Teri Goode, of the San Carlos Apache Reservation, is the only remaining weaver of traditional Western Apache coiled baskets. She learned from her mother and her grandmother, Adella Telto, a descendant of Geronimo. She weaves her coiled baskets of sumac (tiin kushii a - Òsour waterÓ), devils claw (baii - ÒmilkÓ as the chewed seeds are said to taste like milk), wild mulberry (ith tee - ÔgunÕ -because it was also used for making bows), and redbud. The harvesting of materials has to be done during the fall months. She was able to harvest materials last year and store them. She is also planting her own devils claw because they are very hard to find due to the drought situation in Arizona. She broke both wrists in an auto accident in 2003 and only resumed coiled basketry this year (2011). We are committed to buying her work in order to support her commitment to keeping the tradition of Apache coiled basketry alive for another generation. Look for her work in the Apache section!

Entitled The Hunt, Terri began this olla in May of this year, sometimes putting in 12 hr days. It measures about 16 inches high and just over 16 inches across. It tells the story (beginning at the bottom, of the people in the village praying for a successful hunt. Above are the mountains and above that the deer and the hunters, with their bows and arrows. Above that the mountains again, from which they return and a successful hunt. Through Terri's skill, vision and dedication, one of the largest Apache coiled basketry ollas in many decades has been completed.This piece is no longer available: it will shortly be a part of the collection at the Arizona State Museum,For more fine examples of her work, go to the Apache Basket Gallery

Terri Goode and her completed Olla.