Debra Gruszecki • The Desert Sun
Anthony J. Andreas Jr., a former vice chairman of the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians and who was described in 2004 as the eldest living descendent of the Pai-nik-tem clan of Cahuilla Indians, died Tuesday.
In fitting form, the funeral will be held next weekend at Andreas Ranch.
“It holds special memories for us,” said Antoinette Saubel, one of six daughters of the Andreas family that also includes three brothers.
With its palm-covered palapas and Western look, Andreas Ranch was a tranquil reprieve near the mouth of Andreas Canyon - a spot the Pai-nik-tem or “early morning” clan settled many centuries ago - that hosted fiestas, cultural exchanges, basket-weaving and events to preserve and carry on the Cahuilla Indian ceremonial bird songs.
Andreas, whom some knew as Biff, called the ranch a safe haven. It had its own bird-singing corral.
“He was all about community, about keeping the culture going as much as he could,” said O’Jay Vanegas, director of education for the Agua Caliente Cultural Museum. “He was very significant in revitalizing bird singing, and with Matt and Gene Pablo, bringing it back to Palm Springs and the Morongo area.”
Andreas learned the Cahuilla Indian bird songs from Joseph Patencio.
Joe Benitez, a tribal elder of the Cabazon Band of Mission Indians, said Andreas was very involved in his heritage and was a leader in teaching young men of the reservation the bird songs and the Cahuilla culture.
“He was very cognizant of who he was, what he was and what he could give to his heritage,” Benitez said. “That’s very honorable for him.”
In recent years, Andreas had been invited to sit on the board for the Native American Land Conservancy. He also opposed an initial plan to place the Agua Caliente Cultural Museum in Andreas Canyon, arguing the ancestral homeland was sacred.
In 2005, a new site for the museum was announced just east of downtown Palm Springs.
“The whole point was to conserve and preserve the entire area,” said Vanegas, a bird singer himself. “To us, he is an icon: If you’re in a bird singing community now, how you got there was because of Tony.”
Ernie Siva, founder of the Dorothy Ramone Learning Center, said Andreas also learned the songs through his grandmother.
“She would sing to them when they were kids,” Siva recalled. “He said, they’d go to sleep under the stars, and she’d sing and tell stories to them.”
Siva said Andreas loved the Cahuilla language and songs of creation so much that he built a spot on his ranch exclusively for bird singing.
“He was one of the first to pick up the ball, so to speak, when the bird songs were dying out,” he said.
Ginger Ridgway, curator and director of programs at the Agua Caliente Cultural Museum, said Andreas was active with the museum since its inception.
“He was very involved with our design of the permanent exhibit for the new building,” she said. “He knew the traditional ways.”
Debra Gruszecki covers business and Indian gaming for The Desert Sun. She can be reached at Debra.Gruszecki@thedesertsun.com or at (760) 778-4643.
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