JUNE 15, 1999
Dear Editor,
As a tribal member, I'm submitting
this thank you letter to those who
have supported me these past few
years while I completed my college
degree.
I, along with one of my closest
friends, Camille Mercier, will gradu
ate from George Fox University in
Newberg, Oregon on June 14, 1999.
It has been a longer journey than I
anticipated, and I have a lot of
people in my life that helped me
reach this goal.
i First and foremost, I am extremely
fortunate to have a supportive fam
ily and Tribe; I know I wouldn't have
made it this far without my family's
encouragement and faith, and of
course my husband's expertise in ac
counting. Special thanks goes out
to my Godsend of a husband, Chris;
my persevering parents, Jess and
Candy Robertson; my soon-to-be
graduate sisters, Ang, Deb and Sis;
my brother Brandon; my sweet ba
bies, Kiana and Caden; my loving
mom-in-law, Janelle; my beautiful
sisters-in-law, Marissa and Lyndsey;
and my adorable niece, Annie, for
all of you have helped me in more
ways than you could ever imagine.
I am also very appreciative of the
support I've received from the con
tinued education committee, Marie,
Angie, Shelley and Darlene. Thank
you. I'd like to give special recogni
tion to the efforts and support of
Marion Mercier from the Education
department, you've done an out
standing job putting up with me
these past few years and you should
really give yourself a well-deserved
pat on the back for all your hard
work.
Last, but not least, I would like to
say thank you to my friend and fel
low tribal member, Rebecca Crocker,
as she was the one who initially pre
sented me with the George Fox ap
plication and encouraged me to ap
ply. She told me I could accomplish
anything I put my mind to, and al
though she may not remember the
significance of that kind gesture so
many years ago, I, on the other hand
will never forget it.
In all sincerity,
Mychal S. Leno
Roll 1091
I 0-'
J
Chip Tom has decided to with
draw from Tribal Council Elecion.
Dear Editor:
Over the years that I have been
here on Council, through the good
times and the rough times, I have
enjoyed it. When they swore me in
to this position I took an oath to rep
resent each and every member to the
best of my ability. I don't believe I
have missed a General Council meet
ing, no matter what the issue was.
I was voted into office to be there,
and I was. It was my duty.
Through the years I have enjoyed
the accomplishments of the Council
and Tribe. I have seen us go from a
struggling tribe to a prosperous
tribe. I want to say this to the mem
bers: you get nothing but praise
from the legislators, state of Oregon
staff, and federal government staff.
Peter DeFozio made a statement that
the Tribe is doing a good job and we
should keep up the good work. The
Tribe has gained a lot of respect be
cause of the six percent donations
from the Community Fund grants.
I am proud to sit on that committee
as a trustee.
I would like to thank all of you
who have supported me through the
years. You will always be in my
prayers. I want to let all of you know
that I am withdrawing my name
from the Tribal Council Election Bal
lot. Leon "Chip" Tom
Roll 818
EDITORIAL POLICY: SMOKE SIGNALS, a publication of the Confederated Tribes of the
Grand Ronde Community of Oregon, Is published twice a month. We have established an Editorial
Policy to encourage Input from readers about stories printed In SMOKE SIGNALS, and other tribal
issues. However, all letters must be received at the newspaper office with author's signature, address,
and phone number in order to be considered for publication. 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. Published letters do not necessarily reflect the opinions of SMOKE SIGNALS,
tribal employees, or Tribal Council.
DEADLINE IS SUED ATE
June 21 JULY 1
Submissions must reach the
SMOKE SIGNALS office
by the dates listed.
SMOKE SIGNALS
Public Information Office
9615 Grand Ronde Road
Grand Ronde, Or 97347
1-800-422-0232
(503) 879-2254
FAX: (503)879-2173
Dear Editor:
I would like to thank Tribal Coun
cil Vice-Chair Reyn Leno for focus
ing time and attention to the water
issues that the Grand Ronde com
munity is working to address.
Greatly due to the fact that Reyn
has been attending Grand Ronde
Community Water Association meet
ing for the past months, a produc
tive dialogue between the Associa
tion and the Tribe has begun. A di
rect benefit of his proactive partici
pation has resulted in the forming
of a committee with three Water As
sociation Board members and three
tribal representatives. The work of
this committee will be to insure con
tinued productive communications,
and cooperative problem solving of
water-related concerns.
Future development of any nature
will be dependent upon the contin
ued development of water sources in
the community. I strongly feel that
it is in the community's best interest
for all of the stake holders to work
together. Very little is ever accom
plished working against one an
other. Once again I would like to thank
Reyn for stepping up and looking to
the future. I would also like to thank
the Grand Ronde Water Association
Board for their receptiveness to
working with the Tribe.
Respectfully,
Tim E.Holmes
Roll 912
UPDATE:
Brick Sale
The CTGR-Health Committee
would like to update everyone who
has participated in the purchasing
of a BRICK. The committee has
been working very hard on this
project for one year and is now in
the final stages of ordering the
bricks. The committee needs to make
sure that all names and spellings are
correct. Those of you who have
voiced concerns about incorrect or
missing bricks can be assured that
the committee has taken measures
to correct them.
We want you to know that the past
BRICK SALE took the committee
one and a half years to complete and
we are working very hard to final
ize this year's project. The commit
tee asks for your patience during this
time, due to the size of this project.
Thank you,
Health Committee
Thank you
To all the neighbors who helped
us Elders at Grand Meadows, thank
you. After you left, the rains came
to water the flowers and settle the
bark chips. Thanks to all of you. We
couldn't have done it without you.
Carroll and Trudy Grenia
Corrections
Smoke Signals apologizes for mis
spelling "ATM" and "Nathan Muel
ler" in the last issue. There was an
error in the Casino Spotlight as well.
Orrin "Bud" White is Jennifer
Truscott's uncle, not her grandfather.
Request deadline: June 30
$1,000 distribution
available to members
Tribal Council has passed a resolution allocating $1,000 to each
tribal member through the Member Benefit Program. For those eli
gible, withdrawal requests received in our offices by June 30, 1999,
will generate checks to be mailed on July 15, 1999. Withdrawal
requests post marked June 30, 1999 will not meet the deadline, they
must be in our offices by that date.
Members should have already received an application and cover
letter in the mail regarding this distribution. If you choose not to
make a withdrawal at this time, or miss the June 30th deadline, the
next payment date will be August 10, 1999. In order to be mailed a
check on August 10th, you must have your application to us no later
than July 31, 1999.
The total Member Benefit Program allocation for 1999 is $1,000
for each member.
If you did not receive your application, need to change your ad
dress, or have questions regarding the application process or your
beneficiary, you can contact Liz Leno at 1-800-422-0232, ext. 2082 or
Amy Justen at ext. 2223. With any other questions, contact Chris
Leno at 1-800-422-0232, ext. 2340.