Don was best known for his atmospheric NW writing style chronicling the rise and fall of the Rocky Mountain Fur Trade and the first-contact interaction between native peoples and explorer / trappers. He wrote 3 fictional novels (Trask, Moontrap and To Build a Ship) and one historical non-fiction work. (A Majority of Scoundrels) - see below.

These books were revolutionary in their description of the first contact between european’s and native peoples of the West, describing their initial inter-marriage, collaboration, and cultural exchange.... and then the genocide and racism that followed with the arrival of the military and settlers. All of these books were published by Viking Press, and are still in print today through OSU Press. (Don was ¼ Fox Indian, born in Minnesota.)

Wyn was a photo-journalist and skillful story teller who rose to the highest ranks of her profession. She was awarded first prize in the professional category of Life magazine’s photography contest, and was a West Coast reporter for the Associated Press and other news publications. She also wrote and published a full-length fictional biography of China’s first Empress. (Everlasting Sky.)

Together they inspired a generation by the way they lived their life. They were pivotal in the “Beat” scene in Portland, for decades hosted spiritual leaders from Asia and the Indian Sub-Continent, and refined their own individual creative pursuits by making a living through their calligraphy, sculpture, painting, ceramics, music and award-winning documentary films.