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About Spilyay tymoo. (Warm Springs, Or.) 1976-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 31, 2002)
R. COLL. 75 .S&8 v. 27 no. 2 October P.O. Box 870 Warm Springs, OR 97761 ymoc s SERIALS DEPT. WIGIITUBRAK, 12WUNIVERSHT w iUGENE, OR Bulk Rate Permit No. 2 Warm Springs, OR 97761 50 cents October 31, 2002 Vol. 27, No. 22 Coyote News, est. 1976 i Spiky Members discuss budget options Use of rainy day fund cited as potential By Spilyay Tymoo staff Tribal officials discussed the 2003 budget proposal with the member ship last week. Members mentioned concerns on a variety of subjects, from pub lic safety and youth and elder issues to budget cuts and possible sources of additional revenue. One revenue option that is being explored is the use of part of the tribes' "rainy day" fund, established in 1988 by Tribal Council. The rainy day fund was set up with an initial investment of $10 million, and over the years has grown to about $33 million. For the past two budget years the tribes have used the interest gener ated by the principal, but have not used the principal money itself. This may change, as the Tribal Council determines how best to bal ance budget expenditures with rev enue. Another revenue possibility is the use of excess enterprise reserves to boost the tribal government bud- get, said Charles V. Jackson, Secretary-Treasurer of the Confederated Tribes. And a third option, said Jackson, would be added indirect income from additional BIA and IHS con tracting by the tribes. The decreasing tribal budget, he said, has been a point of discussion among the Tribal Council and the community members for the past few years in a row. "If we can't get a big revenue boost from somewhere else, and if we want to go slowly in decreasing government spending, we're going to have to consider other potential sources of funds," said Jackson. In the long-term, he said, a Gorge casino will provide new revenue, to replace the loss of timber money and less-than-expected revenue from Warm Springs Power Enterprises. Meanwhile, though, the tribes are facing another few years of budget shortfalls. . At the Agency District meeting last week, Ken Smith, former secretary-treasurer of the tribes, advo cated use of the rainy day fund for operation of the tribal government. . "Why not borrow from the rainy day fund?" said Smith. The money borrowed from the fund could be repaid when the new casino or some other source of rev enue brings the tribes back to pros perity, said Smith. The three district meetings last week, held Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday evenings, began with a budget overview by Secretary-Treasurer Jackson. He said the economy of the na tion as a whole - in particular the Please see BUDGET on page 6 River guide awarded page 2 Problem of meth page 3 Letters page 4 Punkin time page 5 Sports page 6 News briefs page 7 Judge Towet page 8 Languages 10, 11 Pictograph photos page 12 w Election New governor would decide Gorge casino site By Dave McMechan Spilyay Tymoo staff From the perspective of the Con federated Tribes the next governor of the State of Oregon early on will make a decision of great importance. One of the two candidates for gov ernor - either Democrat Ted Kulongoski or Republican Kevin Mannix - will determine the location Methamphetamines bring crime The link between familial and social dysfunction and drug abuse in Warm Springs is hard to deny. One man tells of his difficult childhood in hopes that his story will deter at least one person from making the same mistakes. By Shannon keaveny Spilyay Tymoo staff he first time Floyd Tewee, 35 "II of Warm Springs, shot up meth J amphetamine he was at a party with his mom. She took the needle too. Tewee was 11 years old. The euphoric "rush" that Tewee felt would be a quest for the next 24 years. "It was like a roller coaster ride, you know, that feeling in your stomach when you start to go down, the excitement, well that's how it felt," Tewee remi nisced from the Warm Springs Jail. "It Ventures buys tile company interest Factory could move to the reservation Warm Springs Ventures, the tribes' investment and business corporation, has announced the purchase of a 51 percent ownership interest in a Redmond-based tile-making company. There is the possibility that in time the company's manufacturing plant could relocate to the reservation, said Tom Henderson, chief executive of ficer of Warm Springs Ventures. This would provide more tribal member employment opportunities, said Henderson. The tile company is called Kibak Tile, and was originally formed in Sis New start for Warm Springs Construction In the past Warm Springs Construc tion has not been a profitable entity for the Confederated Tribes. Through a change in management, tribal officials are hoping this situation eventually will change. Recently, the tribal economic devel opment corporation Warm Springs Ventures assumed management respon sibility over Construction. The Warm Springs Ventures Board of Directors will be the Construction Board of Directors. The board will make the policy de cisions that in time should enable Con struction to become a profit-making is key to of the tribes' new casino. The tribes currendy are pursuing a plan to build a casino near the town of Hood River, though the idea of build ing within the town of Cascade Locks is much more popular among people at the Gorge. From the tribal perspective, Cascade Locks is also the preferred casino site, because Cascade Locks is closer than Hood River is to Pordand. For this rea son a casino at Cascade Locks would generate quite a bit more revenue than Floyd Tewee, 35, of Warm Springs, the Warm Springs Jail. was so intense I couldn't wait for the next hit." From that day on Tewee smoked, snorted, or shot meth three to four times a week. He was an addict. Before that, Tewee became aware ters in the early 1980s. The company began with just one employee, founder and current president Susanne Kibak Redfield. Over the years, the company has continued to evolve, and has developed several new and unique techniques in the decorative tile manufacturing sec tor. Due to continued demand and growth in the mid 1990's, Kibak Tile was relocated to its current location in Redmond. Today, Kibak Tile maintains such commercial clients as Disney Design, and Der Wcinerschnitzel and El Polio Loco restaurants. On the residential side, Kibak Tile's enterprise, said Tom Henderson, chief executive officer of Warm Springs Ventures. Construction employs nearly 40 people. Approximately 90 percent of the employees are tribal members or married into the tribes. Under the new management, Con struction will for a while operate much as it has in the past, focusing on con struction projects on the reservation. Eventually, though, the enterprise may look off the reservation for con struction projects, said 1 Icnderson. This approach could be the key to turning Construction into a profitable enter - r, future of gaming one at Hood River. "The person who takes the place of Gov. Kitzhaber will be key to our gam ing future, as far as net profit is con cerned," said Rudy Clements, gaming spokesman. On the other hand, he said, either the Cascade Locks or Hood River site would help the tribes' long-term finan cial situation. A casino at Hood River, for instance, would generate an estimated $15 mil lion net profit per year during the ini PI? and addiction to Shannon KeavenySpllyay shares his drug-abuse experience from of his mother's habit by accident. During a life-changing day at the wa terfront in Pordand, Tewee caught his mother with a rubberband around her arm smacking her veins. He asked her what she was doing and she said mat- high quality custom work graces many of the finest homes in the U.S., includ ing Donald Trump's Mar al Lago. Kibak Tile is represented nationally renowned tile purveyor Ann Sacks, a Portland-based Kohler Company sub sidiary, and Daltile Inc., one of the larg est tile manufacturers in the world. Henderson earlier this week an nounced Ventures' 51 -percent acquisi tion of Kibak. Tribal Council last year established and funded Warm Springs Ventures. Following the acquisition agreement, Susanne Kibak Redfield will remain as the company president, and Rebecca Van Englcn will continue to serve as the general manager. prise, he said. One immediate change that has hap pened at Construction since the change in management is the pro motion of Leslie Cochran-Davis to assis tant general manager. Davis has a degree in Drafting Technol ogy from Clackamas Community College. Leslie Cochran She has been with Construction since since 1995, initially starting as a roads laborer. tial years. This is compared to about $3 mil lion per year at Kah-Nee-Ta High Desert Resort and Casino. At the same time, and by way of further comparison: The $15 million profit at the Gorge would still be quite a bit below the approximately $70 mil lion annual profit of the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde's Spirit Moun tain Casino. Please see CASINO on page 7 the reservation ter-of-factly, if you do it, "watch it." "It was at that time, I thought, hmmm, I think I'm going to try that some day," said Tewee, a typical child who looked to his parent as a role model. When asked if a lot of people take methamphetamine on the Warm Springs Reservation, Tewee flipped his long black hair out of his eyes, raised his brow, and said emphatically yet sadly, "Lots." "Walking up to the West Hills, I get offers from grade-schoolers who are selling meth and marijuana," he elabo rated. "My advice to those kids, and ev eryone, is if you haven't done it, don't ever try it. It's a bad habit." Number one offense At the Warm Springs Jail there are 47 beds. Tewee will sleep in one of those beds for at least the next 12 days. Tewee has been in and out of jail since adulthood for an assortment of crimes related to his drug use. He is a mechanic by profession, and works for a living. In times of strife he has also stolen for his drugs. When asked what he has stolen, Tewee says quiedy, "Car parts." See METH on page 5 Powwow set for Nov. 8-9 The prize money came in almost at the last minute but as they say, better late than never. A couple of weeks ago it looked like the Veter ans Powwow was not going to hap pen, the problem being a shortage of prize money. Then last week, the Ike family an nounced that enough money had come in that the pwwow will hap pen after all. The Tribal Council con tributed $5,000 to the powwow, and the Human Services Department contributed another $5,000. So the 13th Annual Veterans Day Powwow is set for Friday and Saturday, Nov. 8-9. See schedule on page 8. In 1998 she was pro moted to contract adminis trator. For the time being, while Construction is without a general manager, Davis is serving in the capacity of interim manager. To ease the management transition, Warm Springs Ventures has held meetings with the Construction road and building crews, admin - Davis istrative staff and current manage ment, and the tribal member sub-contractors. i Spilyay tyioo.
