8 Community
The Grand Ronde Review
More grants to benefit
Polk and Yamhill counties
Officials of the Grand Ronde Tribe and Spirit Mountain Casino have an
nounced the recipients of more Community Fund grants. Grants have been
approved to Willamina and Newberg fire districts and to the Health Dynamics
Hospice in McMinnville.
A Community Fund grant of $40,000 will enable the Willamina Fire Dis
trict to purchase a new first response vehicle and special protective clothing
for firefighters.
The Newberg Fire District will receive $15,000 to help it fund new Jaws of
Life equipment. The twenty-five year old Jaws of Life tools currently used
are nearing the end of their useful life and are not designed for the newer
composite materials used in today's vehicles.
A grant of $10,000 will help support the Health Dynamics Hospice of Mc
Minnville. The Hospice provides a variety of services to the terminally ill
patients to allow them to remain in their homes with their families during their
final days. The Hospice helps more than 200 patients annually, most living
within a 30-mile radius of McMinnville.
Flu shots will be offered at clinic
Local fire district
seeks volunteers
The Willamina Fire District is seek
ing volunteer firefighters to serve the
communities of Grand Ronde and
Willamina. Being a volunteer mem
ber takes a strong commitment of
time and a willingness to work hard
with strong dedication.
It means that at any time you could
be called to:
Fight a wildland fire.
Fight a house or barn fire.
Assist victims of a motor
vehicle accident.
Provide medical care to in
jured victims.
Provide assistance in a non
emergency situation.
Also, volunteers provide assistance
with prevention activities, commu
nity first aid and CPR classes, help
with business inspections, smoke de
tector campaigns, and other preven
tion activities.
Volunteer members are required to
attend training sessions which are of
fered during daytime, evenings, and
some weekends. All firefighters and
volunteers receive professional train
ing. Some examples include handling a
fire hose, raising ladders, operating
power tools, driving and operating
fire apparatus, splinting and bandag
ing wounds and fractures, use of
safety equipment and practices.
To be a volunteer firefighter, you
must live inside the Willamina Fire
District boundaries, be at least 16
years of age, be in good health and
physical condition, and are able to
give the District 8-10 hours of your
time each month.
If you meet the above criteria, and
would like to become a member of
our team, please call 876-2004.
There are many jobs that need to be
done in the fire district. We have a
place for you to volunteer!
Fall safety check
for your vehicle
With the fall weather here, make
sure your vehicle is ready for the
change from warm days to cold.
Keeping your vehicle in good shape
is the number one way to stay out of
dangerous situations on the highway
this fall and winter. A few simple
steps can make sure you safely make
it through the winter weather we
know is on the way:
Check your engine oil level.
Check with the engine off and your
vehicle on level ground. Add one
quart of oil only if the level on the
engine dipstick is below the "Safe"
or "Add" mark.
Change your windshield wiper
blades. Replace your blades at least
twice a year, especially during the
rainy fall and winter season.
Check and replace lamps and
bulbs. Lamps are the only way your
vehicle is visible to other drivers at
night. Check all the bulbs (head
lights, brake lights, turn signals, li
cense plate and panel lights) every
two weeks.
Check your antifreeze level.
Make sure your coolant meets the 50
50 or 6040 formula of antifreeze to
water in your radiator (check your
manufacturer's guidelines). Never
open a boiling radiator cap, you may
be seriously injured by scalding
steam. Never spill or drain coolant
without proper disposal even a tiny
amount of most antifreezes can kill
pets and wildlife.
Check your automatic transmis
sion fluid level. Check your manu
facturer's guidelines for keeping the
gears turning. Never overfill your
transmission fluid.
Check your tire pressure. Proper
tire inflation is critical for safety, han
dling and fuel economy. Check tire
pressure when they're cold, prior to
driving.
By Kathleen Marquart, PA-C
Influenza, or the "Flu," is a viral
illness that commonly occurs in the
winter and affects many people at
once. It has symptoms similar to a
cold, but they are usually more se
vere and come on quite suddenly.
Occasionally, the illness may become
very severe, or even life-threatening.
The Flu is mainly a respiratory ill
ness, but the whole body can be af
fected. Symptoms include fever,
chills, muscle aches, headache, fa
tigue, weakness, sneezing, and a
runny nose.
The Grand Ronde Clinic will be
offering to the community a Flu vac
cine. It is generally given during
October and November. While it is
never too late to receive the vaccine,
once the Flu Season has started, the
longer the delay before vaccination,
the greater chance one has of devel
oping Influenza.
The Center for Disease Control and
Prevention recommends early Influ
enza vaccination yearly for persons
in the following categories:
Age 65 or older
Residents of long term care facili
ties. Persons with chronic medical con
ditions such as asthma, heart dis
ease, or diabetes.
Health care workers who might
be exposed.
It is also recommended for persons
of any age who have more difficulty
fighting disease because of certain
other illnesses or some types of drugs
and radiation treatments.
Other ways to reduce your chances
of getting the Flu are:
1. Keep up your resistance with
good diet, plenty of rest, and regu
lar exercise.
2. Avoid exposure to the virus.
3. Wash your hands frequently, and
. keep them away from your nose,
eyes, and mouth.
No appointment is necessary for a
Flu shot. They will be available
throughout the fall and winter months
at the Health and Wellness Center.
The Grand Ronde Health and Wellness Center
and Tribal Offices will be closed certain days in
November to recognize the following holidays:
Veterans' Day: Wednesday, Nov. 11
Tribal Restoration Day: Monday, Nov. 23
Thanksgiving Day and the day after:
Thursday and Friday, Nov. 26 and 27. Close at 1 p.m. on Nov. 25
Please mark your calendar and remember to schedule appointments
whenever possible. Thank you!
Effective November: the Clinic Services Division comprised of Medi
cal, Dental, Pharmacy, X-Ray, and Optometry will be closed every Tues
day afternoon from 1-5:30 p.m. The Division will be open the first Friday
of every month. With this change, we believe that it will provide consis
tency with our opening and closing times and eliminate the need for
patients to determine which days we are open for business, and which
days are administration days.
Parents: speak to kids about drugs
In a recent telephone survey of 511
high school students ages 15-18 were
asked: "What do you think is the big
gest problem facing your generation
today?" Nearly half say drugs and
drinking are their biggest problem,
outranking violence and sex-related
concerns.
Last year the National Center on
Addiction and Substance Abuse at
Columbia University revealed:
76 of high school students and
46 of middle school students say
drugs are kept, used, or sold on
school grounds.
29 of high school students and
19 of middle school students say a
student in their school died in the past
year from an incident related to drugs
or alcohol.
56 of high school and 24 of
middle school students have attended
a party in the past six months where
marijuana was available.
47 of 13-year olds say their
parents have never seriously dis
cussed the dangers of illegal drugs
with them.