Experience the Spokane River like never before at the premiere of The River Speaks, an anthology film by Chase Ogden that shares the stories, history, and spirit of our river. Through a series of vivid vignettes, the film highlights the connection between people and the river, celebrating its role in the community and environment.
After the screening, join Chase Ogden and a panel of local voices for a discussion on the river’s past, present, and future. This is a unique chance to reflect on the river that shapes our region and learn more about efforts to protect it.
“Human presence in the Spokane region is now, and has always been, closely tied to the health of the Spokane River. Most, if not all, Spokanites are aware of this fact. Yet, few people know the history of the river, nor do they know the truth behind the challenges it currently faces.” - Chase Ogden
Event Details:
📅 Thursday, October 16th, 2025
🎟 Free admission
Doors open at 6:00pm, shows to start at 6:30pm. The film has a runtime of approximately 65 minutes.
Meet the Panelists:
Chase Odgen, Film Director & Professor. Chase is an educator and filmmaker from the great outdoors of the Pacific Northwest. He embraces all elements of production, and has been a part of hundreds of projects, including commercials, documentaries, music videos, narrative shorts, and narrative features. In May of 2011 he earned an MFA in film production from Chapman University. He specialize in post-production (motion graphic design, video editing, and sound design), but he also loves to shoot and direct.
Paul Lindholt, Author & Professor. In 2018 Paul Lindholdt originated, edited, and cowrote The Spokane River, which serves as foundation for the film you just saw. A professor in English at EWU, Paul dedicated all royalties to the Spokane Riverkeeper.
Margo Hill-Ferguson, JD, MURP, is a Spokane Tribal member and grew up on the Spokane Indian reservation. Dr. Hill served as the Spokane Tribal Attorney for over a decade and as a Coeur d’Alene Tribal Court Judge. Ms. Hill earned her Juris Doctorate from Gonzaga School of Law and her Master of Urban and Regional Planning from Eastern Washington University. Her bachelor's degree is in Political Science from University of Washington. Margo Hill is professor of Urban Planning at Eastern Washington University where she teaches Urban Planning classes and American Indian Law. Hill is Director of American Indian Studies. Margo Hill was awarded the Trustees' Medal which is the university's highest form of recognition for faculty achievement. This year She was selected as a Spokesman Review "Woman of the Year."
Hill is known for her Community Engagement, Environmental, and Murdered, Missing Indigenous Women Advocacy, and educating the community on tribal history, Federal Indian Law and Tribal Sovereignty.
Jerry White, Jr., Former Waterkeeper for Spokane Riverkeeper. Jerry was born in Corvallis, Oregon near the Willamette River. His family moved to Cheney where he grew up exploring the lakes, rivers and forests of the area. From a young age he was raised by wolves, trout, and herons along the Spokane River where they taught him to fish and hunt. He traveled each spring to fish for native Chinook salmon with his grandfather on the Willamette. Jerry has a long history of working to protect rivers in the Inland Northwest. As a former staff member of Save our Wild Salmon, Jerry advocated for the restoration and protection of native Snake River salmon and steelhead. He has worked for native trout as conservation chair and continues to volunteer for the Spokane Falls Chapter of Trout Unlimited as an Advisory Board Member. He loves to spend time on the Spokane River fly fishing for trout, rowing his drift boat, shooting one of his longbows or backcountry skiing on the very snow that feeds our River. Jerry has two kids and currently lives with his wife within earshot of the Spokane River.
Vanessa Waldref, is a partner and founding member of Singleton Schreiber’s Washington office, focusing on environmental protection, wildfire litigation, civil rights, Tribal litigation, and public interest law. She served as U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Washington from 2021–2024, becoming the first woman in the role. During her tenure, she led efforts in environmental enforcement, civil rights, fraud prevention, and Tribal partnership, including launching Eastern Washington’s Environmental Task Force and opening a new DOJ branch in the Tri-Cities.
Ms. Waldref is Board President of Human Rights Spokane, a nationally recognized advocate for environmental and civil justice, and has taught law courses at Gonzaga University. She earned her B.A. and J.D., magna cum laude, from Georgetown University and is a proud Spokanite raising her family locally.
Panel will be moderated by Spokane Riverkeeper’s Water Protector, Katelyn Scott
Sponsored by Eastern Washington University
Come for the film, stay for the conversation, and celebrate the Spokane River with your community!