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About Smoke signals. (Grand Ronde, Or.) 19??-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 1, 2003)
JANUARY 1, 2003 Smoke Signals 3 Spirit Mountain Employee Faces Family Medical Emergency Daughter, Danyel Leach, goes to Doernbecher for brain surgery. By Ron Karten On December 17, Danyel Leach, 13, returned to Doernbecher Children's Hospital in Portland for brain surgery. This is the hospital's second effort to remove as much as possible of a tumor that is entwined in Danyel's brain. "It's my baby and I'm scared," said her mother, Kathleen Salleng, a Cook at the Rock Creek Cafe at Spirit Mountain Casino. Salleng took unpaid time off un der the Family Leave Act to be with Danyel as she went through the operation and what was expected to be nearly a two week stay in the hospital. "I've got a bed in her room and will stay right with her," said Salleng. Danyel spent the nights before her hospital stay with friends, "hugging and crying as they deco rated" the little Christmas tree that she was to take with her to the hos pital. "She's a nice young lady with a lot of close friends at school who are very worried about her," said Roxanne Henley, Danyel's Science teacher at Chapman Grade School in Sheridan. "I'm frankly amazed with what she's facing that she can focus as well as she does. It just doesn't seem to effect her attitude." On the day she was to prepare to go to the hospital for her surgery, Danyel insisted on going to school. "This is my last time for school and I want to go," she told her mother. "She's a go-getter," said Salleng. "She has a wonderful attitude. She's bright, cheerful, spunky, look ing at it like it's an adventure." In addition to keeping company with some very special friends, Danyel also played volleyball this year. Although she has some limi tations as a result of the tumor, she is able to keep up with school work with the help of concerned teach ers like Henley and tutors, and she stays active in school life. "She also writes a lot of poems," said Salleng, "and loves the mov ies, and her cat, Tiger. She loves Tiger." Financial gifts for the troubled family can be made to U.S. Bank in Sheridan, under Danyel's name: Danyel Leach. The account was set up for the family during the last hos pital visit, two-and-a-half years ago. "(The money is) the last thing on my mind," said Salleng, "but I know we need it." Danyel's condition is a problem that the family will always live with. "They knew that it wouldn't go away," said Salleng, "but they didn't ex pect it to come back this fast." Danyel, doing surprisingly well after the operation, came home from the hospital for Christmas. She'll go back to the hospital for checkups, and still needs some therapy to bring back her speech, but her mom said, "She's amazing. A lot of people said a lot of big prayers for her." rV, a V , v ft y i' r s cjy r 1 11 ? 7 J- II i r. i f J .. .' i f l f St " VI it 'WX ( - 4 i M i V Vl ' an ' r. ) ...... Employee Christmas Party Serves Up a Sumptuous Feast Salem Red Lion hosts 132 people, but maybe for the last time. By Ron Karten Some 132 party-goers nevertheless left the Red Lion Hall in Salem less than packed for this year's holiday fete that had hoped to draw many more of about 300 Tribal employees invited. The Tribe's incredible growth over the years may well be part of the reason. "What I think it boils down to," said Master of Ceremonies Jeff Mercier, "is that we have so many more employees and a lot don't know people from other departments. And now, with all of the outlying offices, people don't know each other as well as they used to." Too few attendees, too few volunteers (five) and too few contributing to the office fund (about half) left this year's event with one-quarter the amount to buy prizes as last year, according to Katrina Herber, one of the few volun teers at the party. Mercier also expressed thanks to other volunteers including Amy Whisler, Kim Mueller and Melanie Ebensteiner and Jackie Whisler. The group also puts together the staff pic nic each summer. Mercier, who served up the music at the last four Christmas parties, said that this was definitely "one of the tamer years." Mercier has MC'd par ties and city clubs for years, but he mixed a wide range of music for this one because this crowd included "a pretty wide range of people." Perhaps the sumptuous meal in cluding spicy meatball appetizers, V salmon and roast beef, potatoes, stuff ing and salads galore put folks in a sleep mode, but whatever it was, fol lowing the drawings for gifts a TV, a home theater, two DVD players and Safeway gift cards among them the crowd thinned way down. Stories emerged days later, how ever, when the dust had cleared, that sometime near midnight, the dance floor finally filled up with a pack of stomping partiers and the night turned festive. "Only the strong survived," said Charles Haller II. B Party Time - Tribal employees, like Melanie Ebensteiner (far left) and Holly Larsen sharing a laugh, had their annual Christmas Party in Salem on Friday, December 6 at the Red Lion. Once the prizes were given, the dancing began. Education Director Marion Mercier is led about the dance floor by local legend Kevin Mueller. (? LA 'wV g
