Smoke Signals
4 FEBRUARY 15, 2001
SEA Survey Reports
Tribal Member Needs
The Social and Economic Assessment Survey of Tribal members age 18
and older was recently completed by the Grand Ronde Tribe. The project will
provide policy makers with baseline information on the needs and wants of
Tribal members.
This information will be used to help plan services and programs and fu
ture assessments will indicate changes in social and economic status.
The survey shows Tribal members have a favorable opinion of Tribal gov
ernment services. Seventy-four percent of the Tribal members within the
local community (Grand Ronde, Willamina & Sheridan) rated Tribal govern
ment services as good (36), satisfactory (31) or excellent (7). The re
sponse was even more favorable outside the local area. The survey showed
clear differences between the priorities of the local area and those of the rest
of the Tribe. For example, there was a greater need expressed locally for
improved K-12 education, road safety, and parks and recreation. Those liv
ing further away from the Reservation were more satisfied with these ser
vices in their neighborhoods.
There were 163 questions on the survey. The 1,093 responses represent a
47 response rate. Women represented 60 of those responding. The aver
age age of the respondents was 43. Northwest Economic Associates of
Vancouver, Washington will be presenting a summary report on the survey
to the membership at next General Council meeting scheduled for Sunday,
March 4, 2001.
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February General Council Meeting
Continued from front page
about how the camas bulbs were
dug and cooked. He also talked
about how the Tribal members gath
ered hazelnuts and weaving mate
rials used in making baskets that
were used for a variety of purposes.
He said that fishing was one of
the main staple foods of the Tribal
members who lived in this area and
along the rivers. He said they used
large seine nets that stretched as
long as 300 to 500 feet. Fish were
gathered in baskets and bones were
used to carve fishhooks. Some
bones were even carved into har
poons and used to gather fish as
well. Basket traps were used and
platforms were constructed at tra
ditional fish gathering areas. Meat
and fish were traded and the whole
enterprise was a very social activ
ity for the members of the Tribes,
said Beckham.
Salmon, steelhead, sturgeon, eels
and smelt were all gathered and
used as a food source, said
Beckham. Fish were split, filleted
and staked out over an open fire
were they were cooked, dried and
eventually stored for meals and
sharing.
Beckham said the eels came in
May and June along the Salmon
River and members gathered there
to harvest them. He said the eels
were grabbed out of the water,
their heads were bitten behind the
neck and they were then thrown
to the banks to be collected by oth
ers. He said the next trip was to
the coast for the smelt runs they
were dip-netted and placed in bas
kets made from bear grass and red
alder bark.
Seafood was a regular harvest,
Beckham said. He said members
gathered mussels, clams, barnacles
and sea urchins. He said the
Makah people of the extreme
Northwest hunted whales and har
vested them for subsistence.
Beckham said that Makah whalers
would attach sea lion bladders in
flated with air to their harpoons in
an attempt to keep the whales afloat
after spearing them. One of the
group would then jump overboard
and sew the whale's mouth shut and
the group would follow the whale for
days herding it into shore.
Deer heads were used by Tribal
members when deer hunting, said
Beckham. He said heads were
cleaned out and placed on the head
of hunters allowing them to get closer
to their prey. He said elk traps were
used in the hunting traditions of the
Northwest. He said pits were dug and
sharpened sticks placed inside, then
elk were herded into the area of the
traps and skewered in the pits.
Berries were also a staple food of
Northwest Indians. Salmon berries,
thimble berries, blackberries, elder
berries, sal-al berries, Oregon Grape
berries, gooseberries and red huck
leberries were found and gathered
as a main food source.
Beckham said the camas bulbs
were cooked in hearths and acorn
flour was baked with hot rocks and
made into a bread. Wapato roots
could be peeled, baked and used if
times were tough. Also, wild lilies
and wild onions were used as a food
source.
Cedar was used to make clothing
and watertight baskets. Carving and
basketry were very important to the
subsistence efforts of Northwest In
dians. Beckham said the Tribal
members were known for carving
and for making canoes.
He also talked about how some In
dians practiced a traditional fashion
statement of flattening their heads
by gently applying pressure with a
stone to their scalp over time.
Beckham said Tribal members
traveled throughout the Northwest
to trade and participate in social ac
tivities. He said shells and beads
were traded like currency.
Beckham detailed the coming of
ships and then settlers in wagon
trains to the area. He talked about
how the Tribal members were re
moved from their land and herded
like cattle to their new homes the
reservations. He talked about the
coming of the missionaries and the
changes to the people and their cul
ture that they brought with them.
The advent of boarding school for
Indians was also part of Beckham's
presentation. He talked about how
the children were stripped of the cloth
ing, language, religion and dignity.
Beckham closed his presentation by
sharing a passage from his fourth
grade history book titled "The His
tory of Oregon." He said a passage
that described Indians as "true sav
ages" changed him and made him
want to change that image of Native
Americans for others.
He encouraged others to do the
same thing he did "Learn your his
tory." D Spirit Mountain Development
Corporation Update
Jan Michael
Reibach, of the
Spirit Moun
tain Develop
ment Corpora
tion (SMDC),
introduced
himself to the
membership
and said that
I :it I
I 'j n n : I
Jan Michael Reibach,
New SMDC Chairman
he was now the Chairman of the
SMDC Board of Directors. (Previ
ously, consultant Jim Sizemore had
been the Chairman of SMDC's Board
ofDirectors).
The board currently consists of
Tribal members Mike Larsen, Chris
Leno, Clyde Stryker, Ed Larsen and
Reibach.
Reibach reminded membership
that there has been a split of the two
corporate boards. SMDC handles
Tribal investments and looks at busi
ness opportunities while Spirit Moun
tain Gaming, Inc. (SMGI) is the gov
erning body for the Tribe's Spirit
Mountain Casino.
Reibach said the board is going
through a transition right now and
will be getting back to the member
ship at another General Council
meeting in the future to provide a
more detailed look at the board and
what it does for the membership.
The board is currently seeking a
new Chief Executive Officer and
Reibach said they hope to have
that person on board in the next
month or so.
Reibach said the main goal of the
SMDC Board is to "build wealth for
the Tribe."
D Member Services Update
Deputy Director of Operations
Chris Leno introduced the Member
Benefits staff to the membership and
said that $27 million was spent on
member benefits last year. Program
Director Val Sheker-Robertson de
tailed each of the program's benefits
for the membership.
Sheker said that member services'
expenditures totaled 41 percent of
the Tribes' overall budget last year.
Sheker talked about the Tribe's
Health Security program, the non
Tribal Elder Spouse Health Secu
rity program, the Social Security
Disability program, the Elder Pen
sion program, the Elder Social Se
curityDisability program, the Elder
Medicare Part "B" Reimbursement
program, the Casino and Timber
Revenue Distributions and the
Trust Fund Accounts.
Sheker said the Social Security
Disability program has 103 current
participants and the Elder's Pension
program has 445 current partici
pants. O Door Prizes
Cliff Adams, LaVita Haller and
Bobby Mercier each won $50.
Joanie West won the $100 drawing.
Georgine Gray, Cathy Patterson
and Louise Parazoo won special
Health and Wellness gifts. CeCe
Kneeland won the Royalty girl's 50
50 drawing and Les McKnight won
a food basket from Royalty.