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About Smoke signals. (Grand Ronde, Or.) 19??-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 1, 2005)
2 JANUARY 1, 2005 Smoke Signals Attention Tribal Members: The Tribal Council is requesting your input for the Community Meetings that will be held in 2005. Please bring written items to be considered to the January 2005 General Council meeting or call Dakota Whitecloud at 1-800-422-0232 ext. 1309, di rect at 503-879-1309 or email at dakota.whitecloudgrandronde.org. All items received will be reviewed by the Tribal Council. The issues appearing to be most important to the General Membership will be dis cussed at the Community Meetings. Thank you for your assistance. 2005 General Council Meeting Schedule January 9 Grand Ronde Please bring a canned food or cash donation to benefit the Grand Ronde Community Resource Center and Food Bank. February 6 Portland, Oregon Address To Be Announced March 6 Grand Ronde April 3 Eugene, Oregon Address To Be Announced May 1 Grand Ronde June 26 Grand Ronde Tribal Council - Nominations SUMMER BREAK September 11 Grand Ronde (Second Sunday Labor Day) October 9 Grand Ronde (Second Sunday Hunting) November 6 Grand Ronde December 4 Grand Ronde Dear Tribal members, I have heard a number of Tribal members bring up the issue of blood quantum and the stand that some of our Tribal leadership candidates have taken. It makes my heart sad to see such a division and disagreement on an issue that should unite us. We are all descendents in a family tree of ever-thinning blood lines. Many of us were lucky enough to be born into the "right" generation to be an official member of the Tribe. The truth is that the blood quantum requirement was originally a U.S. gov ernment imposed regulation that was designed to thin out Indian Nations and free the U.S. government from any treaties they may have made with the In dian people. By limiting the numbers, they were limiting the length of their contracts. Few, if any of us, were born into money. The per capita, health benefits, education scholarships and housing fund have all been amazing blessings to me and my family year after year. However, I was a member of the Tribe long before I ever received a single penny. My grandfather, John Pichette, never got to see the great things the Tribe has done in recent years. He would have been proud of the great strides we have made financially. But most of all, he would have wanted to see that his children, his grandchildren, his great-grandchildren were a part of a bigger circle of culture that, for centuries, survived without per capita. I am saddened that many of us have lost sight of what it means to be a mem ber of the Tribe. I will argue passionately that in our heart of hearts, all of us have a deep, undying love for our culture over the money. When we are considering leadership for our tribe, we need to consider how long we can keep our heritage from disappearing into meaningless statistics of blood quantum. When we allow our Indian brothers and sisters to be denied entry, into some exclusive club, than the U.S. government has won. Lets focus our efforts on opening our arms to ALL of our children, our grand children and cousins who have a desire to carry on the legacy of a great Indian Nation. When we begin squabbling over pennies, our Nation becomes a mirror of the money-hungry culture that set out to diminish our numbers in the first place. We need to ask ourselves, in the end, what truly is important. Per capita can only take us so far. Our future depends entirely on individuals who love, honor and know the culture that we have all fought so hard to build up and protect. Blessings, Sarah Ross Roll 1366 Still Giving Doug Bartlett, Yamhill Community Assistance Pro gram (YCAP) Di rector (left), pre sents former Tribal Council member Ed Larsen a plaque recognizing 9 years of service to YCAP. Larsen served as a board member during the years he served on Tribal Council. rn W h -.- i v. J ill PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICE 9615 Grand Ronde Road, Grand Ronde, OR 97347 1-800-422-0232 FAX: 503-879-2173 www.grandronde.org it! BRENT MERRILL PUBLIC INFORMATION MANAGEREDITOR 503-879-2321 brem.mm1llgrandronde.org JUSTIN PHILLIPS GRAPHIC DESIGNER 503-879-2190 Justln.phllllpsgrandronde.orj DEADLINE DATE ISSUE DATE Wed., Jan. 5 JAN. 15 Frl., Jan. 21 FEB. 1 Fri.,Feb.4 FEB. 15 Frl.,Feb.l8 MAR. 1 Frl., Mar. 4 MAR. 15 Fri.,Mar. 18 APR.l Mon.,Apr.4 APR. 15 Wed., Apr. 20 MAY. 1 Frl., May 6 MAY. 15 Fri.,May20 JUNE1 Mon., June 6 JUNE 15 Frl., June 17 .....JUXY1 Tues., July 5 JULY 15 Wed., July 20 AUG. 1 RON KARTEN STAFF WRITER 503-879-4663 rDn.kartengrandronde.org TOBYMCCLARY PRODUCTION ASSISTANT I 503-879-1358 toby.mcclarygrandronde.org SHELLY KENT CENTRAL PHONES 503-879-521 1 sheHy.kentgrandronde.org f Ill ll III PETA TINDA PHOTOJOURNALIST 503-879-1463 peta.dndagrandronde.org MARTY GEORGE PRODUCTION ASSISTANT II 503-879-1453 maity.georgegrandronde.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 requested. 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 SMOKE SIGNALS is available to anyone at no cost. Fill out this form with your name and address, mail to: Smoke Signals, Attn: Subscriptions, 9615 Grand Ronde Road, Grand Ronde, OR 97347 OLD ADDRESS: (Please Print) NEW ADDRESS: Photo by Peta Tinda GRAND RONDE ROLL :
