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About Smoke signals. (Grand Ronde, Or.) 19??-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 1, 2000)
'NOVEMBER 1, 2000 11 CCdos, Art: aond Soccer: New Before & After School Care Program Supervisor Gets a Kick Out of Life By Chris Mercier The new modular building isn't the only boon bestowed upon Before & After School Care in re cent times. For many, an earlier one arrived in late August in the form of one Matt Bucknell, the Tribe's new Before & After School Supervisor. Bucknell was also on hand for the new building's dedication on Wednesday, October 18. One would not think he is new. Bucknell appears well placed in this job, displaying a knack for communicating with the children that seems natural. Most of the children appear to readily love him, and listen at tentively whenever he talks. I Working with children has been a lifelong dream for Bucknell, although his path here was an odd one. He studied radiology at Oregon Institute of Technology in Klamath Falls for two years, plan jning on eventually becoming a radiologist who spe cialized in working with children. That particular dream never materialized for him, as working in a hospital was an unpleasant revelation. "People would come in bloody and with broken limbs," he says. "It didn't take me long to realize that this wasn't a good fit for me." He later moved to Sheridan and found work at Taylor Lumber Company. On the side he attended Chemeketa Community College, and is currently working on his Bachelor's degree in Art. He is mar ried, and his wife Danis Bazzy-Bucknell works as the Preschool Site Supervisor at Grand Ronde Head Start. Children, along with art and one other thing, form a trio of great passions in his life. The other thing, by the way, is soccer. But to say soccer is only a hobby would be a vast understatement. He has played it since childhood. And for him, soccer is not so much a sport, but a way of life. "I absolutely love it. You see, soccer is a sport for everybody," he claims. "It's all about skill and attitude. Size doesn't matter. Gender doesn't mat ter. All it takes is discipline. . .and skill." Bucknell is on a mission to increase the popular ity of soccer in Grand Ronde. For years, he has coached grade school children in the area, hoping to instill in them mastery of the world's most popu lar, and perhaps toughest, sport. He hopes to es tablish a soccer camp during the summers for youth that are interested. "Soccer provides a mindset that not very many LI I Matt Bucknell other sports do," he says. "It requires a lot of disci pline, but more importantly a pure "team" ap proach. Kids learn to function smartly as a group." He adds, with a smile, "I've noticed that most of the kids I've coached are pretty good in school." Bucknell sees a bright future in his new job. Children, art and soccer. What more could a guy ask for? CO I , . v W - J I . I 5 G 0 i ; rv-' iA A .UsfcC". r i J 1Q "I I Children Sing in Chinook at New Building Dedication Story and photos by Chris Mercier There used to be nothing there. Now, a whole new world has opened up for some Grand Ronde youngsters. A group of parents and children gathered on Wednesday, October 18 at the dedication of the Tribe's Before & After School Care program's new modular building located behind Grand Ronde Elementary School. Sleek, cozy, yet spacey the new building cre ates all sorts of opportunities for the program that began in 1994. Before & After was originally located in the school's locker room. Although adequate at first, the conditions became rather cramped as more parents brought their kids in. The new building boasts two large rooms, a kitchen, a handful of play areas, and most im portantly space plenty of room for energetic children to do their thing. And boy have they done their thing too numerous hand paint ings, sketches and cut-out paper artwork adorn the walls. Some tables are piled high with Legos. But nobody seems to care if things get a little messy. Everybody used to be a kid. "I think this is just great," said Tribal Educa tion Director Marion Mercier. "We have come a long way since that locker room. This new build ing rocks!" "I'm proud of this building," said Tribal Vice Chairman Ed Larsen. "This is nice and spa cious... a much better learning environment. I can't think of too many things more important than education and now we'll have plenty of opportunity to open things up." The dedication featured a drumming circle, and the children impressed all who showed up by counting to 10 in Chinook and then following that up with an entire song in jargon. Loans Made Easy Small Business Mortgage Majestic Mortgage, a Portland area firm special izing in creative lending, has positioned itself as a resource for Indian Housing Authorities. Liz Hamilton (ChoctawCherokee) works with first-time homebuyers, plus debt consolidation and refinance clients, utilizing the first-time homebuyer assistance programs offered to Tribal members under HUD's Indian Housing Block Grant program. While many lenders struggle with how to struc ture grant money towards down payments, Ma jestic Mortgage has adapted program guidelines to fund quickly and efficiently. Despite credit chal lenges such as bankruptcy, Majestic can refinance the existing loan and pull cash out for a number of uses, such as debt consolidation, home improve ments, vacation or working capital for a business. For self-employed, Majestic has non-income veri fying home loans and Small Business Adminis tration financing available. Most pre-qualifications are done in 24 hours and there is no charge for the initial call. Majestic Mort gage is an equal opportunity lender and can origi nate home loans in any state where licensing laws allow. Contact Liz at 1-800-579-8222, ext. 552 or page her at 503-955-0772. Daytime GED Classes held in Grand Ronde The Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde Adult Education program will begin a new daytime Adult Basic and GED class beginning on Novem ber 7. This fall, six (6) weeks of classes will be offered to all interested Tribal members. Class schedule is November 7, 9, 14, 16, 21, 28 and 30. No class on November 23 for Thanksgiv ing. Classes resume on December 5, 7, 12 and 14. Class is scheduled for Tuesdays and Thursdays from 10 a.m. to noon. Contact Dorna Riding In at 503-879-2282 for location information. The program is working towards offering a com munity GED class in coordination with Chemeketa Community College.
