JULY 1, 1999
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attention and to this
day still seek to resolve
issues such as:
The plight of our
homeless men, women
and children including
some of our treasured
Elders.
Affordable housing for
our Elders and low in
come tribal members.
Insurance for tribal
spouses.
Increased education
for not only our youth,
but all tribal members. Then we can depend more
on our own people for self-reliance.
Publication of all Tribal Council voting records and
increased communication with tribal members out
side the Six County Service Area.
These questions don't come to me from inside our
Six County Service Area alone, but from tribal mem
bers like yourself all over the country seeking a com
mon ground of communication to address their con
cerns about the Tribe and its direction entering into
the next century.
For those of you who share these same dreams I
believe I am your candidate. I am a proud, traditional
Grand Ronde tribal member and a Vietnam veteran,
having served as vice president of a national
multibillion dollar industry for seven years and work
ing closely with the last two administrations I feel I
am politically well positioned to deal with our federal
and state legislators and have worked at our casino
since its opening and now hold the position of man
ager on duty. ,.i ,.
Please do not mistake my message or intent. I am
personally very proud of each and every past and present
Council member' fof the fine job they have done in
the past and would strive myself to uphold this fine
tradition if given the opportunity.
I am but a singular voice, but a voice of many. My
dedication and direction is by your will and your will
alone. I am approachable, responsible, and will get
the job done. Having said that, in closing I would
like to thank you in advance for your supporting my
candidacy. I will not be" silenced nor will my deci
sions be altered by any singular or collective group
determined to promote their position or political
agenda in a self serving or destructive nature towards
our tribe or its people.
Reyn Leno
My name is Reynold
Leno, current Vice
Chairman and candi
date for Tribal Coun
cil. I am the son of
Orville and Ramona
Leno. First of all, I
would like to thank all
of the tribal member
ship for giving me the
opportunity to serve
you on Tribal Coun
cil. Also, I would like
to thank the Tribal
Council for electing me to serve as Vice-Chair. One
of the most important things I've realized being on
Council is that it takes a majority of your fellow
Council members to accomplish the goals of our tribe.
By ordinance, the Council adopted what is called
Council Sub-Committee structure. The function of
these committees are to address and discuss issues,
problems, and agreements for the Tribe. I currently
serve or participate in all of the six Sub-Committees.
While serving on the Education Committee, one of
my first issues I addressed was the lack of scholar-
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ships. In 1996 we raised the total of scholarships by
five. We are working to improve that every year.
As Chairman of the Natural Resources Sub-Committee,
I have worked on an agreement with the Wil
lamette National Forest for the protection of cultural
artifacts. We are also working on a stewardship with
the Hebo Ranger District and the Bureau of Land
Management, which will mean an additional manage
ment of 11,000 acres of timber land for the Tribe.
On the Economic Development Sub-Committee, I
have attended a majority of the Spirit Mountain De
velopment board meetings for the last three years. I
attend these because I feel that as a Tribal Council
Member it is important to be aware of and have a
voice in the future developments and revenue of OUR
Casino.
One of the biggest issues in the Grand Ronde Com
munity is water. I am proud to say that I, along with
other staff, helped to bridge the gap between the
Grand Ronde Water District and the Tribe. Two of
our latest accomplishments was the water for our
hotel and our Elder Housing, which we broke ground
for in June 1999.
I am the liaison for our Timber Committee, which I
have served on since it originated. We review all
timber sales and policies for our Reservation. I was
asked to participate with the Fish & Wildlife Com
mittee to give them Council input, and to keep my
fellow Council informed of their progress.
One of my first challenges on Council was being
appointed the liaison for the Pow-wow Committee
which I have served on for 1997, 1998, and 1999.
In my concern for the youth of our tribe, in the
summer of 1998, 1 introduced to Council a pilot youth
program to employ youth in our tribal programs,
which remains active.
As a Vietnam veteran, I felt very strongly that we
needed a memorial to honor the Veterans who have
served our country. With the support of Council I
organized the Veterans Memorial Committee. We are
doing fundraisers and taking donations, and hope to
have it finished by Memorial Day 2000.
After a lot of thought and studying budgets, I sup
ported the 25 gaming revenue that is scheduled to
be dispersed in 1999. I feel this is one of the fairest
ways that each and every member, regardless of where
you live, receive their share.
I keep very active in all aspects of the Tribe. With
your vote and support I would like to serve you an
other three years. I feel there is a lot I can still
contribute to our Tribe. If you have any questions,
please call me, at home 503-876-7402 or at work 1-800-422-0232.
Mark Mercier
Dear fellow tribal members:
My name is Mark Mercier and I am seeking your
support for the up-coming 1999 Tribal Council elec
tion in September. I
was originally sworn in
to serve on the Coun
cil in 1984, when the
tribal headquarters
were a 24x24 foot
building in the Grand
Ronde Tribal Cem
etery. Now look where
the Tribe is. Since
1984, the Tribe ex
panded considerably as
a result of significant
accomplishments. In
1988, the Tribe got
10,000 acres of timber land within the boundaries of
its original reservation. This enabled the Tribe to
purchase lands where now our new health clinic,
new tribal office, casino, and hotel are located. There
is also Grand Meadows, and on June 1, work began
on the Elders housing. Many, many other accom
plishments were also made. No matter how small or
large, they all took time to plan and build, none of if
it happened overnight. Furthermore, no single Council,
staff, or other individual who assisted the Tribe, did
all these things. It took teamwork to do all these. If
it were attempted any other way, you would see none
of the things the Tribe now has.
What else can the Tribe do? In my mind, there's
no limit. It's my goal to see Council pursue further
ventures to diversify the Tribe's economic base. We
can't depend on one sole source of income, especially
gaming. There's too many external forces in the
country which could profoundly impact the gaming
industry. Congress for example is now attempting to
pass a bill which could tax all economic enterprises
tribes now have. Other Congress people are attempt
ing to pass a law which could make it very difficult
for tribes to put lands in trust. Another pet project
of theirs is "means testing" for tribes receiving federal
funding. If this becomes law, what it "means" is
tribes will have to show what they have earned from
gaming to get federal funding for their programs.
Another potential factor is overall market saturation
of gaming. Other sources of income are vital.
Another goal of mine is for the Tribe to increase its
Education Endowment Fund. How many of you tribal
members have children in elementary or high school?
I have two in elementary. When they graduate from
high school a college degree will be a must just to
have a decent wage job. I'll be unable to provide the
necessary funding for them to attend. Of course the
federal government has grants and low interest loans
to assist students who want to further their educa
tion. However, what if this funding becomes un
available for whatever the reason? Surely if you watch
the news on television, you will note that Congress
agrees that Social Security is going broke. Is this the
only federal program in jeopardy? Other tribes are
providing their own funding to give their young stu
dents the opportunity to get a higher education. Why
can't we do the same? The number of successes this
tribe has are indeed many. When the Tribe regained
federal recognition in 1984, it had only the Tribal
Cemetery to its name. Back then, the Tribe worked
on formulating a plan with a vision. Stability of the
Tribal Council is also necessary.
No nation, whether it was the U.S., other foreign
ones, or tribal, became successful without stability.
The Tribe needs a Council that will work as a team.
We began with a vision. We began with a plan. We
had literally nothing. If we're not careful it's very
likely we could end up with what we had in 1984.
June Sell-Sherer
I am June Sherer. I want to thank Candy Robertson
for nominating me for Tribal Council. First, I want
to introduce myself, I was born to Joseph Sell and
Emma (LaBonte) Sell in
1948. I served in the
Women's Army Corp
from 1966 to 1969 and
was honored as
USAREUR WAC of the
month in February
1969.
My employment his
tory includes security
chemical and fuel op
erations. I returned to
school in 1992 and
earned an Associate's
degree as Administra
tive Assistant and Medical Office Assistant. My cur
rent position is at Spirit Mountain Casino as a Mar
keting Assistant.
A few years ago we took a survey to determine what
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