Smoke Signals 5
Groundbreaking Takes Place for New Education Complex
By Peta Tinda and Willie Mercier
T
he people will finally have a place
. i
of their own to learn.
JUNE 15, 2001
On Wednesday, May 23, ground was broken for
the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde's new
education facility, but only after proper respect and
thanks was given to the Earth in a ceremony be
fore the ground breaking.
Using beaded, gold colored shovels, members of
the Tribal Council, the Tribal Education staff, the
Public Works staff and representatives of Archi
tects Four design firm gently scooped up the first
few shovel's full of the precious earth, thus begin
ning the next step in the Tribe's plan to bring edu
cation home to the people.
"I was sitting here thinking of a school that was
behind us across the highway that our ancestors
went to a Catholic school I know my father at
tended and how far reaching our Tribes' name has
become," said Tribal Chair Kathryn Harrison. "In
the very beginning of the Restoration effort no one
knew where Grand Ronde was, they thought it
was in Eastern Oregon, now even the people in
New York City know where Grand Ronde is and
that's fine with us.
"We haven't reached our potential yet, and we
probably never will in my time and I hope that's
true," said Harrison. "I think for our children we
are leaving the right tools for them to follow and
to use."
The new complex will have four buildings: a pre
school Head Start program, an adult education
building, a youth education building, and an au
ditorium with a gymnasium.
The complex is scheduled to be completed in
March 2002.
It will employ around 35 people, with the biggest
employment increase n the Head Start program,
which will hire 4 to 8 more preschool teachers.
"During the 1999-2000 academic year our Tribal
Education division served just over 750 Tribal
members in some capacity," said Tribal Education
Director Marion Mercier. "With these new facili
ties we're going to be able to serve even more of
our Tribal membership.
"It is really going to be a learning center for not
only Tribal members but for community members,"
said Mercier. "Also, colleges and universities and
other libraries seeking information from us can get
that information about our Tribe."
Providing opportunities for education is the key
to the new complex and what it will mean to fu
ture generations.
"A couple of things that are really exciting, I
think, about this building in particular and how it
is laid out are the opportunities it provides for a
A
i vty;
New Education Site Blessed, Dedicated
The Tribe's new, planned Education complex was
dedicated in a groundbreaking ceremony in May.
Tribal Council, Tribal administration, Education de
partment staff and committee members and the Pub
lic Works staff joined the architects and design team
for the ceremonial turning of the ground while Edu
cation Director Marion Mercier addressed the crowd.
Color Guard Tribal Veterans presented the color
guard at the ceremony and continued their tradition of taking part in important Tribal events.
" " Ijtl ! f j. I J
multigenerational approach to education," said
Deputy Director of Operations Chris Leno. "We
will finally have all of our people together from
the Head Start kids through kindergarten through
fifth grade kids, the sixth grade through twelfth
grade and clear up through as far in age as you
want to be to get an education all in one building
that provides great environment to learn from
multi-generations.
"This gymnasium will allow us some flexibility,
provide us a larger meeting area for meetings that
the community center currently won't accommodate;
such as our honor and recognition dinner and it
also provides much needed recreational opportuni
ties for the kids in this area," said Leno. "It (this
building) is just one more example of trying to pro
vide lots of opportunities for Tribal members."
"It's a real important compliment to the Tribe's
vision to provide services to all members," said Capi
tal Projects Manager John Mercier. "We have the
clinic for the children, the housing for the Elders
and now we have the education complex for all
Tribal members."
Travis Benoist gave the blessing to the Earth
and may have summed up the effort best with
these words:
"Through the front doors come many walks of
life, many two leggeds will come through the front
door," said Benoist to the crowd that gathered for
the important day in modern Tribal history. "This
will be the beginning of a future for these young
people and for all those who will come through
the doors. Remember them, because they are go
ing to carry on the great things that the Confed
erated Tribes of Grand Ronde has done for its
people."
(now the Risks from Eating Willamette River Fish
It's that time of the year when people start thinking about fishing, swimming
and other water related activities. Before heading for your favorite fishing-hole,
you should know about some of the health risks you may encounter when
fishing or recreating in the Willamette River. The Willamette River is a river at
risk, but many people who fish there may also be at risk. Did you know that if
you eat fish from the Willamette River you may have a higher chance of getting
cancer in addition to suffering from other health problems?
In Portland Harbor and in the Newberg Pool area, the slow flowing stretch of
river that runs past Newberg to Oregon City, the sediments are contaminated
with toxic pollution. Studies show that Portland Harbor and the Newberg Pool
have high levels of toxic pollution. Some of this toxic pollution includes dioxin,
PCBs, the pesticides aldrin, dieldrin, DDE, and mercury. This toxic pollution gets
from the water into the food chain and eventually into the fish. When you eat
these polluted fish, some of these toxic chemicals can enter your body, and
stay there. If you eat these fish, cancer and other health problems could be the
long-term result. Conclusive studies have not yet been done to determine level
of risk.
The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) has recently found
that if you consume resident fish from the Newberg Pool area including: small
mouth bass, carp, and northern, pikeminnow, you can face a much higher risk
of getting cancer. Other resident fish may be polluted as well. This risk is also
high if you consume resident fish from Portland Harbor. The risk is even greater
for women of childbearing age and children.
To protect your long-term health, you are encouraged to consider nc eating
these fish. Another option is to eat fish from the Willamette River less frequently.
If you do catch fish and consume them, there are a few ways to reduce your risk:
D Eat fewer fish
Eat smaller, younger fish
D Eat smaller portions
D Do not eat raw fish
D Discard the head, skin, and guts
O Do not eat fatty parts or fat drippings
The Willamette River is your river. It is a public resource. Unfortunately, this
great resource has been affected by toxic pollution to a great degree. The
information above was provided by the Willamette Riverkeepers. If you would
like more information on the health risks from consuming Willamette River fish
you can call the Willamette Riverkeepers at: 503-223-6418, or 1-888-449-4559
or e-mail them at www.willamette-riverkeeper.org. The Oregon Health Division is
another good source for health risk information at phone number 503-731-4015.