without his Spirit! You and He had quite the connection. So sorry for the loss of your friend.