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About Smoke signals. (Grand Ronde, Or.) 19??-current | View Entire Issue (June 15, 2002)
Smoke Signals 3 Tribal Member Tammy Cook Raises Money for McMinnville Hospice JUNE 15, 2002 a c F S u CL in o ts .c a. By Ron Karten Tribal member Tammy Cook has a lot of thanks in her heart for McMinnville's Health Dynamics Hospice. Nurses from this non profit arm of Legacy Health Sys tems were by the Cook family's side as Tammy's husband, Mark, also a Tribal member, formerly the Pow wow Chairman, succumbed to can cer at the end of 1999. The hospice also was there when Ivanetta Cook, Mark's mother and a Tribal Elder, was ill and passed away earlier that year. "I thought, the Spirit Mountain Community Fund has given a lot of money to hospice in the past," said Cook. "But, you know, the hospice nurses were there for me and it was time for me to do something personal in return." Cook is Executive Host at Spirit Mountain Casino. Her son, An thony, will graduate from the Lilu class at Twah Sunchako, the Tribal HeadStart program, in August. y ;. . id'111"'' . '. f Tammy Cook In raising money for hospice this year, Cook will represent the casino, and gain the assistance of Glen Blackwell, the casino's food service manager. "Glen is helping me with . ; Glen Blackwell procurement and getting donations from various said Cook. Each year, the highlight of McMinnville's annual Tur- """ key Rama festival is the "Biggest Tur key" award, which goes to the fund raiser who brings in the most money for the hospice facility. The event has grown dramatically since its in ception in 1981. That year, the ben efit raised $800. In 1999, the big gest year for the fund-raiser, the event brought in $48,300. Last year, participants raised more than $37,000. Cook is ready to show her grati tude to the hospice in the most con crete way. She has set a goal of $10,000 for her fund raising efforts. Honors will be awarded to the best fund raiser at the end of Turkey Rama on the evening of July 12 (See sidebar). Of course, honors not withstanding, everybody involved wins. B American Indian Week Events At Spirit Mountain Casino and State Capital ... F i '1 f . , U i' " - W I I f ' i ft ill ( I fi 1 f 1 V ft Jt it H iiiiMiiii (Upper Left) Tribal Elder Marie Schmidt showed her handiwork to pass ersby at Spirit Mountain Casino. Schmidt was participating in one of several events at the casino related to American Indian Week (May 20-24). (Lower Left) Tribal member and Culture Committee Chair Pat Allen dis played her crafts at the casino and explained her work to curious guests. (Top) Oregon's Secretary of State Bill Bradbury signed the Proclamation for American Indian Week at the State Capitol on Thursday, May 23. (Right) Native Musician Bill Miller performed a free concert at the Tribal Governance Center in Grand Ronde on Friday, May 24. Miller's concert was described as "inspiring" and it was well attended as the atrium at the Gover nance Center continues to become a viable concert setting. (? t If 0 W a The Honorable Mark Hatfield Honored with First Citizen Award in Portland .c Q. C '5 3 o x: Q. Friend Of the Tribe Former Oregon Senator and Governor Mark O. Hatfield was honored with the city's annual Portland First Citizen Award at the Hilton Hotel. Among the guests honoring Hatfield were Tribal Elder and former Tribal Chair Kathryn Harrison. Hatfield was among a handful of Oregon politicians that helped the Tribe achieve Restoration to federally recognized status as a sover eign nation in the early 1980s. Hatfield was the U.S. Senator from Oregon for over 30 years and spent two terms in the Governor's mansion with his wife Antoinette. Hatfield will turn 80 in July. 11 If ' I V i O 17 f q MattZimbrick s (SriamjiKw II i! mzmr KevinRug9,es The Oregon Association of Athletic Directors recently named Willamina Athletic Director Jerry Buczynski the state's 2A Athletic Director of the Year. Buczynski, 42, was honored at the association's banquet in Sunriver, Oregon. He grew up in Amity where he was a four-sport star. Buczynski has been at Willamina since 1983. David Holmes Grand Ronde Tribal members and Willamina student athletes Matt Zimbrick, Kevin Ruggles and David Holmes were recently honored by the school for their outstanding basketball seasons. Matt Zimbrick shared Most Valuable Player and Best Offensive Player honors with David Holmes and Kevin Ruggles was named the team's Most Inspirational Player. Zimbrick com peted in track and field this spring and Ruggles played for the baseball team. .o Q O SZ a. 1