October 1994
Page 3
Tribal Life
Smoke Signals
Enrollment and tribal membership review
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If you believe you are eligible for
enrollment in the Confederated
Tribes ofGrandRonde, here is some
helpful information you might need
for your application process.
The federal recognition of an
Indian tribe means that the U.S.
government acknowledges the Tribe
as a sovereign nation. Indian tribes
have a unique relationship with the
United States. By treaty negotiations
andactsofCongress,theU.S. Federal
govemmentprovides special benefits
solely to Native Americans.
Although Indian tribes are self
governing, there are certain
guidelines to be followed to assure
federal benefits for tribal members.
The most important aspect of a tribal
government is identifying who its
members are, and what rights the
membership hasin the tribal system.
Regulations pertaining to
enrollment eligibility criteria that
are adopted by the general
membership as tribal law, are
reported to the federal government
The federal government is then
assured that the tribal membership
eligibility is met, and recognizes an
individual's enrollment within that
tribe.
Deputy eager to
He is Irish, a cop, born in Boston,
and an exponent of community
contact.
Thomas Manning O'Brien believes
incommunitypolicing, and person-.
to-person contact with the people he
serves.
He believes in the innate goodness
of most people.
"It is important for a deputy to
: know the people he is serving. I am
looking forward to theoffice opening
and being able to say hello to people, "
he said.
OTBrian is the Polk County deputy
sheriff who is stationed at the Grand
Ronde tribal headquarters. On Aug.
1, the Tribes reached an agreement
with the Polk County Board of
Commissioners on a law
enforcement contract.
Seven years ago O'Brien went to
work for Polk County as a deputy.
He and his wife live in West Salem.
His wife Susan is a career U.S. Post
Office employee.
O'Brien said that he likes his career
as a policeman.
"It has encouraged me to grow
When the Confederated Tribes
of Grand Ronde was restored to
federal recognition in 1983, the
Restoration Act stated thatthe final
, membership roll, published in the
Federal Register, 1956, contained
the names of individuals eligible
for enrollment. This specific
membership roll is identified as
our Tribes' "base roll", and all
listed individuals were
automatically re-enrolled.
In addition to designing a base
roll, the Restoration Act also stated
that a tribal constitution would be
adopted. The Grand Ronde
constitution was adopted by a
membership vote on August 4,
1984. The constitution contained
tribal law pertaining to Grand
: Ronde enrollment eligibility. The
eligibility requirements for Grand
Ronde membership are as follows:
An applicant must be a
descendant of a Grand Ronde
member, must possess a minimum
of 116 degreeof total Indianblood
... of a federally recognized tribe or .
,f ; tribes, must file an application in ;
accordance with the Grand Ronde
Tribal ordinance, and must be
accepted as a member.
start community police work
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Deputy Tom O'Brian is patrolling Grand Ronde.
emotionally," he said. "I got into
police work so I could experience
emotional growth."
The most frustrating thing for
him is "seeing the same people
getting away with things time after
time - without the punishment
fitting the crime."
This is the second career for the
47-year-old deputy.
As a youth in the U.S. Navy he
attended aircraft engine school,
became a mechanic, and went to
work for United Airlines in the
San Francisco Bay area after bis
Dual Enrollment is prohibited.
Enrollment application packets
contain detailed requirements for
Grand Ronde enrollment,
processing dates, instructions, and
birth record ordering information.
Each individual application for
tribal membership is prepared by
the enrollment staff for review by
an enrollment committee. The
enrollment committee will verify
that each applicant has submitted
documentation to prove that the
applicant is eligible and has
provided evidence of tribal ties. If
an applicant is found acceptable as
a member, the enrollment
committee then makes a
recommendation to Tribal Council
to approve the name of said
applicant to be entered into the
official Grand Ronde membership
roll. The Tribal Council then passes
a resolution to approve the addition
of new members. The applicant is
then listed a number on the roll.
If an applicant has not proved
their eligibility or their ties to the
Tribe for. membership, the
enrollment committee recommends
a rejection notice be sent to the
individual. Each applicant who
V t "
discharge.
"I went to school in Cupertino to
prepareformy new career," O'Brien
said. "I got tired of airplanes and
living in the city."
Tom O'Brien is an artist, enjoys
sports and was a soccer coach and
referee.
"That was a few pounds ago," he
said.
For relaxation he continues to
draw.
O'Brien is operating out of the
Public WorksDepartment building
until his permanent office is
completed.
receives a rejection notice is
notified of the reason for the
rejection, and their rightto appeal.
In turn, the applicant may then
submit further documentation to
support their claim for eligibility
for enrollment committee review.
If the enrollment committee again
recommends a rejection notice, the
applicant has the right to testify
before the enrollment committee.
If the committee recommends a
denial, the applicant may then
petition the Tribal Council for
review.
The Enrollment office is
responsible for the maintenance of
the tribal data base, which contains
demographics of tribal members.
Statistical reports are generated
for tribal program and planning
services. It is very important to
keep the Enrollment office notified
of an address change and other
information. Notices pertaining
to tribal elections, job
announcements, activities, etc., are
mailed using the addresses of
members on file in the Enrollment
office. The Enrollment office will
also verify membership for tribal
programs and outside agencies.
Tribal youth aid in Yukwah
trail improvement
The district ranger for the Sweet
Home District of the Willamette
National Forest has praised the
work of the Grand Ronde Tribe's
work youth crew.
The group worked on the
Yukwah campground trail this
summer. The campground is
located east of Sweet Home.
The crew included: Meadow
Wilds, 18; Jake McKnight, 16,
Dustin Leno, 16; Joe Hostler, 16;
Jason Mercier, 17; Chris Bailey,
17andStephanieUssing,16. Bill
Moreland was the crew leader and
Karen Larsen was the chaperone
during their stay in the U. S. Forest
Service house in Sweet Home.
In a recent letter to former
Council member Merle Holmes,
District Ranger Rolf Anderson
Firewood list
The Forestry Department is re-establishing a firewood list. Anyone
I interested in being put on this list can contact Connie or Karen at 879-1
5522. You will be notified when wood becomes available. However,
we will only attempt to phone you once and will leave a message if you '
I have an answering service. I
' 1
The tribal burial fund is also
administered through the
Enrollment office. The burial fund
was established to ease the financial
burden families suffer at the time of
a loved one's death. A maximum
payment of $3,000 will be paid
directly to the funeral services
provider chosen by the family.
As the current membership now
totals approximately 3,200 living
individuals, the future of the Tribe is
at a crucial planning phase. The
cooperation of tribal members is
essential in collecting household
information for strategic planning.
If you are contacted and asked to
complete a survey or questionnaire,
please remember that all information
is confidential and usedfor statistical
purposes.
The Enrollment office is
committed to providing the
information needed for completion
of services and future growth of the
Tribe.
Please feel free to contact Margo
Merrier, Enrollment Director, for
further information of Enrollment
office policies and procedures. The
tribal toll-free number is 1-800-422-0232.
said: "The youth crew...leveled and
widened the trail bed, constructed a
retaining wall, brushed and leveled
bench and interpretive sites, installed
barrier logs and spread gravel."
Anderson thanked Holmes for
supporting the project and his help
in the planning phase to help clarify
Native American themes of the
project.
Project planners said that the area
is rich in Native American history,
and was a major travel way for some
northwest tribes. .
Six interpretive sites along the
trail will provide information on
landscape changes, edible plants,
Native American fishing methods
and types of fish, and season rounds
used by Native Americans and travel
corridors.