APRIL 15, 2003
A Publication of the Grand Ronde Tribe
www.grandronde.org
3
Tribe's Wellness Day Brings Movie and Television Star To Grand Ronde
Actress Elaine Miles talks to kids.
By Peta Tinda
Native star Elaine Miles was
in Grand Ronde recently to
speak to Tribal youth dur
ing the Tribe's first ever Wellness
Day. Miles is probably best known
for her portrayal of Marilyn Whirl
wind on the television series North
ern Exposure and her numerous
appearances in movies, including
the 1998 film Smoke Signals.
Originally from Pendleton, Or
egon, Miles is Cayuse-Nez Perce
and a member of the Umatilla
Tribe. She is also a prize-winning
traditional dancer and was the
head woman dancer at the 2000
Gathering of Nations pow-wqw.
Miles spoke to about one hundred
kids, both Native and non-Native,
along with fellow speakers Chance
Rush and Kevin F. Peniska, moti
vational speaker and publisher of
Well Nations, a nationwide Native
magazine. The Wellness Day was
arraigned by the Tribal Youth So
cial Services Prevention Program,
which is managed by Lisa Leno and
Social Services Director David Ful
lerton. The program aims to pro
mote positive behavior in Tribal
youth by providing role models for
them to look up to.
"We try hard to provide role model
that the kids can relate to," said
Fullerton. "And what she's done is
wonderful, she's a very good ex
ample for the kids."
Miles talked to the students about
her life and her acting career. She
told them how she started acting.
Her life changed the day she drove
her mother Armenia Miles, (who also
appeared on the show) to an audi
tion to a casting call for Native Ameri
cans. When producer spotted her in
the waiting room, she reluctantly
agreed to try for the part and to
her surprise was given the role.
Prior to her unexpected
stardom, Miles had worked
as secretary at her Reserva
tion clinic. She said that
no one expected her to ac
complish anything or
achieve the things she has.
During her talk with the
Miles emphasized the importance
of setting goals and maintaining
Native traditions, and also remem
bering one's culture and commu
nity, which she said are very im
portant. The Social Services Youth Pre
vention Program hopes to continue
bringing Native role models to
serve as an example for the kids.
"We want this to be stepping stone
to future projects," said Fullerton.
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Elaine Miles
Shuttle Searchers Find 125 Pieces
Tribal crew slogs through rain, wind and cold but
comes back first class.
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By Ron Karten
In the conference room at the
Tribe's Natural Resources Depart
ment, the six-person shuttle recovery
crew had the feel of a group that had
been somewhere special and done
something beyond the call. They were
proud of themselves, and sharing in
jokes about fire ants and mesquite and
a part of Texas where nobody ever
wanted to go back to for vacation. The
setting, however, cold, wet and nasty
though it was, provided each of them
with an experience they'll never for
get. During two weeks at the outskirts
of Corsicana in east Texas, the crew
encountered temperatures from the
twenties to the seventies, rain and
wind, and ground so wet at times and
in places that they sank up to their
knees. And through this process, they
found 125 pieces of the shuttle pieces
from the size of a quarter, according
to crew leader Joshua Clift, to one piece
of what may have been a cargo bay
door that was three feet long.
This project was the largest search
and rescue operation ever conducted,
according to crew member Bill Borck.
"It covered 328 square miles. When
a plane goes down," he added, "the
search is one square mile."
Management of the operation re
quired everybody to wear badges. It
provided a day's worth of orientation,
including information about what
they were looking for ("they passed
around pieces of tile like the ones we
were looking for," said crew member
Brandy Duff) and what to stay away
from. "They were very worried about
our finding explosive bolts," she added.
(Explosive bolts are used to blow the
escape hatch.) Time also was devoted
to showing the crews how the grid
pattern of search worked.
Also included in the orientation ef
fort were presentations by current
astronauts, including Navy Commander
Shuttle continued on page 7
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