Siletz news /, January 01, 2007, Page 3, Image 3

CHAIRMAN’S REPORT
Last month. I spoke briefly about
tribal restoration and what it means to
us. This month, as history gets clouded
as more time passes, I would like to
reflect on how 1 became involved and
what was happening in 1975, two years
before we achieved Restoration.
To begin however, let’s make one
thing clear: the Siletz Tribe and the Tribal
Council weren't created as a result of
restoration. Our tribe as a sovereign en­
tity existed hundreds - even thousands -
of years before we were restored.
Our individual member tribes ne­
gotiated and entered into treaties with
the U.S. government and joined to­
gether as the Confederated Tribes of
Siletz Indians in the 1800s as sover­
eigns and were recognized as such by
the U.S. government.
By the 1970s, after enduring the
Delores Pigsley
catastrophic consequences of termina­
in Siletz, we used the Grange Hall and
tion, the Siletz Tribe fought to be restored,
once again, as a federally recognized the A-frame.
To begin with, few tribal members
tribe. My family had just moved back
to Oregon from Lawrence, Kan., where attended those early meetings. But in­
terest, support, and attendance grew as
we had lived for five years.
I was nominated by Ed Ben and -time passed.
Art Bensell was elected chairman
elected to serve on the Siletz Tribal
when I was elected in September 1975.
Council in September 1975. Our tribe
was destitute, so my duties began by Others serving on the council at that time
passing the hat for donations to sup­ were Pauline Ricks, Robert Rilatos,
Sister Francella Griggs, Bob Tom,
port our restoration effort.
Kathryn Harrison, and Alta Courville.
The meetings for our scattered
That year, the National Congress of
members and restoration supporters
American Indians (NCAI) held its an­
were held in a classroom at Chemawa,
nual meeting in Portland. Art was able
the Longhouse in Eugene, the Urban
Indian Center in Portland, and because to get on the agenda and make a pre­
sentation on restoration before the
we had no meeting place of our own
2007 Standing Committee
Applications Due
General Assembly and appealed for
NCAI's endorsement of our efforts.
We all had the job of lobbying
tribes in support of restoration. We
handed out bumper stickers and talked
to anyone who would listen to get their
support. Wc were successful.
NCAI passed a resolution in sup­
port of Siletz Restoration. At that time,
we were fortunate that one of the con­
ference attendees was Forrest Gerard,
who then was on the professional staff
of the U.S. Senate Committee on Inte­
rior and Insular Affairs.
We had our first meeting with Forrest
at that time. It was Charles Wilkinson
who then persuaded Forrest to come
to Siletz to meet with the Tribal Coun­
cil. This meeting paved the way for our
hearing before the Senate Committee
in Washington. D.C., in March 1976.
We were all pretty overwhelmed by
the fact that we would have to tell the
tribe's history since termination in 30
minutes. We spent one week in Wash­
ington, D.C.. prior to the Senate hear­
ing, putting our testimony together,
each of us having a role to play in the
overall presentation.
We had breakfast, lunch, and dinner
together to plan our parts as well as
spread out and lobby our congressional
representatives in support of restoration.
It was an exciting week. We
learned about each other’s abilities and
knowledge as well as to respect each
other as persons committed to the cause
of restoration.
After returning from D.C., we began
holding meetings with many organiza­
tions and local governmental officials.
We were often ridiculed, called names,
and cursed by hostile anti-Indian groups.
Art. Pauline, and Robert made some
excellent presentations and were able
to change the minds of many. Joe Lane,
who was the chairman prior to Art. and
Sister Francella represented us in the
Portland area and were able to secure
support from various individuals and
entities there.
In June 1976, I was asked by
Pauline Ricks to join a group of danc­
ers to perform for the Smithsonian
Folklife Festival on the mall in D.C. The
festival hosted other tribes and groups.
While we danced Siletz dances, we
were able to promote Siletz restoration.
All who were in the group developed
a great sense of camaraderie.
It took 2l/2 years of very hard work
to finally gain restoration and have
President Jimmy Carter sign the Siletz
Restoration Act on Nov. 18. 1977, the
second in the nation after the Menominee
to be restored.
The elected council that followed,
of which I was also privileged to be a
part, had an even greater task of de­
veloping a tribal roll, holding an elec­
tion. developing a Constitution, plan­
ning for and developing a community
building, recruiting personnel, and for­
mulating a reservation plan.
Challenging early years that I. and
others, will never forget!
CTSI Jobs
CTSI Employment Job Line
541-444-8296 or 1-800-922-1399, ext. 1296
Visit our Web site at www.ctsi.nsn.us
Deadline for consideration for 2007 committees is Jan. 31,2007
Any tribal member interested in serving on a committee for a two-year
term must fill out the following form and return it to the address below prior
to Jan. 31, 2007, to be considered for the following committees.
Please mail or fax your application to Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indi­
ans, Attn: Executive Secretary to Tribal Council, P.O. Box 549, Siletz, OR
97380-0549; Fax: 541-444-8325.
Name: ____________ ________________________ R°N No: --------------------------
Job Opening
CTSI is constantly looking for
temporary employees to cover va­
cancy, vacations, maternity leave,
and extend sick leave. If you are re­
tired, a homemaker, or a student and
are looking for temporary work that
can last from two weeks to 12 weeks,
please submit a temporary applica­
tion for the temp pool.
Note: “Open Until Filled'’ vacan­
cies may close at any time. The tribe’s
Indian Preference policy will apply.
Tribal government will not discrimi­
nate in selection because of race, creed,
age, sex, color, national origin, physi­
cal handicap, marital status, politics,
membership or non-membership in an
employee organization.
Address :__________________________
City:_____________ _ ________________ State:__________ ZIP:__________ _
Telephone: Day (
) _________________ Evening (
)------------------------
Choose the first, second, and third choice of committees you are request­
ing by numbering your preference 1, 2, 3 in the space provided. If you only
want to request one committee, please indicate this by inserting the number 1.
Committee appointments are for a two-year term.
Education Committee (3)
Natural Resources Committee (3)
Health Committee (3)
Cultural Heritage Committee (3)
Housing Committee (3)
Pow-Wow Committee (no limit)
Budget Committee ( 1 )
Tribal Council will review applications and approve appointments at the
Regular Tribal Council meeting in February 2007. If you have any questions,
please call Tami Miner at 1-800-922-1399, ext. 1203, or 541-444-8203.
Most Often Requested Numbers
I-800-922-1 399
503-390-9494
I-888-870-9051
503-238-1512
541-484-4234
541-747-0161
1-800-628-5720
1-800-648-0449
1-800-600-5599
1-888-244-6665
1-800-452-7823
I-8OO-323-8517
www.ctsi.nsn.us
Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians
Salem Area Office
Salem Finance Office
Portland Area Office
Eugene Area Office
Springfield Siletz Tribal Head Start
Contract Health Services (CHS)
Siletz Community Health Clinic
Siletz Alcohol and Drug
Chinook Winds Casino Resort
Chemawa Health Clinic
Bureau of Indian Affairs
Web Site
January 2007
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Siletz News
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