LEITERS TO THE EDITOR
To the editor:
Thank you for supporting me on
my campaign for Tribal Council.
Thank you for your trust in me and
voting for me. I hope that I can be a
part of bringing our tribal members
together. It’s a tall order; with your help,
we can do it.
Give a handshake, give a hug, give
a thank you, include a smile. That won't
cost anything but it means a lot and
that is a good foundation to start with.
To all of the 2006 Tribal Council
candidates, no one lost, we all won
because our tribal members listened to
what we had to say. Everything that we
said is important. If we could scoop it
all up, it wouldn’t be a pile, it would
be a mountain, a volcano full of energy.
Please don’t stop, we all need to work
together as a team, a community, a tribe.
We truly are a proud people. Again
from the bottom of my heart, thank you.
Thank you,
Frank Simmons
To the editor:
Tribal Preference at Chinook Winds:
The following represents only one
person’s thoughts on the subject of
tribal preference at our Chinook Winds
Casino Resort.
When we went into the casino busi
ness 10 years ago, we had the vision of
providing jobs to our tribal members.
Giving “Tribal Preference” can
give rise to a conflict between the tribal
goals - creating jobs for our members
or making maximum profits at Chi
nook Winds. The quality and capabil
ity of “all” employees makes a differ
ence to bottom-line performance and
profits. Prior to going into the casino
business 10 years ago, few if any tribal
members had any experience in work
ing at a casino.
In order to insure maximum prof
its at Chinook Winds:
The compromise should only come
into play in preparing tribal mem
bers to achieve these standards.
•
Preparation for casino jobs could
start on the tribal program side with
computer skills or even addressing
issues that might limit a person’s
employment.
•
Tribal members who are not pre
pared for a particular job may have
to wait until they become qualified.
It may be better to place them into
a position they do qualify for and
introduce them to training that will
qualify them for their preferred job
•
at a later date.
Human Resources needs to pro
actively and aggressively develop
formal and informal, on- and off
site, training programs that allow
tribal members to become trained.
Neither tribal members nor anyone
else should be given a job or pro
motion until they can prove they
•
To the editor:
I would like to thank all of you
who voted for me in this year’s Tribal
Council election.
My heartfelt gratitude and my ut
most appreciation is extended to each
and every one of you who took the
opportunity to vote in this year’s elec
tion. It is very, very important that you
vote and I sincerely hope that you will
continue to do so.
1 also want to take this opportunity
to congratulate Jessie Davis, Frank
Simmons, and Reggie Butler on jobs
well done. 1 am confident that all of
you will represent all of us to the best
of your ability.
Sincerely,
“Speaks Out Loud”
George F. Siniscal
I would be interested in hearing
other people’s thoughts on the subject.
Mike Darcy
are ready.
2006 Siletz Tribal Council: Reggie Butler Sr, Phil Rilatos Sr,
Loraine Butler, Delores Pigsley, Robert Kentta, Lillie Butler,
Frank Simmons, Jessie Davis, and Bud Lane.
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P.O. Box 549
Siletz, OR 97380-0549
Please note: The general manager
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•
•
Siletz News
•
Editor-in-Chief: Brenda Bremner
Editor: Diane Rodriquez
Assistant: Natasha Kavanaugh
March 2006
541-444-8291 or
1-800-922-1399, ext. 1291
Fax: 541-444-2307
E-mail: pias@ctsi.nsn.us
Deadline for the April issue is
March 10. Submission of articles and
photos is encouraged. Please read
the Passages Policy on page 20
when submitting items for Passages.
Member of the Native American
Journalists Association
To the editor:
My name is Joella Strong and I
have lived in Siletz almost my entire
life. I came from a family of 10, five
brothers and two sisters, counting my
parents. Sadly though, I only grew up
with four brothers and one sister.
We had hard times with no medical
and dental coverage. At times we had
to pull out our own teeth when we were
in pain because we couldn’t afford to
go to the dentist. The one thing we had
which cost nothing but was worth
zillions was loving and caring parents.
Sometimes people forget where
they come from. I am thankful that the
tribe was restored and we have medi
cal, dental, and pharmacy benefits. I
hear a lot of tribal members complain
about the services, but I am grateful.
I know the tribe cannot help every
one because of the 11 -county areas, but
at the time we had no choice. The out-
of-area tribal members are receiving
some services now and that is a start,
plus all tribal members are eligible for
pharmacy benefits. I have white friends
who tell me, “You are so lucky to have
all those benefits.”
I know there were a lot of tribal
members angry because of the Tribal
Council approving for tribal elders 70
and over for per capita $300 a month.
I am happy that it was approved.
Tribal elders who do make it to 70,
more power to you. You deserve it and
“right on” to the Tribal Council.
Working at Chinook Winds Casino
in the Accounting Department opened
my eyes on some things. We are not a
rich tribe and we do need to put money
in reserve funds, especially with all the
catastrophes happening. Once we get
some of our debts paid (Chinook
Winds is one of them this year, yea!),
we will be seeing more profit.
I am also grateful the tribe donated
money to the Siletz library. I wished
we had that when 1 was growing up.
The Siletz High school is coming back.
I told my grandkids you are so lucky,
their curriculum is so awesome. I wish
I were young again.
Joella Strong
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