Image provided by: The Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs; Warm Springs, OR
About Spilyay tymoo. (Warm Springs, Or.) 1976-current | View Entire Issue (March 18, 2004)
Page 6 Spilyqy Tyrooo, Warm Springs, Oregon. March 18, 2004 (US .' i ii i 1 ' ivv Leona Ike I am Lcona Adcle Ike. I am of Warm Springs, Wasco and Yakama descent. My Indian name is Mi'twi. I was blessed by rny elders and received the name of my late great grand mother Lena Colwash of Yakama. I am 42 years old and will soon turn 43. 1 am the proud mother of Jonathan, Mario and Julius Smith. I have one grand son. Me is the light of my life and his name is Keshawn. I have several stepchildren and grand children that I love dearly. I have a degree in law en forcement and criminal justice, and a degree in general studies. I have been the supervisor of Parole and Probation for the Public Safety Branch for nearly II years. I am state certified. Prior to that I was a police of ficer, legal secretary court clerk, shelter-parent fofyojuth, and administrative secrctarj'. During my break from college, I worked through the Education Branch and was employed in Corrections and as a special prosecutor. I was appointed to the Jefferson County Prison Advisory Board for two terms, one year then a five-year term. I was appointed to the Board of Directors for Warm Springs Gaming. 1 am currently a mem ber of the Native American Advisory Board for Jefferson County, Jefferson County Methamphetamine Task Force, and Jefferson County juvenile Prevention Coalition. I encourage all eligible vot ers to vote at this important elec tion for the new Council. There are many issues and concerns voiced by our members, but the power, for change lies in the hands of all voters in all dis tricts. Whether you vote for me or any other candidate, please vote. Change is in your hands. I firmly believe politics is kill ing our people and leaving those of us remaining behind with doubts in our leadership. Not to make critical changes as needed hurt our members in the long run. This was evident by the articles in the Oregonian and the overwhelming number of chil dren we lost due to our negli gence. However, we all know, we are not just losing our chil dren, we are losing many young adults also to suicide and alco holdrug related incidents. When an employee of our tribe is not fulfilling their duties in good faith and with compas sion for the people, our children and families are always at the losing end. Every day that our employ ees accept compensation for their job, they are promising to do their job to the best of their ability. When they fail to do their job, then they fail all of us. It is evident when we put our young away. However, we must re member, we need to be account able for our children and our families and we must recapture our love for one another. Alc.ohol and drugs play a major role in tribal turmoil, but as a tribe, we have the ability to change this. One family at a time, and with hope and spirituality, we can turn this around. Individually, we must believe in ourselves and take hold of our individual spirituality. We have many churches, and two longhouses, but we must take hold and have the belief that we don't need four walls to keep us close to our Creator. God is with us all the time. Each day that we make it through another day, we need to remember to thank Him for that blessing. Most of all we need to be kind to one another. The simple act of kindness can change the pathway of someone's life. See LEONA IKE on page 12 Lonnie James My name is Lonnie James. My mother is Theda Whalawitsa (Aguilar) and we are descendents of Billy Chinook through my mother's mother. I feel honored with the opportunity to write this statement to hopefully win your favor at the upcoming elections for Tribal Council. I hope I can express my feelings accurately and that you will give me a chance to serve our community in this manner. I currently operate a business in the local area and serve on the boards of the Warm Springs Area Chamber of Commerce as treasurer, and the Warm Springs Community Action Team as a volunteer board member. I graduated from high school in Madras and I have university degrees from Portland State University (Bachelor of Science in Finance with minors in Eco nomics and Technical Writing) and the University of Cincinnati (Master of Business Adminis tration, dual concentrations in Finance and Information Sys tems). Prior to starting in business on the reservation, I worked for the Confederated Tribes in the Finance Branch and the Enter prise Branch, as well as at Kah-Nee-Ta. In addition, I've worked for the Oregon State System of Higher Education at both Portland State University and the Oregon I Iealth Sciences University. My last job, outside the tribe and before I returned to Warm Springs, was at Procter & Gamble in their headquarters in Cincinnati, Ohio. There is so much to say about how I hope to serve our tribe. I feel deeply that we, as tribal members, must put forward the effort to make our home the best place it can be, I volunteer my time to pitch in and learn more about how people feel and what efforts are being made to make it that better place. I try to help others in their efforts to deal with our complex and rushed lifestyles, even as 1 try and cope with the same prob lems. I strongly believe that we should try and understand where we can find common ground in dealing with our prob lems rather than drawing bound aries and dwelling on that which separates us. With that said, I would like to explain how I feel on some of the issues that we face as a tribe. First, I believe that education is ultimately the most important legacy that we can give to our tribes' children. Our young people must have the tools to master the future. They must also understand where we've come from so that we don't lose our connection to our ancestors or our land. I think we should better help them prepare for the challenges that life will pose -provide good career counseling and meaningful summer intern ships. I believe that we should partner with outside entities to help guide our children and graduates find jobs outside the reservation for a couple of years to help them see how the outside world works - and how successful companies deal with problems and let them connect with people who will help them grow as well-rounded individu als. Second, another of our main concerns is, and always has been, employment. We need to expand our employment base while maintaining our present enter prises. We need to find new busi nesses that will bring outside money to the reservation. To do that, we need to be able to as sure potential partners that their investment is safe and that both the Tribes and the investors can profit successfully. I believe we should work towards a legal framework that can assure in vestors in the safety of their in vestment while maintaining our people's legal rights with regard to their property and the tribe's sovereignty. In addition to po tential business development, the proper legal framework could help us address our hous ing issue. By allowing outside funding onto the reservation for housing, a greater variety of housing options and price com petition would help to keep people voluntarily on the reser vation and allow people to de velop a sense of pride in the community and where they live. I believe that unsafe and stressful over-crowding of housing units contribute to many of out prob lems related to health and safety. See LONNIE JAMES on 12 Uren Leonard Jr. I in ..y & program and projects through public hearings. We need to protect our sov ereignty and our traditional ways that have been passed on to us from generation to generation. We need to make a plan so we can leave our reservation with resources for our young people, and the generations yet to be born. I ask for your vote. Uren Leonard Jr., "Bunski." Bernice Mitchell I am a nominee for Tribal Council for the Agency District. I have worked for over 20 years with the Confederated Tribes. I am a veteran and a traditional dancer. I know the history and cultural values of Warm Springs. I have worked in all depart ments and enterprises of Warm Springs during their three-year management trainee program. I have completed a Business Ad ministration and Economics Degree. We need to reorganize our tribal organization because the economy is at a standstill. We need to meet the needs of our tribal members with jobs and economic development. W7e need to improve our education and social service programs and projects. 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