E Coosh EEWA: The way it is
Letters to the editor
Equitable
representation
If you have questions or
concerns about what is tran-
spiring from a letter to the
editor in the Madras Pioneer
do reach out. Our goal re-
mains the same and even
more so after what we are
feeling from that letter: Eq-
uitable representation is criti-
cal to a student body who is
made up of 71 percent
BIPOC (Latinx and Native
American) students and their
families in our school district.
To address the letter is to
give it power. We choose
education. We choose trans-
parency. We choose equity.
We choose factual informa-
tion.
Our school district re-
ceives federal funding called
Impact Aid in lieu of taxes
on behalf of Warm Springs
Reservation residents and
students.
This school year 2020-21,
509-J school district received
$2,858,000 on behalf of our
Native students. For the
school year 2019-20 the dis-
trict received $3,045,327. I
can continue but these num-
bers are the average amount
our school receives every
year in lieu of taxes.
This number does not in-
clude the Title VI funding
(specific to Native American
students), or the many grants
the district receives based on
the data from our Warm
Springs students’ opportu-
nity gaps they experience re-
sulting from generations of
trauma stemming from
boarding schools and assimi-
lation policies and practices.
I would also like to ac-
knowledge the district re-
ceives such funding due to
the fact that Tribal people
were forced onto reserva-
tions by the government.
Why? Because of land: Land
that anyone in this country
gets to call home. Land our
ancestors roamed, lived off
of and took care of since
time immemorial.
The positions we are run-
ning for have a responsibil-
ity to the people they serve.
This responsibility includes
clear communication and
transparency on the funding,
being a voice for the students
and families and ensuring the
safety of our children.
I hope the school board
members as well as the can-
didates who are running as
our opposition address the
misconception in this letter.
I hope they do not condone
these types of attacks on
their constituents and fami-
lies they claim to serve.
Each school district can-
didate has children in the dis-
trict and I can say as a par-
ent in the community I do
not feel safe with this attack
on our community.
If you have concerns
please reach out. If you
want to know how to sup-
port the slate of candidates
you can do so by sharing our
social media, helping spread
the word with your family
and friends, sign up to text
and phonebank and most
importantly showing up to
vote by May 18!
Thank you to all those
who continue to support and
show up for us. It is very
much appreciated.
Jaylyn Suppah
#representationmatters
Advocate
for children
Hello,
I am Lorien Stacona and
I am running for 509-J
School Board, Seat #2. I am
running for school board
not because I want to, but
because I feel like I need to.
The current school board
lacks one very key element:
Communication.
Communication has two
key components, sharing and
listening, and I do not be-
lieve the current school
board does either very well.
I have advocated for
equality, for our children to
have the same programs and
opportunities offered to
those in Madras. I put my
concerns up through the
chain of command all the
way to the school board a
number of times and just
felt dismissed every time.
As a parent advocate I
am well aware of the issues
our families and school staff
are constantly dealing with
just by listening and being a
part of this community.
Some of those key issues
include bullying, support
programs and staff commu-
nication.
I have two children that
attend the Warm Springs K8
Academy: My cultural lov-
ing eighth-grader Kiahna
and my competitive athlete
Kiellan. I also have one year
old Branson. I know my
children will be okay because
I will always hold them ac-
countable and show up to
advocate for them. How-
ever, through my role as a
case manager and involved
community member, I
know every child does not
have a person who will show
up and advocate for them.
We need someone on the
school board that knows our
community and our
struggles and is ready to ad-
dress those issues on day
one.
Anybody that knows me
knows that I am not afraid
Spilyay Tymoo
(Coyote News, Est. 1976)
Publisher Emeritus in Memorium: Sid Miller
Editor: Dave McMechan
Spilyay Tymoo is published bi-weekly by the
Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs. Our of-
fices are located at 4174 Highway 3 in Warm
Springs.
Any written materials submitted to Spilyay Tymoo
should be addressed to:
Spilyay Tymoo, P.O. Box 489, Warm Springs, OR
97761.
Phone: 541-553-2210 or 541-771-7521
E-Mail: david.mcmechan@wstribes.org.
Annual Subscription rates: Within U.S.: $20.00
to have difficult conversa-
tions. I am not a “typical”
politician, I am not afraid to
hurt someone’s feelings, in
order to fight for all of our
kids.
I am now asking for your
support so I can be the
change. I can promise that I
will speak up for every child
to have equitable opportuni-
ties. I will bring change and
I will not dodge difficult or
sensitive conversations and
issues.
In order for our children
to thrive, their teachers and
staff need better support. As
parents in this community,
communication needs to hap-
pen and not just through a
survey. Staff and parents
need follow through when
they give feedback. We need
brave voices to ensure all of
the right issues are addressed.
There are people in our
school district that are hop-
ing that you don’t show up.
They are depending on it. I
encourage you to vote and
encourage you to advocate
for your family and friends
to show up to vote for our
kids.
A vote for Lorien is a vote
for your kids.
Lorien Stacona
For all
learners
Dear Jefferson County 509-
J School District community,
I am running for a sec-
ond term on the Jefferson
County 509-J School Board
to continue advocating for
the best educational oppor-
tunities for all learners.
My work as a board
member centers on serving
all of the children in the
community. As a board mem-
ber, I have numerous goals
for moving forward.
1. Support the transition
of our new superintendent.
Help him build relationships
in the community to gain a
deep understanding of the
dynamics within our district.
Connect him to the cur-
rent work and goals for the
district and then build upon
that foundation.
2. Support staff, students
and families as we recover
from impacts of the pan-
demic. Gain a deep under-
standing of student needs,
and support those needs
through 509-J programs.
3. Allocate resources and
work with outside organiza-
tions to ensure students are
healthy, physically and emo-
tionally. Even before the
pandemic, this work was im-
portant.
4. Expand community
partnerships and explore al-
ternative resources so we
can sustainably add more cul-
turally-relevant and career-
ready learning opportunities
for our students.
5. Proactively build part-
nerships with the community
and families to increase en-
gagement. Continue work to
expand upon engagement
events and virtual platforms.
Our students will be most
successful when they have
support from the staff, fam-
ily and community around
them. Gathering input from
the community will help drive
district work.
As a school board mem-
ber, I know my responsibili-
ties as an incumbent. I have
had four years to become a
leader for all students. Dur-
ing that time, I have been
part of a team that has par-
ticipated in numerous board
Page 4 Spilyay Tymoo May 5, 2021
trainings, implemented a
plan for continual policy up-
dates, and developed super-
intendent and board evalua-
tions to make sure the lens
on our work is continual.
The challenges are always
growing and I want to rein-
vest my four years of expe-
rience in another term of
service. I humbly ask for
your support when you
mark your ballot
Thank you for your sup-
port,
Jamie Hurd, Jefferson
County School Board Mem-
ber, Position 2.
Representation
matters
Two-thirds of the student
population in the Jefferson
County School District is
BIPOC—Black, Indigenous
and People of Color. Yet,
there is only one person of
color on the Jefferson
County School District
board, and none on the Edu-
cation Service District board.
Those reading this might
say, “All that matters is that
they care about the stu-
dents.” As an educator my-
self, caring about the stu-
dents is important, but also
understanding that for
BIPOC students their lived
experience has been differ-
ent than mine. That is why
it’s important to have equi-
table representation on our
education boards.
When we elect people of
color to represent our stu-
dents of color, they are bet-
ter able to understand the
needs of those students be-
cause they are from the same
communities. That’s why I
was appalled at a recent let-
ter to the editor in the Ma-
dras Pioneer that targeted
Warm Springs candidates.
The author’s message was
that if you don’t pay prop-
erty taxes, you shouldn’t run
for office. This is highly of-
fensive, exclusionary, racist
and downright incorrect.
While the author’s clear
target was Warm Springs resi-
dents who do not pay county
or state taxes because they
live on a federal reserve, I’m
curious if the author would
extend this thinking to white
citizens of Jefferson County?
The conclusion of this kind
of thinking is that anyone
who is not a property owner,
such as renters, should not
be allowed to run for office
in the county in which they
reside.
According to city-
data.com, at least 29 percent
of Jefferson County resi-
dents are renters. How many
other people in our commu-
nity believe that one-third of
our residents do not deserve
to run for county offices?
That two-thirds of our stu-
dents don’t deserve represen-
tation from someone that
looks like them?
The fact is, in order to run
for county offices, you must
be a U.S. citizen, a resident
of the county, fill out the ap-
propriate paperwork and pay
a small candidate fee.
To suggest that one must
own property to run for of-
fice has racist roots. Histori-
cally, only white men were al-
lowed to own property and
therefore be allowed to vote
or hold office.
Fortunately, our nation
has progressed from there to
allow all U.S. citizens the abil-
ity to vote and hold office.
Unfortunately, there is still
much work to be done, as is
evidenced by the remarks of
the aforementioned letter to
the editor.
Think you’re not racist?
If you believe that our Na-
tive population does not de-
serve representation, you
are upholding the structures
of systemic racism. If you
believe our Latino popula-
tion—who are largely rent-
ers—does not deserve rep-
resentation, you are uphold-
ing the structures of sys-
temic racism.
Stop calling yourself col-
orblind and see that inequi-
ties exist in our own com-
munity. Until you are ready
to be anti-racist and support
the leadership of people of
color, until you are able to
recognize the racial stereo-
types you believe about our
neighbors, you will continue
to perpetuate the racism our
nation needs to shed.
Heidi Casper, Warm
Springs.
Regarding
the letter
There was a letter to the
editor in the Madras Pioneer
on April 28 that got my
blood boiling. Several pot
shots were taken at the
Warm Springs community
and twisted incorrect infor-
mation and stereotypes. It is
up to all of us to reject these
and educate ourselves with
facts.
Our 509-J schools have
many funding resources and
while the county property
taxes support our schools at
15 percent, they are not the
majority of our financial re-
sources which come from
the state, federal government
and grants.
Impact Aid is received
specifically to support
school districts where land
has been removed from the
local tax rolls by the federal
government, including tribal
lands. The 509-J school dis-
trict receives more than $2
million every year through
this program.
There are additional Title
VI funds that are specifically
to support additional staff
such as music, language, and
similar as determined by the
community.
The War m Springs
Academy is the only part-
nership of its type in the
nation where it is funded in
half by the residents of the
Warm Springs community
and a neighboring commu-
nity.
They created this part-
nership by getting a loan and
basically paying for 50 per-
cent of the K-8 Academy to
be built.
We should be proud of
this impressive partnership
that supports the students in
the Warm Springs commu-
nities.
The letter to the editor I
reference at the top was sent
out by the spouse of some-
one running against a tribal
member.
That is what it was
about, trying to persuade
people to vote for her hus-
band by putting the com-
munity of her husband’s
opponent down.
That’s terrible and uncalled
for. Tell us why you want us
to vote for your husband and
leave the personal and preju-
diced attacks towards the
Warm Springs community
out of it.
Kim Schmith, Jefferson
County resident.
To Family
and Friends
It’s been almost one year,
May 17, 2020, since my little
brother’s home burned. Air
Life took him to the Burn
Center in Portland. He was
on a machine for 18 days,
off machine June 3, just the
machine was working. My
heart is so, so broken. Only
me left from 11 children
born to Tom and Sadie
Brown, Lamont has two
sons, one granddaughter,
many grandchildren with
Patricia Johns Brown.
Planning the Memorial,
no momentum yet. I was so
lucky for my children and
extended family, who helped
me with the funeral. Thank
you Sam Starr and Txlee
Winch for going to pick up
my brother. The wonderful
dressing: Thank you Levi
and Pearl Van Pelt for being
with me when he was taken
off the machine. And also
for the help with our Tradi-
tional ceremony. The girls,
Sandy
Dave,
Carol
Lawrence, Terry Saldudo—
Ladonna Squiemphen for
the money help when we had
to be in Portland. Thank you
Marella Van Pelt for feeding
us, Prayers you all could be
with us.
On June 12, wherever—
the Pavilion or Wolfman
Suppah’s home—Prayers the
longhouse be open. James
Sam for the wonderful work
on his buckskin outfit. Will
be giving Indian names (12),
Tony Van Pelt’s four children,
Wolfman Suppah’s three
children, Eliza Medrano’s
four children, Curtis Brown
granddaughter, Leonard and
Ashley’s daughter. Anyone
else, Let me know. We’ll start
opening Memorial at 8 a.m.,
Lunch, then naming.
Much blessing to Wilson
and Lucille for all the work
and progress. Thank you
Mushy for your work. Been
a hard year for me, I lost my
sister in December. When I
drive down the road I look
for my brother. Both sister
and brother loved the casino.
Lamont was a praying man,
blessed our table at Senior
Lunch, traveled with us la-
dies for Senior Days.
Hoping will see you at the
Memorial. Thanks,
Eliza Brown Jim and
Family, Levi and Pearl,
Chet Jr. and Family, An-
t h o n y Va n Pe l t a n d
Famil y, Wolfman and
C h i l d r e n , L i l l i e Va n
Pelt, Marella Sam and
Family, Tony Van Pelt
a n d Fa m i l y, L e o n a r d
B r ya n a n d Fa m i l y,
Marella Van Pelt, and
Eliza and Rego and
Family.