Chairman’s Report
Fee-to-trust applications
The Bureau of Indian Affairs recently
has taken several parcels of land into trust
at the Tribe’s request. In the past, there
has been a huge backlog of requests that
finally are moving forward.
During the Bush administration, no
action was taken because of several con
troversies, mostly over land that was to
be used for gaming.
Our applications were mostly for land
to be used for housing. The bigger par
cels, however, are the lands surrounding
Chinook Winds. Lot 57 directly behind
the casino, the hotel, part of the larger
parking area and the Siletz Tribal Busi
ness Corporation office land is included
in our request.
We have been told Lot 57 (the 10
vacant acres on the beach) should be
taken into trust very soon. The remaining
parcels should occur when the loans are
secured on other properties.
The Tribe has worked long and hard
on changes to the fee-to-trust process.
Originally, all applications had to be
approved in the central BIA office in
Washington, D.C. The process later was
changed to have all applications processed
in the regional office in Portland, Ore. The
Siletz Agency processes the applications,
working with our Tribal staff.
We have been pleased with the addi
tion of Art Fisher at the agency, who has
taken the lead on this important process.
He has worked diligently with our staff to
undertake this task.
Gathering of Oregon’s First
Nations Pow-Wow
The Tribes have planned for the
annual Gathering of Oregon’s First
Nations Pow-Wow at the state fairgrounds
pavilion building in Salem on Jan. 28.
The intent of the pow-wow was not
only to bring the Tribes together, but also
to make the Salem community and leaders
aware of the Tribes’ identity. Each Tribe
maintains a booth with Tribal informa
tion and displays as well as many vendor
booths rented by Tribal artisans.
All nine Tribes have been invited to
participate.
Enrollment
The Tribal Council recently amended
the Enrollment Ordinance to mirror the
language in the Tribal Constitution. The
amended ordinance has been posted on
the Tribal website - ctsi.nsn.us - in the
Tribal Members section. Recent con
troversies and actions hopefully can be
resolved favorably by this recent action.
The change is how we treat blood
quantum as required by the Constitution.
In the early days, prior to the Restoration
roll of 1978, the Constitution says that all
Indian blood would be counted. This did
occur for some Tribal members but not for
all. Since this was a recent action by the
council, a process will be put in place to
address how changes can be made.
By Elise Jordan, Americorps VISTA
with the Lincoln Commission on
Children and Families
Thanks to a generous donation of
$4,000 from the Siletz Tribal Charitable
Contribution Fund, the East County Back
pack Program is running successfully for the
second year in Toledo and Siletz schools.
Program organizers also would like to
thank the Rebekah Lodge for its donation
of $1,500 in November.
The program was created in 2010 in
collaboration with the Lincoln Commis
sion on Children and Families and the
with other attendees (above) of the 2011
White House Tribal Nations Conference
at the U.S. Department of the Interior in
Washington, D.C., on Dec. 2.
Pigsley (right) awaits the start of the
2011 White House Tribal Nations
Conference.
East County Homeless Education and
Literacy Project (HELP).
This ongoing weekly program
provides 65 students with backpacks
filled with kid-friendly foods on week
ends. The program helps families in
East County stretch their food budgets
during the weekend and when school
meals are unavailable.
Toledo and Siletz schools serve
approximately 1,028 students, about 64
percent of whom rely on the USDA’s
National School Lunch Program for their
meals during the week.
The East County Backpack Program
currently serves 50 Toledo students and
15 Siletz students. Every week, com
munity volunteers, Americorps VISTAs
and school liaisons pack backpacks and
deliver them to East County schools.
Kid-friendly food donations can be
delivered to Toledo JC Market, Oregon
Coast Bank, Bank of the West, Toledo
Feed and Seed, Mike’s Mercantile, Pacific
Spruce FCU and the HELP Center at the
Arcadia school campus.
For more information or to volunteer or
donate, please contact me at 541-265-9883.
Nuu-wee-ya’ «swords)
Introduction to the Athabaskan language
Open to Tribal members of all ages
Name:
Address:
Phone:
Change of address: Tribal members - contact the Enrollment Depart
ment at 541-444-8258; 800-922-1399,ext. 1258; or angelam@ctsi.nsn.us. All
others - call the newspaper office.
Send information to:
Siletz News
P.O. Box 549
Siletz, OR 97380-0549
Deadline for the February issue
is Jan. 10. Submission of articles and
photos is encouraged. Please see the
Passages Policy on page 20 when
submitting items for Passages.
541-444-8291 or
800-922-1399, ext. 1291
Fax: 541-444-2307
E-mail: pias@ctsi.nsn.us
*
Tribal Chairman Delores Pigsley chats
Tribal charitable fund helps East County Backpack
Program serve students in Toledo and Siletz schools
Siletz News is free to enrolled Siletz Tribal members. For all others, a $12
annual subscription fee applies. Please make checks payable to CTSI and mail
to Siletz News.
2
Courtesy photos by John Harrington
Siletz News
*
Member of the Native American
Journalists Association
January 2012
Eugene
Portland
Eugene Area Office
Jan. 2 - 6-8 p.m.
Feb. 6- 6-8 p.m.
Portland Area Office
Jan. 9 - 6-8 p.m.
Feb. 13 - 6-8 p.m.
Siletz
Salem
Siletz Tribal Community Center
Jan. 3 - 6-8 p.m.
Feb. 7 - 6-8 p.m.
Salem Area Office
Jan. 10- 6-8 p.m.
Feb. 14 - 6-8 p.m.
Classes begin with basic instruction and progress over the year. They also
are a refresher course for more-advanced students. Come and join other members
of your community and Tribe in learning to speak one of our ancient languages.
We also have equipment in the Cultural Department available for use in
grinding and drilling shell or pine nuts or other applications. If you need to use
the equipment, call the number below to set up an appointment.
For more information, contact Bud Lane at the Siletz Cultural Department
at 541-444-8320 or 800-922-1399, ext. 1320; or e-mail budl@ctsi.nsn.us.