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About Smoke signals. (Grand Ronde, Or.) 19??-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 15, 2003)
2 OCTOBER 15, 2003 Smoke Signals Dear Tribal members: I would like to take this time to thank all of you who voted for me. Although I was not elected I will not be giving up, I intend to run this next year and hope fully I can gain people's trust and they will get to know me and my visions and ideas for the betterment of the Tribe and Tribal members. This year I intend to spend much of my off work time educating myself on Tribal issues and attend ing as many meetings as I can. Please feel free to approach me with your needs and wants or any questions you may have. I would hope that some of you will invite me to your homes to visit as I would like very much to get reacquainted with many of you I haven't spent time with in a lot of years. Again, thank you for your support and you can call me at home 503-879-1117. Respectfully, Joyce Bean Kirk Roll 16 Dear Smoke Signals, I would like to thank all the Tribal members who participated in voting this year. We need more members to register and take part in our elections. I would like to invite any and all Tribal members or their family members who can't come to the monthly General Council meetings to send me their email address. You see, I take notes at each meeting and then send my notes out to all of those who are on my list, so far I have almost 100 people on my list. I believe in open and honest communication and that the membership deserves to get more information from these meetings then what is currently being provided. If you want to be added to my email list, send me an email requesting to be added to my list at dcl05msn.com. Thank you once again for your participation in our election process. Fred McGee Roll 1172 To the Editor, The Family of Tom Jones wishes to thank all who helped us in Tom's final journey. A special thank you to Cheryle Kennedy, Gene LaBonte and Butch LaBonte. We don't know what we would have done without your dedication. We thank Tribal Council for helping us with expenses we did not know we had, for Tom's burial. We wish to thank Tom's girls at Social Services when he was director, for your thoughtful words and great memories. He indeed, is a hard act to follow. We thank the Veterans of Grand Ronde and of NIVA for giving Tom such an honorable service. Thank you Vernon Kennedy for the Drum, and Jan Michael for lending his voice and flute. We wish to tell the Grand Ronde membership of the Nisqually People, with whom Tom was working when he left, of the great honor and respect they showed " to our family, in Tom's name. Of their sorrow at his passing, of the generous gifts of flowers, food, money to help us on our journey home. We were honored to have brought Tom to them so they could say good bye. The Nisqually thanked you, Grand Ronde, for having shared Tom with them. We thank the Nee Me Poo, The Shoalwater Bay Tribe, Lummi. and Western Shoshone, for attending Tom's service and sharing what he did to help you. We thank NICWA and IHS. We thank Tom Ball, Alex Stone and Ed Edmo for being with Tom at the end, as you were all together in the beginning. It was as it should be. Our family here, gives thanks and honor to our family in Grand Ronde. To Bill Kellogg and his family, his wondrous wife and children for providing us a place to shower and all the hard work you put in towards making us comfortable and giving such a fine meal after the service. We thank the extended family of ours whom we met, some for the first time, and pray you keep in touch with us. We were so pleased to see you return to Grand Ronde, to the Tribe, to us. It gives us, the family of Sarah (Sally) Hudson, great pleasure to see you working and thriving at home, we look forward to more stories and knowing you will be there when we find our way back. We wish as Tom's legacy, that when we grow in our financial stability as a Tribe, that we remember those Tribes still struggling. In our generosity to many causes, museums, to the arts, that the casino has afforded us the opportu nity to give, let us please remember the Tribes still unable to gain financial stability. When given the blessing of being able to donate to help others, let us remember all of Indian Country. To all those whom Tom helped along the way, we hear your song, we feel your prayers. You were never far from Tom's heart. He loved you at his time of death as he did when he was working in Grand Ronde. Tom always had a plan to return to Grand Ronde to again be with you. He had work to do before he could. Tom Jones is now your ancestor, he has not left you, he has simply taken another place to guide and watch over you. To the Indian men who are stubborn to Western Medicine, please get check ups, please take care of yourselves, listen to the women who are not nagging you, but are loving you strongly. Do not wait too long. We need you. So many did not have a chance to speak at Tom's service, and were kind enough to tell us afterward what they wished to say. I ask those who did not have that chance to speak, to write your stories down and send them to us as keepsakes. We are sorry we could not hear all the stories, as they have been such good medicine for us. Each story, each smile, and every tear has honored and graced us beyond words. Tom Jones will surely be missed in our daily lives, but his words, his song, his constant love and unwavering support for Indian People everywhere, lives on in each one of us. In All Things Sacred, Tom's family o PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICE 9615 Grand Ronde Road, Grand Ronde, OR 97347 1-800-422-0232 FAX: 503-879-2173 www.grandronde.org DEADLINE DATE ISSUE DATE Mon., Oct. 20 NOV. 1 Mon.,Nov.3 NOV. 15 Mon., Nov. 17 DEC.1 Fri., Dec. 5 DEC. 15 Fri., Dec. 16 JAN. 1,2004 2004 Deadline Schedule Coming Soon... PETATINDA FREELANCE JOURNALIST 503-879-1416 peta.tindagrandronde.org a.. ...... - v V BRENT MERRILL PUBLIC INFORMATION COORDINATOREDITOR 503-879-2321 brentmerrillgrandronde.org JUSTIN PHILLIPS GRAPHIC DESIGNER 503-879-2190 ustin.phillipsgrandronde.org RON KARTEN STAFF WRITER 503-879-4663 ron.kartengrandronde.org SHELLY KENT CENTRAL PHONES 503-879-521 1 shelly.kentgrandronde.org SANDY BOBB SECRETARY 503-879-1453 sandra.bobbgrandronde.org SMOKE SIGNALS, a publication of the Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde Commu nity of Oregon, is published twice a month. No portion of this publication may be reprinted without permission. Our editorial policy is intended to encourage input from Tribal members and readers about stories printed in the Tribal newspaper. However, all letters received must be signed by the author, an address must be given and a phone number or email address must be included for verification purposes. Full addresses and phone numbers will not be published unless re quested. , SMOKE SIGNALS reserves the right to edit letters and to refuse letters that are deter mined to contain libelous statements or personal attacks on individuals, staff, Tribal administra tion or Tribal Council. Not all letters are guaranteed publication upon submission. Letters to the editor are the opinions and views of the writer. Published letters do not necessarily reflect the opinions of SMOKE SIGNALS, Tribal staff, Tribal administration or Tribal Council. Members of: Native American Journalists Association The Associated Press Additional Information September 15 issue: Tribal Elder Merle Holmes was shown the Huckleberry area by Sweet Home Ranger District Archaeologist Tony Farque and OSU School of Forestry Staff Archaelogist Anne Rogers. Accompanying Holmes on the first berry pick were Tribal members Candy Robertson, Tribal Council member Ed Larsen and former Tribal Chairwoman Kathryn Harrison. The elevation of the Cougar Rock area is 3,200-3,500 feet.