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About Smoke signals. (Grand Ronde, Or.) 19??-current | View Entire Issue (July 1, 1996)
10 July 1, 1996 SMOKE SIGNALS I r "x" 'I- jjffi JSSSi Sfe&atfv... . . ft Tl "7 CllJf Employee Profile: Randy Dugger r "faiHi'" fit ri Mim a. Legends Steakhouse and SuperPlay are nearly complete July 4-7; Casino celebrates Grand Opening of new Phase II expansion A trip for two to the 1996 Summer Olympics, a new Chevy Blazer, a trip for two to the 1 997 Super Bowl, and two season tickets to the Portland TrailBlazers basketball games are the exciting grand prizes being given away as part of Spirit Mountain Casino's four day festivities, July 4-7, celebrating the grand opening of the new Phase II expansion. Guests during the celebration can enter drawings to win one of the four grand prizes, one of which will be given away each night of the celebration. Customers' names will also be drawn every 20 minutes during each day from 3 p.m. to 11 p.m., to get a free spin on a wheel of fortune, where they can win cash and merchandise prizes. A special attraction on the 4th of July will be indoor fireworks huge displays of colorful confetti and ribbons which will shoot out throughout the Casino. "We'll have all the fun, color and excitement of the outdoor fireworks," notes Julie Thomas, the Marketing Assistant coordinating the grand opening. "They'll be shot upwards of 35 or 40 feet across the ceilings of every room in the Casino, showering everyone with colorful ribbons. We're going to have a lot of fun with this!" A variety of entertainment will also be performing throughout the celebration, including music groups, magicians and more. The super laser show, an exciting fast-action light display, and the world's largest spotlight, two popular attractions from the Casino's New Year's Eve celebration, will be back, lighting up the sky above Spirit Mountain. Visitors will also be able to enjoy the special new attractions of the new expansion, including Legends Steakhouse, a casually elegant restaurant offering steaks, seafood, pas tas and salads. Kids will enjoy the SuperPlay fun center and the new video arcade while their parents are enjoying the Casino entertainment. For more information on the Grand Opening Celebration of Phase II, call the Casino at (503) 879-2350 or at 1-800-760-7977. July 12-14; Get a taste of the islands at the "Spirit of Polynesia" Luau Visitors to Spirit Mountain Casino can drape a welcoming lei around their necks and enjoy some lomi lomi, mahi mahi or kalua pig cooked in an authentic imu. Sound strange to you? It's all a delicious part of the food, fun and games planned to celebrate the "Spirit of Polynesia," July 12-14 at the Casino. The chance to win a grand prize Polynesian vacation is just one highlight of a weekend filled with festivities. Special musical entertainment will perform from Friday through Sunday, along with wheel of fortune give-aways and chances to enter the grand prize vaca tion drawing, to be held on Sunday night. Tropical Blend, a reggae band, will play Friday night. Polynesian Moments will perform traditional dances, including a fire dance, on Saturday. Sunday will conclude the party with Naleo O Koolau, a contemporary Hawaiian band. On Saturday, guests can also enjoy mouth-watering traditional cuisine, featuring lomi lomi (a delicious mixture of salmon, tomatoes and onions), mahi mahi (a favorite grilled Hawaiian fish), and Kalua Pig (pork cooked Hawaiian-style in an underground oven called an imu). These authentic dishes will join other tempting selections in the Casino's popular buffet, Coyote 's, during lunch and dinner that day. Guests on Saturday will be greeted with a lei necklace, a traditional Hawaiian welcome. For more information on the "Spirit of Polynesia" and other upcoming special celebra tions at Spirit Mountain, call the Casino at (503) 879-2350 or 1-800-760-7977. Manager has had long career in restaurants Working with young people and providing them with the job skills and education for their future has always been an important goal for Randy Dugger. He hopes to continue that goal through his position as Food & Beverage Manager at Spirit Mountain Casino. Randy is proud that his de partment is the largest at Spirit Mountain, and that he employs a large number of tribal members. He encourages everyone interested in a career at the Casino to look into the job opportunities available or to take advantage of the excellent career training programs the Tribe makes available to its members. Randy's own journey to being the Food & Beverage Manager did not occur overnight, but was the result of many years of specialized training and job experience. A native of Tacoma, Washington, Randy was raised in the nearby suburb of Fircrest. A planned devel opment with an emphasis on community activities and recreation, Fircrest was a great place for Randy to grow up. He attended Washington State University, where he studied political science. After graduating, Randy found himself in Berkeley, California, where he worked for Langendorf Bakeries. To elevate himself into the management level, he took a two-year course in the Culinary Arts School at Laney College in nearby Oakland. Afterwards, he was accepted into the prestigious American Institute of Baking.in Chicago, but instead chose a job offer as the baker for a small restaurant and specialty food company in Hanover, New Hampshire. It was in Hanover that he met and married his wife, Kathy. He joined P&C Supermarkets, a major northeast chain, and worked for several years renovating their grocery stores. The experience gave him the chance to work in several different areas, including the produce and meat departments, and develop new skills and job knowledge. In 1977, he and Kathy moved to Gig Harbor, Washington, in search of a family-friendly environment where they could raise their children. They opened up a restaurant, W.B. Scott 's, which specialized in steak, seafood and pastas, much like Spirit Mountain's new restaurant, Legends. W.B. Scott 's proved very successful and gave the Duggers the opportunity to spend qual ity time with their kids and to become very active citizens in their local Chamber of Com merce, school district and community. Randy served on a number of non-profit commit tees and boards and was particularly involved in vocational training for students in the local high schools, his restaurant providing the first jobs for many young people in his community. "The most important things we do in life," he notes, "are our relationships with young people and what we do to help them succeed." He says he gets great personal satisfaction every time he hears how well his former young employees are doing in their lives and knowing he may have contributed to their success. In 1993, Randy decided to take his public service into the political world, running for Pierce County Council. Although he didn't win the election, the experience made Randy sit down and reevaluate his goals and look at other new opportunities. He had been follow ing the progress of Spirit Mountain through Smoke Signals. Cassandra Cook, the wife of another tribal member Pat Cook, worked for Randy in Gig Harbor and also kept him up to date on the Casino. When he saw the Food & Beverage Manager position advertised, he and his family decided to go for it and see what happened. Randy admits when he accepted the position, he wasn't quite sure what he was getting into, but he has been more than satisfied with the results. "I needed a new challenge," he notes, adding that the social element of Spirit Mountain, the opportunity to do more vocational outreach and help others succeed through his job here, is a strong reason why he came to the Casino. Randy now lives in McMinnville with Kathy, who works for the McMinnville School District; and their daughters, Kaiti, 19, who works in the new SuperPlay center at the Casino, and Randi, 16, who will be a high school sophomore this fall. Working at Spirit Mountain is truly a family-affair for, Randy. In addition to Kaiti working in SuperPlay, Randy's brother Regan also works at the Casino as the Purchasing Supervisor. Randy hopes to create more entry-level opportunities and training programs in the Food & Beverage department. But he also hopes other tribal members will take advantage of the opportunities that are available to them to learn and to grow, especially the opportunities to go to college or vocational school. "A job is not an end in itself," he says, but the means to a goal of personal self-sufficiency, satisfaction and pride. "You may not find your life long job here," he adds, "but you'll find the opportunity to see what's available, develop your career goals and get the support to get to your goal, whether it's getting more educa tion, owning your own business or something else."
