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Val Grout
Dear Tribal members:
I'm writing this let
ter to ask you for your
continued support in
serving you and other
Tribal members as a
Tribal Council mem
ber. I feel my 12 years
of experience as a
member of the Tribal
Council demonstrates
my commitment to
you and the Tribe. I
try to consider how de
cisions made by me and the Tribal Council as a
whole, affect you and the Tribe both short and long
term while keeping in mind what the role of a Tribal
Council is, a governing body that establishes poli
cies and procedures for the Tribal managers to guide
them in their jobs. Tribal Council needs to refrain
' from involving itself in the day to day operations of
the Tribal programs. I feel it is important to con
sider these factors when making a decision, because
I believe you, as well as I, not only want to improve
the quality of our lives but the lives of our children,
grandchildren and future generations as well. What
this also means to me is that Tribal Council act
ethically and base their decisions on how issues af
fect the Tribe as a whole, not the individual nor
family.
Individuals seeking a position as I, usually do so
because they see areas where improvement is needed
and feel like they can help bring about these im
provements. . I'm the .same in this respect, areas
important to me or where I would like to see im
provementcontinued improvement are: Elders is
sues such as assisted living, education, health and
improving benefits to better serve Tribal families
whose income would be considered "middle income."
Good suggestions arose from the community meet
ings hosted earlier in the year. A few examples
include: a financial institution, such as a credit
union, that could offer low interest loans for home
improvements; making the Housing Down Payment
Assistance Grant available to two-income families;
an option for adding health insurance coverage for
Tribal member spouses under the Tribe's group plan
and offer some flexibility to assist Tribal households
in paying the premium such as applying their
member benefit to pay for their spouse to be cov
ered; and designing the infrastructure necessary
that will allow the Tribe to diversify its economic
base beyond gaming. For those families whose in
come is defined as low income, I would like to see
the Tribe ask them what they need and what they
feel the Tribe could offer to improve the quality of
their lives. I know there are times when programs
are developed, with the best intentions in mind, but
do not meet the needs of whom they are designed
for. Who knows best, but the people who are in the
position?
Of course, all of these issues take time to develop,
or other unseen issues come up that take priority,
so I could not tell you when all these things can
actually happen. There would probably be times
when you would not understand why I, or any Tribal
Council member, makes the decision that Iwe do.
Perhaps it is something very important to you, but
please keep in mind, Tribal Council has to look at
facts presented and how the issues they are voting
on will affect the entire Tribe. I cannot speak for
all the Tribal Council, only for myself, and there
are times when I feel bad about a how a decision
affects a Tribal member who feels betrayed, hurt,
angry, unheard, or not valued as a person, but try
to keep in mind although many times we would
like to, we cannot please everyone. Thank you for
considering me when you cast your vote in this year's ,
Tribal Council election. ; , ' ,
Sincerely, . vV. 1 . ' , :
Val Grout'
Incumbent, Tribal Council B " . .; .; '
Tim Holmes
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Hello fellow Tribal
members. My name
is Tim Holmes; son of
Elmer Holmes and
Karen Merrill; and
grandson of Abe and
Mildred Holmes. My
wife, Nancy, and I
have three children
and two grandchil
dren. We live in
Grand Ronde, where
we are buying a home
and plan to live here
for the rest of our lives. I am committed to the well
being of our Tribe, and I believe that our people are
this Tribe's most valuable resource.
People may wonder how I can review written in
formation with my vision loss. Technology has lev
eled the playing field for persons with disabilities. I
use a voice program on the computer to read infor
mation provided on computer disks or CD ROM. I
also use an optical character recognition program
and scanner which allows me to read printed mate
rials on my computer. I also use Braille and Speak
programs for note-taking during meetings. This
machine will read back to me any information I
key into it. Technology has allowed me to serve
effectively in many capacities to this point in my
life. If given the great honor to be on Tribal Coun
cil, I will utilize all I have learned to effectively serve
you as well.
The following are past and current experiences
that have prepared me to serve you on Tribal Coun
cil: I currently serve on two governor-appointed
state councils. This is my seventh year (two of which
I served as chair) on the Oregon State Independent
Living Council (SILC). The mission of the SILC is
to promote choice, equal access, and full inclusion
for persons with disabilities throughout the State of
Oregon. I also serve on the State Rehabilitation
Council and am the current chair of this group.
This council works with the State of Oregon Voca
tional Rehabilitation Administration and field man
agers to insure the best possible service delivery
system for persons with disabilities in Oregon. This
group is dedicated to getting people with disabilities
employed, and this work requires many partner
ships with employers, other agencies and service
providers.
My local involvement includes serving on the
Grand Ronde Tribal Housing Authority for four
years (currently as chair); Tribal Fish and Wildlife
Committee; and the Grand Ronde Community Re
source CenterFood Bank as board president.
The skills I have learned while working with these
various groups include listening to people when they
offer input, considering all information available to
make an informed decision, and if needed, request
ing further information. I understand that all deci
sions made have consequences, and will step for
ward and accept responsibility for any error in judg
ment I may make. I have learned to treat people
with dignity, and respect. It's easy to listen to people
continued
who agree with you, but it is equally important to
listen to those that disagree.
Culture: I feel that it is important to respect
whatever path each of us has chosen. I believe that
we should be understanding of each other, and not
judge each other. We are all trying to get through
this world the best way we know how. Let us strive
to be supportive of one another. If we could all set
aside our differences and find common ground to
build upon, there is nothing we couldn't accomplish
together. There is great strength in unity.
Planning: We all have ideas on what future
development, growth, and expansion of services are
required to meet the needs of our people. I believe
that all of our voices should be heard, and seriously
considered. We then need to do short and long-term
planning to responsibly address those needs both
inside and out of the Six-County Service Area.
Through this planning, we need to establish priori
ties, set goals, and assign time frames to accom
plish these goals. We must look at how we can
provide for these needs financially, not just now,
but in the future for the generations to come. I
believe the use of endowments is a wise way to se
cure our Tribal services.
Housing: If elected to Tribal Council, I will
remain committed to addressing the housing needs
of our people. This is an area for which surveys
have been done and planning has taken place. We
have two programs that serve the membership any
where in this country. Much has been accomplished,
and much remains to be done. It does take time to
meet the many varied needs of all.
Infrastructure: I am committed to addressing
the basic infrastructure needs of the community of
Grand Ronde. I will remain so, whether I am elected
or not. All future growth of our Tribe is dependent
on attending to this issue. This issue has an im
pact on not only Tribal members locally, but where
ever they live. Per capita payments are based on
the financial success of Spirit Mountain Develop
ment. Any expansion to maximize profits that can
be realized at Spirit Mountain Casino requires ad
dressing this issue. Small business development
and further employment opportunities for people
wishing to return to our homeland are dependent
on resolving this issue. Further housing for those
people returning home are affected by this issue. If
our stability in this community is not strong, nei
ther is our ability to serve our people outside this
community. We can only realize true success if we
build from a solid base here in Grand Ronde. In
verted pyramids will not stand the test of time.
My positions have required extensive travel both
in state and around the country and I am willing to
do this to whatever extent is required of a
Councilperson. My wife and family understand that
personal sacrifices will need to be made, and sup
port my commitment to serve our people. I am ask
ing for your support and vote. The most important
responsibility we as Tribal members have, are to
exercise our rights to choose our Tribal leadership.
Please take the time to cast your informed votes. B
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