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Spilyay Tymoo, Warm Springs, Oregon
August 31, 2016
Great earning opportunity
through IDA program
Community Counseling
hosted some end-of-
summer community events
in August. Tobacco
Prevention hosted the 2K16
Color run (right), and the
Guiding Butterflies and
Mighty Warriors hosted a
potluck and barbecue by
the fields at the community
center (pictures below).
There were drums, games,
dancing and door prizes.
By Brevin Holliday, Native
Aspirations & the Warm Springs
Community Action Team
Do you want to get $4,000 for
saving $800 in as little time as six
months?
The IDA program helps lower-
income people in Warm Springs
purchase assets and become more
self-sufficient by opening an IDA
account.
The assets you can purchase in-
clude small business capital assets,
a home, education, a car, and more.
Before signing up, you should
know that there are eligibility re-
quirements to get into the program.
The requirements are based on
household income, and vary de-
pending on your family size: The
larger your family size, the more
income you may earn and still be
admitted into the program.
If accepted into the program,
there are two possible savings
plans:
In the first plan, which is
matched with federal and state dol-
lars, you can save $800 of your
own money within a six-month
minimum savings period.
If it takes you longer to save
the $800, that is okay; sometimes
it takes community members up
to two years to save this much.
You put in $1; you get matched
5 to 1. In 6 months, if you’ve
saved $800, you will have $4,000
in matching funds to use towards
the purchase of an asset. How
great is that?
With this plan your $4,800 can
pay for several things including:
purchasing a home, starting or im-
proving a small business, or get-
ting college education and/or job
training.
The other savings plan, which
is matched by state of Oregon
dollars, allows you to purchase the
items mentioned above, or also to
buy a vehicle or renovate a home.
Jayson Smith
photos/Spilyay
If you are a disabled person, it
also may allow you to buy assistive
equipment enabling you to be com-
petitive in a job or business.
This plan allows you to save up
to $1,200 of your own money
over a minimum 13-month period,
at the same 5:1 match rate as the
first plan, receiving $6,000 in
matching funds.
After you’ve completed your
first IDA account, it is possible to
re-enroll in a new IDA account.
Over your lifetime, if you re-
main eligible, you may receive up
to $20,000 (up to $3,000 per year)
from the Oregon IDA Initiative.
In each new account after
you’ve completed your first IDA,
you will be able to save up $1,200
over a 13-month minimum savings
period. You can use the money to
purchase any items listed above.
If you decide to enroll in the
IDA program, there a couple of
things you will need to accomplish,
including financial skills courses
and courses on utilizing the asset
you hope to purchase.
If you open a business IDA ac-
count, for example, you will be re-
quired to complete the
Indianpreneurship course.
The Indianpreneurship book
used in the course accurately rep-
resents the challenges, experiences,
and opportunities we face as Na-
tive American entrepreneurs. De-
pending on what kind of IDA ac-
count you have, there are other
classes you may be required to
complete.
I highly encourage people who
are thinking about continuing your
education after high school, start-
ing a small business, buying a car,
or buying or renovating a home to
enroll in the program.
The IDA program is something
that is beyond doubt a valuable
program many community mem-
bers can greatly benefit from.
If you have any further ques-
tions regarding the IDA program,
please call the Community Action
Team office at 541-553-3148.
Tribal fall fishery the largest of the year
Fishers from the War m
Springs, Yakama, Umatilla and
Nez Perce tribes are taking to
the Columbia River for the
opening of the 2016 fall fish-
ery, the largest tribal fishery of
the year.
With an estimated 778,000
upriver chinook returning dur-
ing the fall run, tribal fishers
could harvest over 200,000 fall
chinook throughout the season.
This would be roughly 3.4 mil-
lion pounds of salmon in the
marketplace.
The growth of the fall fish-
ery over the years is the direct
result of tribal restoration ef-
forts that have steadily in-
creased the number of adult
salmon returning to the Colum-
bia system.
The public will be able to
enjoy this harvest through a
number of different avenues.
The majority of tribal com-
mercial harvest will be sold to
wholesale fish dealers. These
fish will end up in stores and
restaurants throughout the Pa-
cific Northwest.
Individuals will also be able
to purchase salmon, steelhead
and coho directly from Indian
fishers at locations along the
river, and at select farmers mar-
kets in larger metro areas.
Sales should last into Octo-
ber with peak abundance from
just before Labor Day through
mid-September.
In addition to the 778,000
fall chinook that are destined
for areas upstream of
Bonneville Dam, fishery man-
agers are also predicting over
Courtesy CRITFC
Jordan Wheeler (right) and Jordyn Brigham (left) harvest fall
chinook from nets along the Columbia River.
149,000 summer steelhead,
19,700 natural-origin Snake River
fall chinook, and nearly 200,000
coho.
“The fall harvest represents
many things to the tribal fishers
along the Columbia River,” said
Patrick Luke, chairman of the
Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish
Commission.
“The fall fishery is the eco-
nomic backbone for our fishing
communities, is the continuation
of knowledge and tradition that
has been passed down through
generations
“This fishery represents de-
cades of hard work and dedica-
tion to rebuilding salmon runs,”
Mr. Luke said. “The unique rela-
tionship between the tribes and
salmon is one that can be traced
back to time immemorial. That
relationship is why the tribes will
always fight for healthy salmon
runs and to ensure that sustain-
able fish returns will continue
to bless the Columbia River
basin and its residents.”
The fall fisheries are moni-
tored consistently throughout
the season and harvests adjusted
so the fisheries remain within
the limits established under the
U.S . v. Oregon fisheries man-
agement agreement.
The U.S. v. Oregon fisheries
management agreement has the
goal of protecting, rebuilding,
and enhancing upper Columbia
River fish runs, while providing
treaty Indian and non-Indian
harvest at a level appropriate to
ensure the sustainability of the
resource.
The tribal fishery offers an
abundant supply of fish for the
public through over-the-bank
sales. Common sales locations
include: Marine Park in Cascade
Locks; North Bonneville, one
mile east of Bonneville Dam on
the Washington shore; Koberg,
just east of Hood River; and
Celilo Village.
The public should visit
CRITFC’s salmon marketing
website:
critfc.org/harvest
Or call the salmon market-
ing program at 888-289-1855
before heading up the Colum-
bia River. You can find up-to-
date information on sales loca-
tions, availability, and purchas-
ing tips.
Follow @ColumbiaSalmon
on Twitter for updates and sales
information.
Museum’s Kindred
Spirits ending soon
There is still time to visit the
Museum at Warm Springs exhibit
Kindred Spirits: The Artist Journey
of Lillian Pitt. The exhibit will run
through September 10.
Next up in the Changing Exhibits
Gallery will be the Twenty-Third
Annual Tribal Member Art Exhibit,
opening on October 20. To learn
about submitting artwork in the
member art show, you can reach the
museum at 541-553-3331.
Community notes
A fundraising raffle is going on
now for the 2016 Chasan Walker
Memorial Basketball Tourna-
ment. For tickets you can contact
Jake & Julie Suppah, Annette Ball
or Cyndi Leclaire on Facebook.
The drawing will be on September
24.
The Ninth Annual MAC Dash
Sprint Triathlon is coming up on
Saturday, September 10.
Organizers are looking for vol-
unteers to help during the event.
All volunteers will receive a free t-
shirt and lunch.
You can also sign up now to
compete individually or on a team.
The MAC Dash consists of a 500-
yard swim, 12-mile bike ride and
3-mile run. And there is a free
mini-MAC Dash for children 10
and younger. Find out more and
register at macdash.org
Proceeds from the MAC Dash
support the Madras swim and wa-
ter polo teams.