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About Spilyay tymoo. (Warm Springs, Or.) 1976-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 31, 2009)
E Coosh EEWA: The way it is Page 4- Spilyay Tym oo December 31, 20 0 9 Letters to the Editor Never too late Sometimes in a person’s life, they come to that turn in the road where there are only two choices that you will have to make. E ither you take the turn on the road that will lead you to a change in your Efe, or you take the turn that will lead you right back to that rut that you were stuck in for so long. I have lost too many o f my family m em bers and friends w ho had so m uch potential to become a better people and a productive members o f society, b u t m ade the w rong choice. They had the choice to not be lieve the story that says we are just drunks and drug addicts that will go nowhere but to jail or the grave. I was headed that direction because I forgot who I wanted to be and was trying to be what everybody else wanted me to be. It wasn’t up until I realized that I was on my way to prison again but this time federal, because o f a stupid choice— to think that being a gangster was where it was at, and that was all I was going to be was a gang member. All that lifestyle did was give me a bad reputation, a felony record that I will have the rest o f my life, and the loss o f a whole bunch o f good friends. I have recently and very reluc tantly m ade th e d ecisio n to change who I used to be, and work on a new person that I will become with hard work and dis cipline. I have been attending school in Eugene at Lane Community College with a major in Envi ronm ental Science, working to w ard an A sso ciate’s degree. Then I will be transferring to the University o f O regon for my Bachelor’s degree in Renewable Energy. I still have about two years left here at Lane because I had to start at the bottom but, hey, I just finished my fall term with A’s and B ’s. W ho w ould have ever thought that this is where I would be in my life right now? N o t me. O ne o f the things that has helped me trem endously was doing a geographical change and having family members, a new group o f friends, and support from the people w ho believe in m e and tell me th at they are proud o f w hat I ’m doing with myself. I am writing this letter be cause I have to make amends to people that I have hurt in the past, telling you that I am sorry for all the harm that I may have caused you and your family, as well as my community that may have placed judgment on m e for my choices and actions th a t have tarnished my reputation around the reservation. I also want to tell our younger generation that it doesn’t have to be hard for you, all you have to do is believe in yourself and w ant something better for you and your family. I hope that this letter reaches you all in good health, and hopefully helps you understand that it’s never to late. You younger Native people are our future leaders. Think highly o f yourselves because I do. Thank you for your time. If you w ant to get a hold o f me you can write me at 133 Howard Ave E u g e n e O R , 97404. L o v e a n d re s p e c t alw ays, W esley “w h ack ” Sm ith. A thank you I would like to send a thank you out to a few people. A lot o f p eo p le d o n ’t k n o w b u t I nearly died in my jail cell. I had bleeding ulcers. I tried telling people I was feeling weird, shak ing, sweating, blacking out. O ne day I woke up sweating badly, feeling really weird, tingling out side o f my body. I fainted twice. Curt Jim my cellmate told the jailer just for the record that I b lack e d o u t. J a ile r D an Coffm an is a rare guy, a man concerned about others. W hen I was hemorrhaging, D an ran to get tiie EMT. They took me to Mt. View Hospital. I had lost so much blood I was fainting when the nurse tried to take my vital signs. Dr. Savage arrived, lowered my eyelid and knew by looking there was no oxygen. Dr. Locker arrived fast and checked my blood count, indicating serious blood loss. Dr. Savage did another test and veri fied blood loss. I was sweating because my heart was beating so fast trying to save my vital organs. T h ey w ere sh u ttin g down. My family heard over the scanner and arrived quickly. But since I was in tribal custody they were told they couldn’t see me. I had an officer guarding me in my room . Thankfully, the tribal judge w as c o n ta c te d . C h ie f Judge A nita Jackson signed a m edical furlough, the officer left, and my family got to come and stay by my side. Thank you Judge Jackson. T hank you D an C offm an, Dr. Locker, Dr. Savage, and two Happy holidays Kris Sampson, Santa, and her children Richard, Larissa, Charise and Michael McConville Jr. (from left) wish everyone Happy Holidays and a Happy New Year! tribal EMTs, I ’m sorry I didn’t g e t y o u r nam es. T h a n k you em ergency ro o m nurses, D r. Manning, the many nurses who c o m fo rte d m e. T h e re w ere about 10 o f them. O ne name I remember, I was proud because sh e w as a trib a l m e m b e r, Aiyanna Jackson. I would also like to thank all those w ho came in to pray for me. Earl, Shirley Tufti, Peggy Poitra, O na Piotra. Thanks for th e cro ss necklace. F erm an Tufti. Bernice Mitchell, Alfreda Mitchell, W inona Stwyer, Lucille Schuster, Percy, O scar Lewis, Jerem ia Lewis, Jerom e Lewis, Shari Miller, Rick Ribero, thanks for the pocket cross. A thank you to the doctors and nurses who did the scope surgery procedure. A thank you to jailer Bryan Smith, w ho is al ways concerned about me and my meds. A nd thank you to my family, Archie Caldera Jr., Will iam Caldera, L onnie Caldera, Jeremy Miller, my sons and my mate o f 22 years Roberta Tufti, m other o f my sons, w ho stayed with me night and day the whole four days. I received 12 IV saline bags, three units o f blood, three kinds o f antibiotics, many other meds. I ’ve been to Redmond for a CT scan, very scary. Cat scan with the dye in Madras, had an aller gic reaction to the dye. Nearly died from anaphylactic shock fro m m o rp h in e in jectio n . A scary three weeks. My trial date is Jan. 21. Fam ily and friends, please be there for support. I thank all o f you w ho saved my life. Thanks for the prayers from cellmates and the church groups w ho came from Madras. Also a thank you to Cary, another jailer who took m e to all my medical appoint ments. Thank you all and G od bless you. A rchie C ald era Sr. Raffle support T h e fam ily o f C h arice McConville give a big thank you to everyone for participating and supporting Charice with the Charice McConville Raffle. T h e ra ffle a n d o th e r fundraisers will help C harice travel to Europe in the summer o f 2010 as a student ambassa dor with the People to People program (see story on page 5). T he raffle sales w ere held Nov. 28-29, and D ec. 12-21. Drawings were held on Nov. 29, D ec. 12 and D ec. 21. A big thank you to the donors and congratulations to the winners. The following are raffle prizes, followed by the donor, and the w inner o f the item: “R oot Digger” framed print by artist G ene Andy, donated by R o salin d S am p so n , w o n by Byron J. Patt. Baby doll board, made and donated by Rosalind Sampson, won by Melissa Charley. P e n d le to n v e s t, K ris Sampson; June Smith. Pendleton clu tch p u rse w ith g ift card, M ich ael M cC o n v ille; Sylvia McCabe. Pendleton clutch purse with gift card, Richard McConville; Pat Creelman. Flat miniature bag necklace p iece w ith sh ell ea rrin g s, R osalind S am pson; B yron J. Patt. Quilters set, m at w ith rotary c u tte r, K ris S am p so n ; Je rry Sampson. Mr. a n d M rs. B ear tra d i tional attire, m ade and donated by Rosalind Sam pson; Agnes Wolfe. G ift tower with huckleberry item s, M ich ael M cC onville; W inona Stwyer. Miniature hoop dip net, made and donated by Richard McConville; Byron J. P a tt Cowboy spurs salt and pep per set, Kris Sampson; Wilson Wewa. R ed s to c k in g w ith B aby E lm o , ite m s , L a ris sa M cC onville; A rlissa R h o an- fuentes. G reen stocking w ith W innie the P ooh items, Larissa M cC onville; R h o n d a Sm ith. U ten sil set w ith c ro c k p o t, M e rild a C h a rle y ; B e n s o n H eath. Singer professional scissors, M elissa C h arley ; D o n n a W ain an w it. S hell n eck lace, Eileen Spino; Shawn Morford. M in iatu re “ C ro ss” earrin gs, Eileen Spino; Ruth Traut. Christmas wreath, made and donated by Kris Sampson; Char lotte Shike. Christm as w reath m ad e a n d d o n a te d by K ris Sampson: Moses Kalama. A set o f C hristm as orn am en ts d o nated by mystery Santa Claus; Pat Creelman. T h e re w ill b e fu tu re fundraising events for Charice, tribal m em ber o f the Confed erated Tribes o f W arm Springs, to support her People to People am b assad o r trip to E u ro p e. C ontributions and donations can be sent or given to Charice M cC o n v ille c / o R o s a li n d S am pson, P.O. Box 648, Warm Springs O R 97761. Doing well I ’m just w riting to let my people know that I ’m alive and well inside these brick walls. You know I thought it would be easy to turn my life around b u t I find all kinds o f obstacles in my path. This time I lasted 10 m onths in sobriety b efo re I relapsed. I jumped right back into old be havior and am using the reser vation as my scapegoat because o f all o f my acquaintances are there and I never tell them no w hen it com es to partying. I know there are a lot o f tribal m em bers o ut there w ho were where I ’m at right now and they overcame their addictions and are helping other tribal members. I have people willing to help me o u t b u t I never talk to them because I thought that I had all o f the answers. I learned that I can’t do it by myself b ut still think that I can quit any time that I w ant to but deep down in my heart and soul I know I ’m lying’ to myself. I pray that this time I learn my lesson and realize that it’s time to grow up. I have two sons that are al m ost m en who have never had the privilege to learn anything good from m e because I was always in jail or prison. I never got to see them grow up because I chose alcohol and drugs over them. I’m going to California for a few m o n th s b u t I ’ll keep in touch. To all you young people, “K eep your heads up.” Happy holidays. Respectfully, Jo h n so n N . H e a th Sr., no. 68697-065, Federal D etention Center, P O Bpx 6000, Sheridan, O R 97378. Apologies I am sorry I broke tribal law o n 10-31-09 by giving false identification, trying to represent m yself to be another, w hen I was asked by a law enforcem ent officer. I apologize to B.J. This Ski Day Photo courtesy o f the Leo Co. Having fun at Mt. Hood Meadows Ski Day are Jesslynn Anderson (front), Amissa Anderson (left), Samantha Tappo (right), and Janaya Brunoe (back). I w ant to say that the Dec. 12 ski trip to M t. H o o d Meadows was awesome. My grandkids had a great time, and I really appreciate action will never happen again. C hanelle Jackson. I am sorry I broke tribal law on 9-15-09 by driving intoxi cated and endangering three other people other than my own. I am also sorry to the tribal court for missing my scheduled court. A nd I assure you that this will never happen again. W illiam N a p y er. I am sorry I broke tribal law on 11-9-09 by trespass, 603-09, 305.240. I was asked to leave and did b u t returned. I’m sorry if I disrespected anybody by being intoxicated and unaware o f other people’s boundaries. I apologize to Macy’s Market and T.M. I ’m deeply sorry this hap pened. H e n ry Y ahtin. Myths and facts about diabetes Wishing you a bright and joy ous N ew Year. This article is to people with diabetes. P lease try to a n sw er th e question before you read the answer. Q u estio n : Should I take as pirin? all that the tribes and Mt. H ood Meadows do for our kids. It is a good and posi tive activity. In a A nderson. A nsw er: Maybe. Some people w ith diabetes can benefit from taking an as pirin every day, because diabe tes is a m ajor risk factor for developing heart disease. Taking an aspirin a day has been shown to reduce the risk o f heart attach in some people. However, if you are already taking blood thinning agents (like W arfarin) prescribed by your doctor, taking an ¿spirin is not a good idea because it can alter your bleeding factor. In addition, over-the-counter products like vitamin E , garlic pills and other herbal products that are commonly taken to pro tect against heart disease can also have a blood-thinning ef fect. I f you are n ot already taking aspirin or other blood thinning agents, please ask your doctor at your next visit. P lease c o n ta c t m e if you have any questions at 553-2478. E l s i e H o w a r d , D iabetes N urse Educator, W arm Springs Diabetes Program. Thank you fo r writing to the Spilyay. The next dead line to submit letters to the Spilyay Tymoo is Friday, Jan. 8. Spilyay Tymoo (Coyote News, Est. 1976) Publisher Emeritus: Sid Miller Editor: Dave McMechan Advertising Manager: Sam Howard Media Advisor: Bill Rhoades Spilyay Tymoo is published bi-weekly by the Confeder ated Tribes of Warm Springs. Our offices are located in the white house at 1100 Wasco Street. Any written materials submitted to Spilyay Tymoo should be addressed to: Spilyay Tymoo, P.O. Box 870, Warm Springs, OR 97761. Phone: (541) 553-2307 or 553-2210. Advertising: 749-0424 E-Mail: spilyay@wstribes.org. Annual Subscription rates: Within U.S.: $15.00.
