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About Smoke signals. (Grand Ronde, Or.) 19??-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 1, 2007)
6 AUGUST 1,2007 Smoke Signals Traveling Exhibit Visits Spirit Mountain Casino By Miranda Ellis, Summer Youth Employee On Monday, June 25, three mem bers of the Washington County His torical Society (W CI IS) came to Grand Ronde. WCHS is located in Washing ton County on the Rock Creek campus of Portland Community College. The reason for their visit was to set up an exhibit of the Kalapuyan Indians in Spirit Mountain Casino. All of the panels have descriptive pictures and text, all arranged neatly. While reading it, it almost takes you back to where they were located. The Tribe edited the exhibit, and the major sponsor was the Spirit Mountain Community Fund. Setting up the exhibit was col lections and exhibits manager of WCHS Jennifer Kozik who helped coordinate the exhibit. Director of WCHS Mark Granlund and Edu cation Manager Scott Brown also helped set up the exhibit. The idea behind the exhibit is to raise aware ness of the cultural history. Gran lund explained that people should be able to know about the people who came before them without hav ing the wrong information. "The saddest story of the Kala puya is the disease," said Granlund. Malaria and many other harsh diseases wiped out about 90 of the Kalapuyans. The exhibit took years to put together, with over $80,000 raised, and a budget of over $40,000. The project took over 500 hours of re search, with the Grand Ronde Cultural Resource Department as their number one source of research. The rest of the money is still to be used for the Mobile Museum, a program for schools. Not everybody (J u'Comraunitylbiy jspql is going to go to I " J the museum in Washington or come across the exhibit, but it's best to have as many people possible to learn about the Kala puyans, so they want students to learn as well. The Mobile Mu seum will give about 130 pre sentations a year, reaching over 3,000 stu dents learning about the Kala- puya along the way. Another way to learn more about the Kalapuya Tribe is a web site that is currently being developed. The exhibit was at Spirit Mountain Ca sino because the casino draws so many visi tors. A second reason they chose to bring their exhibit to the ca sino was all the events happening in Grand Ronde including both pow-wows. Pow-wows tend to attract a lot of people, many of whom f. hi 3 2. Tribal Summer Youth Employe Miranda Ellis talks with Cultural Resources Administrative Assistant Kim Mueller and Diractor of Washington County Historical Society Mark Granlund about the traveling exhibit. will need a place to stay. The more people that stay at the Spirit Moun tain lodge, the more people to see the exhibit. So far, Grand Ronde is the fur thest stop for the exhibit. Most of the time, the exhibit is kept within Washington County I Possibilities for where the exhibit goes next include the Portland Airport and a library in Washington County. Visitor Rollie Cansler from Texas, after looking over the exhibit, said that the exhibit is really well put together and very accurate. If somebody who is clueless about the Kalapuyans were to read the panels, they would probably leave with a lot more information than they had before. Tribal member Joann Mercier says, "It needs more color," however she also explained that the Grand Ronde Today panel is really eye Rollie Cansler from Texas, looks over the traveling exhibit at Spirit Mountain Casino. Casino Comps Soldier-Dog Teams Military services send canine teams to compatriot's funeral. By Ron Karten The military's canine units work patrols, search for explosives and narcotics, and sometimes, like all soldiers, they fall in the line of duty. Such was the case re cently when the Spirit Mountain Casino hosted six from among the military's different services to honor their fallen comrade, Kory Wiens, 20, who was killed in Iraq July 6th with his working yellow lab, Cooper. Canine teams from all the ser vices but the Marines arrived in Grand Ronde to attend Wiens fu neral in Dallas on July 18th. Dogs and their handlers stayed free at the casino's lodge. As many as three dozen soldier-dog teams from military and civilian depart ments attended the funeral. "For the Veterans," said Tribal member Rory Haller, Executive Casino Host for VIP Services, "we try to make accommodations." In this case, the accommodations also included the working dogs that came for the funeral in support of Wiens' family. "Each of the services sent a dog," said Army Staff Sergeant Danny Rogers, stationed in Tacoma at Fort Lewis. Rogers worked in the canine unit with Special Forces for 13 months in Afghanistan before returning to Fort Lewis, where he continues to train to be ready to go back overseas at a moment's notice. The soldiers, representing Army, Navy, Coast Guard and Air Force, did not know Weins, but according to Rog ers, "The Military Working Dog com munity is such a small community that it's something you really want to do when one of us is killed. It's just another day to us, but to the family, to have us there with the dogs, it's more than any words can say." Pat Moritz, a retired Staff Ser geant with the Marines and now Oregon State Captain for the Pa triot Guard Riders (www.patriot guard.org), a volunteer group that stands in support of the military's fallen, organized the contingent and secured housing for them at Spirit Mountain Casino. "They come down at their own cost," said Moritz, "so we wanted to offset their housing costs if possible." Others who stayed at Spirit Moun tain Lodge before the funeral in Dallas included Master at Arms Chief Petty Officer Me lissa Szczerblak, based at McCord Air Force Base in Tacoma, with her working dog, Argo; Regional Kennel Master for the Navy in Sil verdale Washington Tom Hodges; Boatswains Mate 2nd Class Petty Officer Darcy Sugarbaker of the Coast Guard based in the Seattle area, with her dog, Halo; Teresa Carroll of the Blue Star Mothers, herself an Army Veteran whose son, Ben, is now serving in the Navy; and the Army's Danny Rogers. Wiens was assigned to the 94th Mine Dog De tachment, 5th Engineer Battalion 1st Engineer Brigade in Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri. "You may agree with the war or not," said Tribal Council member Reyn Leno, "but the sol diers are out there taking orders and trying to stay alive, and we want to show that we're doing our part for these guys." Leno served in the Vietnam War. o ' I "TWX t 3 1 v v I o o .c Army Staff Sergeant Danny Rogers with his working dog, Igor, a Belgium Mallinois, in the lobby of the Spirit Mountain Lodge. Executive Casino Host of VIP Services Rory Haller, a Tribal member, stands behind.
