P.0. Box 870
Warm Springs, OR 97761
ECRWSS
Postal Patron
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January 1, 2 0 0 $
C o y o te News, est. 1976
Voi. 34, No. 1
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Warm Springs, OR 97761
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Plan is to hold adoption election in 4 09
B y D ave M cM echan
Spilyay Tymoo
An on-going issue that likely will see
final resolution in 2009 is the tribal
adoption election.
The hope is that the election will be
conducted by March 2009, according
to tribal Vital Statistics.
The adoption election has been a
pending issue for several years: The
Confederated Tribes’ last successful
adoption election occurred in 1996.
The tribes attempted to conduct an
adoption election in 2001 and then in
2002, but these elections failed for lack
o f voter participation.
The Tribal Council last year adopted
resolutions that addressed two aspects
o f the adoption question, and helped
narrow the large list o f candidates. The
Council action came after extensive
discussion with the membership.
O ne o f the resolutions adopted a
1960 base roll that operates in addition
to the 1940 base roll.
Through this resolution, siblings o f
any persons showing on the 1960 base
roll are eligible to assert the same blood
quantum based upon the same parent
age.
O ver 80 people on the initial adop-
tion election Est then quaEfied under
this provision.
A second CouncE resolution last
year included a provision recognizing
the ancestral and traditional affiEation
o f the Confederated Tribes m em ber
ship to o th e r Ichiskin, K ik sh t and
N um u speaking people.
Close to 70 people on the initial Est
o f 284 adoption candidates quaEfied
fo r autom atic enrollm ent under this
resolution.
FoUowing CouncE action on these
resolutions, the tribes have enroUed sev
eral people from the initial adoption Est.
In O ctober, there were 79 new en-
rollments; in O ctober, 38 new en
rollments; and in D ecem ber, 34,
according to Vital Statistics. (These
figures include new -born enrod-
ments.)
These enroEments wid reduce
the num ber o f candidates on the
adoption election Est.
The large num ber o f candidates
was one o f the reasons why tribal
members were hesitant about, or
against, conducting an adoption
election, according to m em ber
comm ents last year at meetings on
the issue.
Winter storm blanketed the reservation
Snow piled up around the teepee at the Warm Springs Plaza.
The heavy snow that fell on the
reservation caused many m otor ve
hicle accidents, and made transpor
tation difficult for elders and other
residents.
W arm-Springs Fire and Safety
responded to over 35 accidents dur
ing the daÿs after the storm.
O ne o f the accidents involved
eight vehicles on Highway 3 near the
Wolfe Point turnoff. Fortunately, there
were no serious injuries, said D anny
M artinez, fire chief. Highway 3 was
closed for nearly three hours after this
wreck, said M artinez.,
H e said that Fire and Safety kept
p e rs o n n e l at th e S im n ash o an d
Seekseequa fire halls throughout the
week, including the hoEdays./
M any residents, including elders,
were n o t able to leave their homes for
a few days because they could n o t get
out o f their driveways due to snow, he
said. This was particularly true in the
areas o f SeekseCqua, Sim nasho and
Sidwalter.
The heavy snow also created con-
çem for a possible budding coUapse,
said Martinez. His departm ent did
an assessment o f several buddings
during the week.
H e said that the tribal adminis
tration budding had developed sig
nificant leaks that could cause prob
lems to the budding’s electrical sys
tem. -
B u y a tile
to support
Sidwalter
fire hall
B y D ave M cM echan
Spilyay Tymoo
Supporters o f the Sidwalter fire had
are selEng tiles as a way to raise money
to help cover construction costs.
Each tile wEl display the name o f
the person or organization that made a
contribution. The tiles will then become
a perm anent part o f the new .fire had.
A fud tile can be purchased for a
$100 contribution. A half-tile can be
purchased for $50.
TEes can be purchased in honor or
in mem ory o f a loved one.
“This could be a great gift for any
occasion, from graduation to weddings
and anniversaries,” said Buffy Hurtado,
an organizer o f the Sidwalter Fire Had
TEe Campaign.
The two-story Sidwalter fire had will
be bruit o ff Highway 26 on Sidwalter
Flat. T he fire hall will serve the 81
homes in the Sidwalter and MEler flats
areas.
These hom es are in a high-risk area
fo r fire. T he fire h allw ill also be a
p a rt o f th e regional fire resp o n se
network.
O n the reservation the tribes o p
erate the Agency Fire and Safety sta
tion' in W arm Springs, as wed as fire
halls at Sim nasho and Seekseequa.
In the future, th ere are plans to
develop fire halls at K ah-N ee-T a and
H eH e, according to the tribes’ com
prehensive plan.
Part o f the funding for the Sidwalter
fire had comes from the Confederated
Tribes and the U.S. D epartm ent o f Ag
riculture.
T h e h o p e is th a t the additional
money needed for the project wid come
from the salé o f the tiles, said Corey
Clements, project-leader.
TEe sponsorships are 100 percent
deductible, she said.
For more information, cad Clements
or H u rtad o at W orkforce D evelop
m ent, 553-3324.
A look back at eventful year fo r the tribes
There were many noteworthy events
fo r the Confederated Tribes over the
p a st 12 months. The follow ing is a
month by month summary o f the main
news events that happened during 2008.
January
Fish passage project
Casino hearings
W arm Springs Pow er and W ater
Enterprises and Portland General Elec
tric are constructing a large tower at
Round Butte dam that wid address the
migrating fish passage problem at the
dam.
T he 273-foot tad selective w ater
withdrawal tow er is scheduled to be
completed in 2009.
T he Confederated Tribes o f Warm
Springs received w ord from the fed
eral governm ent that the BLA can p ro
ceed w ith , the environm ental review
process th at could lead to the tribe
building a casino reso rt at Cascade
Locks. Word from the Interior D epart
m ent was that the BIA would proceed
with the D raft E nvironm ental Im pact
Statement (DEIS) process, which evalu
ates th e im p act o f d eveloping the
project at the Cascade Locks site.
T he next step in the D EIS process
wid involve a series o f pubEc hearings
on the DEIS.
Artistic tiles
Miss Warm Springs
A t the beginning o f 2008, Cyride
Mitched began her year as Miss W arm
Springs. “I w anted to ru n fo r Miss
W arm Springs because I beEeve that I
am a positive role model,” Mitched told
the audience during the Miss W arm '
Springs Pageant.
A fter being awarded the position o f
Miss Warm Springs, Mitched received
a beaded crown and banner made by
Sandra Danzuka. Mitched graduated
from Madras High School in 2004. She
then w ent on to Hasked University in
Kansas for three years.
4
i
Kibak TEe, a Warm Springs Ventures
subsidiary, is seding tiles designed by
W arm Springs artist Lidian Pitt.
T he collection is the result o f a
project that began in 2006 when Susan
Kibak-Redfield, the president o f Kibak
TEe, worked w ith Pitt to create the col
lection o f tiles.
The Lillian Pitt codection includes the
mask codection: 8 inch square tiles in
cluding “She W ho Watches,” “Coyote,”
“Spiderwoman,” and “Featherwoman.
The codection also includes tiles created
in the summer o f 2007, the stick people
codection, featuring six designs.
4
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Adoption election news
The tribal adoption election may be
conducted after ad by the Confedrated
Tribes, rather than the Bureau o f In
dian Affairs. T he issue is tentatively set
to go before Tribal CouncE within the
next few m onths, perhaps during a
CouncE meeting in April, said Madeline
Queahpama-Spino, director o f tribal
Vital Statistics.
Partial mill closure
Tribal CouncE directed the initiation
o f steps necessary for a conditional
closure o f the W arm Springs Forest
Products Industries lum ber mEl.
The mEl closure is necessary because
o f sagging timber and lumber prices, and
by years o f unprofitable operations, tribal
officials said.
In the years since 2000, the mill was
able to make a profit only at the high
p o int o f the lum ber market.
L osses at the mEl over a recent
seven-year period, from 2000-2006,
totaled $9.8 milEon.
Students see Trailblazers
Several tribal m em ber students re
ceived a special prize for good atten
dance— a trip to a basketbad game in
Portland.
■
A to ta l o f 24 s tu d e n ts fro m
Jefferson County Middle School trav
eled to Portland last week to attend a
Portland TraE Blazers game against the
D enver Nuggets.
The students were being rewarded
for having excedent attendance during
the first trim ester this year.
31st annual powwow
T h e L incoln’s B irthday Pow w ow
C om m ittee, and the com m unity o f
S im nasho h o ste d th e T h irty -F irst
A nnual L incoln’s B irthday Powwow.
T h e pow w ow has b een h eld each
year since 1977 in th e S im n ash o
L onghouse.
Casino document released
T he d raft o f th e BIA’s O fficial
Study o f potential E nvironm ental Im
pacts, caded the D EIS, was released for
pubEc review and comment.
In addition, five pubEc hearings are
be scheduled in March— w ith the first
meeting held at Kah-Nee-Ta— the first
week in March.
See LOOK BACK on page 6