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About Spilyay tymoo. (Warm Springs, Or.) 1976-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 7, 2015)
Spilyay Tymoo Coyote News, est. 1976 January 7, 2015 Vol. 40, No. 1 Alyssa Macy/Spilyay. 2015 Miss Warm Springs Suzanne McConville. Jazmine perfor med the Bunny Hop social song. She learned this last year, during the Journey to Bella Bella with the Warm Springs Canoe Fam- ily. Suzanne, 18, is from Wishram. She is in her first year at Eastern Washington University, studying criminal justice. Her plan is for a ca- reer in law enforcement, either on the reservation or at the Columbia River. Outside school her hobbies are basketball, basket weaving, and going to powwows. Her dad is Alfred McConville Jr. As Miss Warm Springs, she said, “I would like to get very involved in the community, to help bring the community closer together.” Helping fight drug and al- cohol abuse is one of her pri- orities. “I know when people feel alone in the world, they might turn to drugs and alco- hol. I want to help change that,” Suzanne said. “I want to be a great role model for younger generations to come.” During 2015, Suzanne will represent the tribes at pow- wows, parades, rodeos, fairs, tribal government events, and other occasions. Dave McMechan Measure 91 and Indian Country Telecom becomes self- sustaining enterprise The state of Oregon this year will legalize the possession and use of marijuana. The new state law has no effect on the Confederated Tribes, which is sovereign. The tribal criminal code refers to the federal list of controlled substances, which in- cludes marijuana. There is, however, some re- cent change in the federal ap- proach to the legalized marijuana issue. The U.S. Attorney’s office prosecutes major crimes in In- dian Country, including the Warm Springs reservation. “With a number of states le- galizing marijuana for use and production, some tribes have requested guidance on the en- forcement of the Controlled Substance Act on tribal lands by the U.S. Attorney’s offices,” ac- cording to a recent memoran- dum from the Department of Justice. With these requests in mind, the director of the U.S. Depart- ment of Justice provided some guidance to all U.S. Attorneys, their staff and tribal liaisons. “Indian Country includes nu- merous reservations and tribal The Confederated Tribes launched the War m Springs Telecom early in 2012. Beginning its fourth year, the Telecom has seen steady growth and improvement. A major accomplishment during 2014: The Warm Springs Telecom became a self-sustaining enterprise. “That was a big step for us,” said Jose Matanane, Telecom general manager. The Warm Springs Telecom now reaches 87-percent of the potential customers on the reservation. “We have over 900 residential custom- ers,” Matanane said, “and additional 600 department phones.” A goal for 2015 is to reach 97 percent of the potential customers on the reservation. Once all the needs of the reservation custom- ers are met, the Telecom could be- gin serving residences and busi- nesses off the reservation with wire- less broadband. Edging out from the reservation, and expanding the customer base, is the natural progression for a tele- communications enterprise, Matanane said. In 2014 the Telecom provided the fiber to the Warm Springs Eagle Academy, which has state-of-the-art Internet. “For a school in a rural lands with diverse sovereign gov- ernments, many of which traverse state borders and fed- eral districts,” the memo reads. “Given this, the U.S. Attor- neys recognize that effective federal law enforcement in In- dian Country, including mari- juana enforcement, requires consultation with the tribal part- ners in the districts, and flexibil- ity to confront the particular, yet sometimes divergent, public safety issues that can exist on any single reservation.” The U.S. Attorneys, then, should work with each of the tribes in determining how to proceed with the handling of marijuana cases. The Department of Justice memo also refers to an earlier document, “the Cole Memoran- dum,” that provides guidance to U.S. Attorneys in handling off- reservation marijuana cases in states where it is legal. The Cole memo lists eight pri- orities to keep in mind when de- termining how to handle a mari- juana case. The priorities in- clude: See MEASURE 91 on 7 ECR WSS Postal Patron U.S. Postage PRSRT STD Warm Springs, OR 97761 50 cents January – Wiyak’ik’ila – Winter - Anm Miss Warm Springs 2015 Suzanne McConville Suzanne McConville likes to find inspiring words. “If I’m feeling down, or happy, or just trying to get motivated,” she was saying recently, “I’ll look up quotes.” One of her favorites is: “If your dreams don’t scare you, then they’re not big enough.” A good example happened last week at the 2015 Miss Warm Springs Pageant. “I was nervous and scared—all emo- tions mixed in one,” she was saying. “But I went after it and chased it, and here I am. You really don’t know what you can do until you try.” Suzanne won the 2015 Pag- eant following a close competi- tion with Jazmine Ike Lopez. “We had two wonderful girls who ran this year,” said Miss Warm Springs 2014 Charmaine Billey. “I’m so proud of both of them for stepping up, and wanting to represent the tribes in a positive way.” “Both of the girls did great,” said Emily Yazzie. “They both had really good answers to all the questions.” In the talent category Suzanne showed her basket- weaving technique, displaying a yarn basket. She learned the skill from her mom Laura Slockish. P.O. Box 870 Warm Springs, OR 97761 area, that is rare,” Matanane said. The technology at the acad- emy is at least equal to the ser- vice at schools in metropolitan areas. The Telecom also brought fiber to the Roots education pro- gram. A project in 2015 will be to provide fiber service to the new subdivision at Greeley Heights. Those new homes will be the first residences to have the Telecom fiber service. The final customer to join the Telecom in 2014 was the Mu- seum at Warm Springs, which saw cost savings through this change. The Telecom in 2014 added three new employees, all tribal members. The total number work- ing there now is 13. The enter- prise began with seven employ- ees. Last July, when wild fires broke out on the reser vation, the Telecom provided service to two separate fire camps one enlisted 800 firefighters. “We responded to the needs of the community, public safety and fire manage- ment,” Matanane said. See TELECOM on page 12 Coming up at museum Warm Springs artist Travis Bobb will have his own exhibit this year at the museum. His paintings and drawings are a creative and funny reflection of the life and character of the reservation. Travis’ cartoons are a regular feature in this publication. He made the Spilyay logo at the upper left of the page. His show at the Museum at Warm Springs will feature about 20 of paintings plus pen-and-ink draw- ings, said Natalie Kirk, museum curator. Travis’ show, Q u i e t Strength, is set to open in April. Youth exhibit Later this month the museum will feature the Twenty-Second An- nual Tribal Youth Art Exhibit: Young at Art. The show opens on Janu- ary 22, and runs through March. Young at Art features traditional, contemporary and classroom art created by tribal youth, from tod- dlers to high school. Main exhibit The main exhibit at the museum for 2015, opening in June, will be: Royal Legacy—Honoring the Miss War m Springs of Our Past and Present. “As role models to young ladies, Miss Warm Springs has represented the beauty and culture of our tribes,” the show description says. “Learn about the protocol, his- tory and responsibilities of bring Miss Warm Springs.” Illusion of Elvis at Casino Indian Head Casino is hosting its first concert of 2015 later this month, when Danny Vernon brings The Illusion of Elvis to the casino. The concert will be on Sunday, Jan. 25, from 7-9 p.m. The concert will be in the Cot- tonwood Restaurant. Tickets are $10. The event is for people 21 and over. Danny Vernon’s professional ex- periences include being a singing server at a revolving restaurant, strumming guitar and singing acous- tic folk and rock tunes in lounges and nightclubs, and recording an original country album in Nashville receiving national airplay. This broad backdrop of skillful versatility helps give stability and genuineness to his Illusion of Elvis show. He performs numbers from all three decades of Elvis’ career, in- cluding the “recklessly abandoned” hillbilly cat of the 1950s, the sleek ‘60s movie years including the Comeback Special, and the ‘70s jumpsuit years.
