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A Publication of the Grand Ronde Tribe
MARCH 15, 2002
MAIL
www.grandronde.org
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Tribal Member Completes Walk From Table Rock for Honor, Remembrance
Marine Veteran Steve Bobb finishes 265 mile journey in 14 days and raises money for
a planned Veterans' Memorial in Grand Ronde.
By Chris Mercier
Even the most devout atheist
must look to the heavens oc
casionally and wonder if
some higher authority is at work.
We all had metaphysical questions
on February 23, especially because
this was the day that Tribal mem
bers Steve Bobb and Brent Merrill
were to begin theircommemorative
fund-raising walk from Table Rock
near Medford to Grand Ronde.
Personally I attribute the bad
weather that marked the morning
the walk began to chance and bad
fortune and maybe even Murphy's
Law. Grand Ronde was sunny and
showing early signs of spring. But
southern Oregon, only six hours
away, has always been known for
erratic weather and the climate this
day was toiling hard to behave in a
juvenile and contrary manner.
Blustery, moist, chilly, the clouds
seemingly poised for mischief you
could even see a slight twinge of
resentment in Merrill's eyes, prob
ably somewhat angry at that cos
mic entity whose existence I was
starting to question once again.
Yes, gentleman, this is your start
ing point.
Even at 7 a.m. on a Saturday
morning, support comes in all
forms. Councilman Reyn Leno, an
ex-Marine like Bobb, drove down
to see them off. A handful of re
porters from various local publica
tions appeared on the scene. Travis
Benoist and his wife showed up for
a blessing. One man drove up in
an old pick-up. None of us recog
nized him.
Turns out he was Tom Smith, of
the Southern Oregon Veterans'
Society and a descendant of one of
the original Cherokees who made
their own Trail of Tears well over
150 years ago. An Oregon resident
for 25 years, he also is an ex-Marine,
hailing from "Missoura."
Smith bore with him an awesome
healing staff, a crimson, feathery
piece of work that told you he meant
business. An eagle feather dangled
from the end of the loop.
"This staff is made of donated
materials,'' he told me, fingering the
feather. "This feather was donated
from some Nez Perce Elders.
"I just want to make sure they
start off right," he said.
Smith lent his staff for part of the
ceremony, which we will keep sa
cred by not going into here. What
can be said however is that the
ritual imparted a sense of purpose
to everyone, a reminder of the
walk's meaning.
"This goes beyond just making a
walk," Benoist said. "It took a dare
to walk."
He expounded upon the negative
and the positive of the original
walk, the eight ancestors who
passed on and the eight who were
born into this world. Though Bobb
and Merrill clearly had a rough
road ahead of them, everybody
knew theirs' would be a cakewalk
in comparison to the previous one
more than 140 years ago.
Donning a backpack and two
flags, one the Stars and Stripes of
the United States and the other
that of its venerable military insti
tution, the Marine Corps, Bobb
stretched. He was walking en
dorsement of Marine fortitude
USMC (United States Marine
Corps) sweatshirt, USMC
sweatpants, USMC hat. Obviously,
continued on page 6
t Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde PRESORTED
Community of Oregon FIRST-CLASS MAIL
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Grand Ronde, Oregon 97347 SALEM, OR
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EUGBC OR 97403-1205
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Grand Ronde Tribal member Steve Bobb
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