LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
To the editor:
stacles a priority for our tribal members.
I know I’m not perfect, but I have
learned from my mistakes. I don’t feel
I can sit back and just watch our Tribal
Council (TC) overlook the needs and
future of our membership. I believe too
much power is not a good thing.
I hope that in the future, our TC will
not be connected with our gaming en
terprise. This board should be a sepa
rate entity.
As I look at our TC, I am concerned
about the excessive amount that is al
located for travel/per diem. I recall the
request to increase their salary, but I
also realize that we have no other posi
tions that receive such an excessive
travel budget. I would not vote to in
crease salary and I would hope that our
council would look for ways to decrease
this expense.
I believe that our TC has shown a his
tory of isolating, rather than collabo
rating or networking with other
governmental agencies and tribal or
ganizations. I would look to change
this. I have written suggestions for the
past couple years. One was to set up a
Web cam to broadcast our TC meetings,
and allow questions to be submitted by
concerned members, and an answer
posted to a Web site.
Please contact me if you have ques
tions or feedback, 541-444-1290 or
e-mail nadosh2@yahoo.com.
Respectfully,
Lisa Brown
To the editor:
My name is Derek Simmons. I would
like to announce that I’ll be running for
Tribal Council in the upcoming election.
I have lived in the Siletz area all
my life and some of you might have
seen me at Chinook Winds Casino Re
sort. I’m the banquet manager and I’ve
been working there since April 1996.
I apologize for missing the first
candidate’s fair, but my work schedule
changed at the last minute and I’m the
father of a new baby girl along with a
2-year-old son.
I do give our current council credit
for some of their past accomplishments,
but I’m running for council because 1
believe it’s time for a change. We need
young blood on the council. Some of
our current council have held their posi
tions for so long that they have forgotten
their purpose, which I feel should be to
obtain as many benefits as possible for
all tribal members, not just a select few.
We need someone who will speak
for all tribal members, not just family
members of council. I believe council
needs to be more involved with deci
sions that are made at the casino. The
money that comes into the casino is ours
and we need to keep a handle on what
and where it goes to. We need health
care benefits available at all times for
all tribal members and the ability to
make an appointment at the clinic with
out having to wait months to see a den
tist or eye doctor.
To the editor:
I read in the newsletter where
Arthur Butler said casino workers
should get the same help with rent as
those living in Siletz. He should live
outside the service area. I drive 150
miles for medical services.
When we retired here 16 years ago,
there were no services at Siletz. The
only thing they had was a double-wide
for offices. You went to an apartment
to get your I.D.
When the clinic opened, I started
going to Siletz as they were talking
about closing the clinic here. The ser
vices were great there. They had sev
eral doctors, but Lisa Taylor has been
there through them all, as has the den
tist, and you couldn’t get better care.
When John was the pharmacist,
you could get three months of prescrip
tions, but now you only get one. Un
less my son, who lives in Depoe Bay,
can pick them up and mail them to me,
I have to drive up there to get them.
I also read that they were going to
mail prescriptions to members who live
40 miles from Siletz. But when I called,
I was told it was only for those living
within the service area. Then I was told
after Jan. 1, 2005, they would mail to
all tribal members. But when I called, I
was told the council said they didn’t
have the money.
I also read the elders could get one
pair of glasses free each year. I had mine
for three years. I decided to have my
eyes checked, but was told I would have
to pay for the lens and frames because
they didn’t have any more money (I will
say Judy Muschamp was trying to help).
The answer most given is you
should move to Siletz, but after 16 years
and at our age, it isn’t something you
jump up and do. My husband and our
two sons from Bandon love to fish, so
when the weather is good, he gives them
a call. He has his boat ready by the time
they get here and within 20 minutes,
they’re at the dock. I can get to the
beach in 10 minutes.
It’s ironic - this is the area my great
grandmother and tribe were from. I didn’t
know that until after we were here for
awhile (maybe that’s why I love it so).
I have made a commitment, to pro
tect my people. I hope you will support
me in my decision to run for a position
on our Tribal Council. I am doing this
because I do not feel I can just sit back
and say how bad things are or “why
don’t they.”
I have spent a considerable amount
of my adult life learning about how to
recognize and prevent violence and ad
diction. In my process to learn about this,
I have had to make changes in my life.
First I recognized how drugs were
hurting our people. I eliminated that
from my life in 1989. Shortly after that,
I quit playing Bingo when I realized
what sacrifices were made because of
gambling addiction (1990). Then I
looked at my family/tribal history and
decided alcohol would have to go too
(1995). Lastly, I started to work with
kids, in the job of an alcohol, tobacco,
and other drug prevention coordinator.
I made a commitment to only use to
bacco in a sacred way (1991).
I have watched with much interest
the recent elections, both national and
tribal. It’s sometimes disappointing to
see our tribal members fail. I find it dif
ficult that we have a system that oper
ates in a more punitive (punishes) than
reward-based way. I hope that in the
future we can make overcoming ob
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Siletz News
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February 2005
We need to buy land and businesses
when they are for sale for future income
and employ tribal members in those
businesses. We aren’t going to be able
to rely on casino funds forever.
The land located across from Lake
side should be used as housing for tribal
members who work at the casino and
live in town, regardless of their income.
I currently rent a two-bedroom house
for $880 a month. This money could go
to the tribe if they had rentals available.
I’m the father of two but because
of my income, I don’t qualify for the down
payment program. I believe that there
should be assistance for all tribal mem
bers regardless of whom you’re related to,
where you live, or what your income is.
I’m grateful for my job and proud
of what I do at the casino, but we really
need more tribal members trained and
placed in top management positions.
I’ve worked my may up through vari
ous positions until I was promoted to
banquet manager. There is no reason to
pay high salaries to non-Indian people
when we can train our tribal members
for management jobs.
It’s your right to vote for whom
ever you think will do what is right for
all tribal members, so please don’t for
feit your right to make a difference -
get out and vote.
Sincerely,
Derek Simmons
In the time we’ve lived here, I’ve
seen a great change in the way people
think about Native Americans (as I’m
sure the runners to the Rogue can see).
I’ve seen many people at the beach and
they ask why it’s called Battle Rock. I
get to tell them about what our people
went through and they thank me for tak
ing the time.
I'm just hoping the council will re
alize there is a need for tribal members
no matter where they live. I don’t know
how much more it would cost to mail
outside the service area, but I’d be glad
to pay if that’s an option.
Sincerely,
Wanda Melton