LeRoy Clark John Sr. – 1945-2018
U.S. Army PFC LeRoy Clark John Sr.
passed away in Siletz, Ore., on March 6,
2018. LeRoy proudly served from April
10, 1963, to March 29, 1965, as part of the
Lite Weapons Infantry, earning a Sharp-
shooter Badge (Rifle M-1), Parachute
Sharpshooter Badge (Rifle M-14) and
Expert Metal (Rifle M-14) while stationed
at Ft. Buckner, Okinawa, Ryukyu Islands.
LeRoy was born Jan. 24, 1945, to the
late Eva Goodell John and Clarke John
in Lincoln County, Ore. LeRoy has three
sisters: Josephine John and Elizabeth John
of Siletz and the late Gylene Jones; and
five brothers: David John of Siletz, Lind-
sey John of Prineville, Ore., Ronald John
of Salem, Ore., and the late William John
and Robert John.
He was preceded in death by his wife,
Judith ‘Strand’ John, whom he married at
Moby Dick’s in Newport, Ore.
LeRoy was the father of five children:
Lisa Eddings, LeRoy ‘Clark’ John, Wendy
(Guy) Schamp, Nina Paul and Griffin
John; two step-children: Jeanette Aradoz
and Tristen Holt; and the grandfather of
Jeffery Paul, David Paul, Brittany Mason,
Griffin John II, Skyler Larson, Kodey
Aradoz, Trinity Holt, Tristen Holt and
Wynter Holt.
LeRoy was an avid artist; he loved
music, dancing, working on cars, watch-
ing NASCAR and visiting with friends
and family.
His careers included working in the
woods and as a fisherman. He also was a
construction worker, including building
the Silatchee Park homes in Siletz, and
he finished his career as a maintenance
worker at Chemawa Indian School.
A celebration of life was held April
7 at the Siletz Tribal Community Center.
Attention Siletz
Contract Health-
eligible Tribal
members!
If you receive Contract Health Ser-
vices approval to see providers/facilities
outside of a Tribal clinic, please be sure
to inform them at your visit that you
have Contract Health Services as a form
of payment.
We have seen a number of patients
billed for services from their medical/
Use the mail order
pharmacy for refills
To use mail order pharmacy to
order your refills after hours and
on weekends: Please call the Siletz
Clinic 7-10 days before you need
your refills. This allows us time to
contact your provider, if necessary,
and for mailing.
•
Call 800-648-0449; enter 1624
as soon as the clinic’s message
begins – you’ll be transferred to
the refill line.
•
Or call the refill line direct – 541-
444-9624.
Courtesy photo
LeRoy Clark John Sr.
dental/optical providers because the
patient did not inform the office that they
have Contract Health Services.
If you have primary insurance
(through employment, Medicare, Medic-
aid, etc.), we would be secondary to the
primary insurance.
If you fail to provide this informa-
tion to your providers and they don’t
bill us in a timely manner, you could
be liable for the charges.
Please let your providers know that
they can submit claims for payment to
Siletz Contract Health, P.O. Box 320,
Siletz, OR 97380.
Nutritional highlights for graduating Head Start families
By Nancy Ludwig, MS, RDN, LD,
Siletz Tribal Head Start Nutrition
Another Head Start class graduates
soon. Congratulations and may the future
be bright with optimal nutrition for the
entire graduating class and their families.
As part of my role as consultant nutri-
tionist to Siletz Tribal Head Start, I offer
information for families.
Head Start plays a role in providing
good food choices through meals and
snacks. Students are coached to explore
foods by tasting and describing them,
growing them and learning about why
some are nutritious and how they may fit
as traditional foods or their nutritional
equivalents. Embracing the concepts of
traditional foods and eating close to nature
supports healthy growth and development.
This year’s topics included the fol-
lowing titles: Impacts of Food Security,
How Does Your Mouth Support Your
Overall Health?, Herbicides and You, Do
You Experience Sugar Cravings?, Can
Nutrition Reduce or Prevent Chronic
Pain? and Is Your Child Dealing with a
Toxic Burden?
Food insecurity is at the root of many
health problems and eating behaviors.
Food pantries and SNAP resources cannot
fully address food insecurity. We all need
to work together to support food security
for our community.
Food insecurity is the limited or
uncertain availability of nutritionally
adequate and safe foods or limited or
uncertain ability to acquire acceptable
foods in socially acceptable ways. What-
ever the cause, whether it is financial or
emotional, the impact of food insecurity
lasts for a lifetime.
4
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Siletz News
•
May 2018
Commonly, children and adults who
are (or were) food insecure are overweight.
Nutrition is not just about getting enough
to eat. Often the foods available from food
pantries fill the belly but are nutrient-poor
(low nutrient density). As such, they do
not support health or fully satisfy, which
leaves the body seeking further nutrition
and a physiologic desire to keep eating.
Our food choices affect our oral-
health in many ways. In addition, our
oral health affects how well our body can
digest and absorb nutrients.
The mouth is where nutrition starts.
We need teeth that chew so that we can
break down our foods to absorb nutrients.
Certain foods promote tooth decay. Other
foods support healthy teeth and protect
against bacterial growth.
Poor oral health can be the underlying
cause of cardiovascular disease. Specific
oral symptoms provide clues to specific
health conditions.
Nutrient deficiencies or excesses can
be seen in the mouth. The oral-microbi-
ome is an up-and-coming field of study,
which in time may cause a rethinking of
some of the detergent-like toothpastes and
rinses currently available.
The condition of your mouth affects
more than your smile or the enjoyment
of your food. Traditional foods support
oral health as the diet is low in sugars
and carbohydrates with ample vegetables,
meats, fish and fats.
Our food choices affect our health.
Our choices are not always straightfor-
ward, however, when it comes to chemical
exposure.
Many individuals now experience
difficulty with soy, wheat, corn and many
other grains. There may be many reasons
why this occurs as there is no one single
smoking gun.
One of the contributing factors
emerging is that the current use of her-
bicides, such as Roundup (containing
glyphosate), in agriculture presents risk
at multiple points in our food system. You
may ask, “What can I do? What would be
a reasonable call to action?”
First of all, on a personal level, don’t
use herbicides. At the level of food pur-
chase, look for organic or non-GMO/
GE (genetically engineered). On the
fundamental idealistic approach, embrace
traditional foods, which do not include sig-
nificant use of grains and legumes, thereby
supporting health at the deepest level.
Most of us know at some level that too
much sugar is not good for us, but giving it
up or restricting it is usually difficult, very
difficult. This issue focuses on sugar crav-
ings, possible causes and downsides, and
gives tips to manage or overcome them.
Sometimes sugar is used to say, “I
love you” (think about Valentine’s Day and
other social events). Sometimes it is what
we use to pick us up emotionally after a
difficult situation. Sugar alters our mood
and energy level. When sugar is combined
with the stress of busy schedules, it can be
used as a “pick me up” or a “happy time.”
This is eerily similar to other addictions.
The principles demonstrated when
embracing traditional foods (and nutri-
tional equivalents) also play a role in
pain management. Pain is a symptom
that signals a need. There is a root cause
behind pain (or many contributing fac-
tors). Granted, there are times when pain
intensity and timing warrant medications.
Nutrition can influence both acute and
chronic pain. The benefit may be greatest,
however, for chronic pain. Attention to
nutrition and its role in the inflammatory
pathways can ease pain associated with
chronic illness.
The types and quality of dietary fats
can either increase or decrease the inflam-
matory response (also called the balance
of pro- vs. anti-inflammatory load). Atten-
tion to carbohydrate quality also addresses
pain because carbohydrate foods influence
the inflammatory process. By embracing
traditional foods and their nutritional
equivalents, health is supported at the
deepest level.
Children have it rough these days
when it comes to toxic exposure. Unfor-
tunately, part of Tribal trauma includes
toxic exposures from unwanted pollution.
Thank you to the brave Native voices that
are speaking out on environmental con-
cerns for the good of all peoples!
To support children, five points were
referenced from Elisa Song, MD, holistic
pediatrician: It is important to get the right
stuff in, to keep the wrong stuff out, nur-
ture the gut-brain connection, prioritize
life and chill out.
The dietary recommendations are, in
fact, the same principles demonstrated
when embracing traditional foods (and
nutritional equivalents) along with the
need to avoid contamination and sugary
foods – as well as the need to slow down,
spend time outside, sleep and learn to
create happiness.
As the Head Start consultant nutri-
tionist, I am available to support families
by discussing nutrition-related concerns
via telephone. There is no charge for
Head Start families. Again, I express my
congratulations to another class of Head
Start graduates.