Page 2 April 1, 1996 - SMOKE SIGNALS
Letters to the Editor Casino expansion will include kids' area
continued from page 1
I am responding to the proposed ques
tion: To serve alcohol or not to serve al
cohol? I feel that serving alcohol at the Spirit
Mountain Casino would be a giant step
backwards for Our People.
I live in Minnesota, but Grand Ronde is
the home of my ancestral family and my
heritage. Therefore it is my home, as well
as the home of many young Native Ameri
cans. It is my belief that alcohol has no
place in our homes.
For many generations alcohol has caused
great pain and hardships in Native Ameri
can families, and our only hope for the fu
ture as individuals and as a United People
is to keep alcohol out of our homes.
"WE SET THE EXAMPLE TODAY BY
WHICH OUR CHILDREN WILL LIVE
TOMORROW." Lets teach our children to
have strong and loving spirits!
I would like to respond to Trina Green's
letter to the editor. I certainly would have
to agree that it is "EASY" for people to pur
chase alcohol anywhere. But, I would like
to ask her, and others who feel this way, to
question this thought: Why not make it
"EASY" for people to go somewhere that
is "ALCOHOL FREE" to have fun? Let us
invite all people into our home or more spe
cifically into our Casino. By doing this,
wouldn't we be "HELPING and SUPPORT
ING EVERYONE NOW and ALWAYS' as
Trina Green suggests we do?
I would also like to mention that I live 20
minutes away from one of the largest Na
tive American owned casinos.
Mystic Lake is more than a casino. They
also offer great family activities such as
camping, shopping, golf, a health and fit
ness center, and a huge children's activity
center.
We could learn a lot from the Mystic Lake
Casino, it is growing very fast. The people
that belong to this community, as well as
the surrounding communities are thriving,
and they have managed to do all this WITH
OUT serving alcohol in their casino.
Let us also thrive while continuing to
keep our focus on the future and the future
of our home.
Let us be proud of our home land "THE
CONFEDERATED TRIBES OF GRAND
RONDE" and our future will be bright.
Thank you,
Tonya L. Gleason
Belle Plaine, MN
To the Editor;
I too object to the sale of alcohol at the
restaurantlounge. To those who believe the
same as I do, thank you. I'm glad others
are willing to say what they think. How
ever, to those of you who think that mak
ing a few more dollars makes selling alco
hol okay, I feel sorry for you.
Before and during negotiations with the
State for the Gaming Commission Compact,
the Council promised alcohol would not be
served; now they are allowing Spirit Moun
tain to serve alcohol in the restaurant. I hope
the Council keeps their word, and keeps
alcohol out of the casino, because I believe
if alcohol is served at the restaurant, it is
only a matter of time. In fact, the proposal
has already been made by Spirit Mountain
to sell alcohol in the casino, provided no
gaming is being conducted in that particu
lar area. I don't care whether it will gener
ate a few more dollars; and I don't care if
people can go somewhere else to drink. If
people want to drink, fine let them go
somewhere else! Why should we cater to a
few people who want a "drink," versus the
health of the Tribe as a whole?
Some feel they are not their brothers
keeper; but if we don't take care of our
people, who will? We are INDIAN, not
immigrants from somewhere else. Our
people have been here since time began; we
. have survived diseases, war and genocide
but the disease of alcoholism has and is
still destroying many of our people. Isn't it
time we say "ENOUGH" and try to stop it,
at least here? Maybe other tribes will serve
alcohol, so what; does that mean we have
to? The answer is NO!
Some members of the Council and Spirit
Mountain are fond of saying "it is a busi
ness decision." Well, it may be a business
decision, but who owns the business? The
Tribe! Why do the Council and Board of
Directors not listen to tribal members, like
me, who don't want alcohol to be served.
Apparently, our opinions don't count. We,
as tribal members are supposed to be able
to advise the Council, so why has no one
asked the ENTIRE membership what they
want?
It's about time we started "advising" them
against the sale of alcohol. There are other
ways to make money without hurting our
people.
Sincerely,
Dakota Rae Sangretta-Whitecloud
P.O. Box 114
Grand Ronde, OR 97347
Roll 1587
be a separate Nintendo and Sega games
area, a movie area with a television and
VCR, a "Barbieland" with the dolls and their
accessories and a "Legoland," featuring an
abundance of the popular building toy.
Another popular feature will be "MacLand,"
featuring three or four Macintosh comput
ers which children can use with supervision
and instruction from the "SuperPlay" staff.
In addition to the play areas, there will also
be additional games like skeeball, which
will allow children to win redemption
prizes. A separate room, will also be avail
able to rent for children's birthday parties
and other celebrations.
The "SuperPlay" area will be designed for
children from age 6 months to age 12 years.
A separate room for infants will feature
cribs and will be closely monitored to en
sure all children receive extra attention and
care. "SuperPlay" staff will be hired by
West Coast Food & Fun, but will follow all
Spirit Mountain Gaming, Inc. hiring poli
cies, including tribal preferences and back
ground security checks. Staff members will
be trained in specialized child care, first aid
and CPR procedures.
The "SuperPlay" area will be available
only to children whose parents are using the
other Spirit Mountain Casino entertainment
venues. Cost for each child at the "Super
Play" area will be $5.95 for an unlimited
amount of time while their parents are gam
ing. Parents will also be required to join
the Coyote Club, the Casino's player club,
to ensure proper use of the children's cen
ter. Harjo says the tentative operating hours
for "SuperPlay" will be 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.
A 5, 000 square foot video arcade is
also included in the new expansion.
The arcade, designed for children
age 12 and older who don't require direct
supervision, will also operate from 10 a.m.
to 1 0 p.m. The arcade will feature 45 to 55
machines, including many of the most popu
lar video games available and some redemp
tion games. Admission to the arcade is free,
with the games costing between 25 cents
for the redemption games to $ 1 or more for
the most popular video games. The arcade
will also feature a concession stand offer
ing hot dogs, pretzels and other items.
EDITOR: Tracy Dugan
ASSISTANT COORDINA TOR: Kim Mueller
Smoke Signals is a publication of the Confederated Tribes of
the Grand Ronde Community of Oregon. We have established
an Editorial Policy to encourage input from readers about stories
printed in Smoke Signals, as well as other tribal issues.
Letters must be printed or typed, and cannot exceed 300 words.
Smoke Signals reserves the right to edit any letter for clarity and
length, and to refuse publication of any letter or any part of a
letter that may contain libelous statements or personal attacks.
Not all letters are guaranteed publication upon submission. Pub
lished letters do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Smoke
Signals, tribal employees, or Tribal Council.