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About Smoke signals. (Grand Ronde, Or.) 19??-current | View Entire Issue (June 15, 2004)
4 JUNE 15, 2004 Smoke Signals Spirit Mountain NPR& Rodeo June 26, 7 p.m. June 27, 1 p.m. Spirit Mountain Arena, Grand Ronde Admission: $5, under 5 FREE. Events open to the public. Call 503-550-4897 to pre-register. Events include: Stick horse racing, the "Stampede," adult ring toss, junior ring toss, junior steer riding, junior barrels, donkey races and calf deribboning. Vendors: First come, first serve basis. 20 foot spaces available. Cost for both days, $50 for non-Tribal, free to Grand Ronde Tribal members (must show Tribal I.D.). For more information, call 503-537-2602 Camping area available. No alcohol, drugs or firearms on Tribal land. These are sanctioned rodeos. For more information, call 503-550-4897. Native American Applicants Sought For Hatfield Fellowship The Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde announces that applications for the Mark O. Hatfield Congressional Fellowship are now available. Each year, a Hatfield Fellow serves as an intern for a member of Oregon's Congressional delegation. The Hatfield Fellow is selected from adult Native American applicants, who are enrolled members of a federally recognized Tribe in Oregon. If there are no qualified applicants from Oregon, enrolled members of federally recognized Tribes in Washing ton , Idaho and Montana will be considered. The candidate will intern in Washington, D.C. for nine months and will receive a monthly stipend, relocation and travel ex penses, and tuition for the American Political Science Association orientation. Applicants will then be notified if they qualify for interviews. Late applica tions will not be accepted. Application packets may be obtained by contacting Paula Cook at Spirit Mountain Community Fund 1-800-422-0232 ext. 1400, e mail at paula.cookgrandronde.org or by mail at 9615 Grand Ronde Road, Grand Ronde, OR 97347. The Fellowship honors Mark Hatfield for his accomplishments as a United States Senator, a former Governor of Oregon, and for his mentorship of many leaders in their own communities. Deadline for applications is 5 p.m. Friday, July 16, 2004. " 1 A I & Tribal Elder Care Facilities Moving Forward ELDER FACILITIES continued from front page simple (whether to have a view win dow above the kitchen sink) to the very delicate (whether the buildings ought to have a separate room for those at the end of life) to such functional mat ters as how long to wait after the death of one resident before allowing another to move into the space. Details of the plans for the buildings are still wide open, but the starting place is a large shared room surrounded by six smaller bedrooms - five for in dividual Elders and one for a care-giver who will perform like a facilitator, han dling basic tasks and setting up ap pointments with and transportation to specialists as needed. The intent is to work towards giv ing caregivers the flexibility to refer for all levels of care. The concept for these buildings comes from the traditional long house, said Hussey. Extended families lived in various rooms of a larger building and they came together for meals or to warm by the fire. "It's a traditional model that's been left behind," said Ginter. Among features also being consid ered are enclosed garden areas, sau nas in place of a sweat house, a Tribal ceremonial room, a chapel area, fire places, computers and phones in indi vidual rooms. LRS Architects Inc. of Portland, project designer, previously created a larger, 38-bed facility for the people of Warm Springs. On that project, resi dents change rooms as their level-of-care needs change, according to LRS Partner Bill Ruff, a member of the De sign for Aging Committee of the Ameri can Institute of Architects. Many existing projects in the field have been large facilities with many rooms, many floors, and different places to go for the different physical and emotional problems that aging brings. Sadly, large layouts tend to confuse some Elders, and because there are many subgroups (folks with Alzheimer's is an example) in need of special care, larger facilities often have to leave out some service areas to afford others. "The big difference," said Hussey, "is that every facility we've looked at has ended up having to be a community-wide facility (to keep all the beds full). And what that means is that the Tribal member becomes another tenant in a community facility, but what we're trying to do here is build a Tribal facility. We don't have to go outside (the Tribe) to keep it rented." In fact, said Hussey, the Grand Ronde project as envisioned will keep moving Elders closer to the center of the Elder community in Grand Ronde as they age and need new services. This is a case where what is better for individual Elders also creates a better project. It will mean "not leaving their friends, their homesites, their reser vation, their (landscape) views or the connectivity to the land that they live on," said Hussey. "They are always connected back to their roots, and will not be very far from their families." The Tribe benefits because it only builds facilities as the needs arise. This particular project works well in other ways. Because Tribal hous ing efforts for the poor are federally supported, the Tribe will be able to build some units with federal funds, and then, using Tribal funds to build units for higher income Elders, the opportunity will be there to mix El ders of different income levels. The Master Plan calls for seven or more similar buildings along with an Elder ActivitiesAVellness Center on part of the 29-acre property west of the exist ing Elder Housing project (Hip Tilixam). To date, Tribal Council has autho rized funds for the design of the El der ActivitiesAVellness Center, one home, and the infrastructure for the Master Plan's entire 4.4 acre site. The Housing Authority is still work ing to ensure funding for an initial four buildings (the Elder Activities Wellness Center and three assisted Elder homes). The Housing Authority's vision could ultimately provide opportunities to bring Elders together with Tribal youth, opening all kinds of mentoring and support possibilities. Under the vision, Elders will have a place to share their experience and their tal ents, and youth will be on hand to contribute their strength and energy. But that's in the future. This plan takes a step-by-step approach. It fills the Tribe's current needs for Elder care. And it will be able to grow in the right direction as Tribal and El der needs grow. When the project is done, said Ruff, "we'll know we were successful if the residents are saying that they're see ing what they thought they would see." A j , t. - . .r-r . - L t-n , -1 tib f: - e 1 sL. ; '' A View Of The Future Tribal Development and Construction Coordina tor Duane Hussey, (standing, left) consults with Tribal Elders on the design of the proposed Tribal Elder assisted living facilities. The new buildings will have a large central room surrounded by six smaller rooms, five for individual Elders and one for a care-giver who will look after the Elders and help them with basic tasks. Plans are in the works for seven or more buildings along with a Wellness Center and an Elder Activity facility, located on 4.4 acres adjacent to the existing Elder Housing in Grand Ronde.
