Smoke Signals 1 1
JULY 1,2009
Bees, water leak affect Tribal Governance Building
By Ron Karten
Smoke Signals staff writer
The Tribal Governance Building
took some hits in June.
Three swarms of bees settled in at
different locations and a flood from
above Member Services' offices
came down the walls in a Sunday
night torrent.
The bees sent Tribal Council
members running for cover and
the water required two stories of
protective plastic sheeting that de
toured visitors to the Tribal Coun
cil, Member Services and Human
Resources offices.
As Smoke Signals went to press,
queen bees from two of three hives
remained all but untouchable inside
the walls of the Tribal Governance
Building, said Curtis Rentsch,
Tribal Facilities Manager.
One hive resided in the walls
above the smoking area outside
of the second floor kitchen. For
awhile, another swarmed out
side of the second floor classroom
(Room 204) on the other end of
the Governance Building. The last
hive resided behind the beams
outside of Tribal Council's confer
ence room.
Capturing the queens and mov
ing them would theoretically bring
along the rest of the hive, said
Joanne Carr, Tribal Adult Edu
cation coordinator and certified
beekeeper. She was one of two
1
Photo by Dean Rhodes
A swarm of baas congregated on the patio outside Tribal Council's
Conference Room on Thursday, June 1 8. Attempts to capture the queen bee
and move it into a portable hive were unsuccessful.
beekeepers Rentsch contacted to
find a way to save the bees and still
keep Tribal employees and visitors
safe.
Carr tried to tempt the queens
out with a used hive, sugar water
and the bee-attracting supplement,
Megabee, but they did not bite.
"Usually, you attract bees with
them before the flowers bloom,"
Carr said, "but there's so many
flowers around now, they're not
interested in either one of those.
"And the bees don't move unless
the queen moves."
"Some Tribal Council members
said they were scared of the swarm
of bees outside of the conference
room," Rentsch said. "Some said
we should save the bees, but in the
interest of public safety, we really
don't have an alternative."
For those that remain, Rentsch
said, the exterminator cometh.
At 10:50 p.m. Sunday, June 21,
Tribal member and Tribal Fa
cilities Maintenance supervisor
Doug Colton took a call about a
water leak from Tribal member
and Prostar Security Officer Brett
Stone.
Tribal member and Facilities
technician Tyson Mercier worked
all night with John Johnstone of
Newberg-based Jstone Mechanical,
the Tribe's HVAC contractor. They
tracked down the cause a failed
pump and the cleanup process
began.
Before the night was over, Colton
said, Tribal member and House
keeping supervisor Mark LaBonte
and his staff, including Tribal
members Ben Bishop, Joe Shel
ley and Maurice Bishop, had the
place cleaned up for work Monday
morning.
"They need to be recognized for
their efforts," Colton said.
Portland-based Horizon Restora
tion Consultants was overseeing
the rest of the job. Drywall and ceil
ing repairs were scheduled, Colton
said. A damage estimated was not
yet available.
The plastic partitions were due to
be pulled down by the July Fourth
weekend. H
Photos by Michelle Alalmo
Tribal member Cory Hall, right, receives a Pendleton blanket from
Joshua Gift, Associate Vocational Program ft Noncredit Program
Coordinator for the Tribe, during the 2009 Graduation Celebration
held in the Tribal gymnasium on Friday, June 1 9. Hall graduated with
a bachelor's degree from the Oregon Institute of Technology.
Tribal member and GEO graduate Ariel Radonskl was a guest speaker
at the 2009 Graduation Celebration.
Owning up to your 'stuff7
can help relationships
By Tom Bender
Mental Health counselor
What brings two people together in a relationship?
The romantic answer is true love. The spiritual answer is God. The
youthful answer is hormones. The substance-based answer is addic
tion. The psychological answer is our "stufF or emotional baggage.
Before we look at the last one on the list, first we must define the
term. "Stuff may be defined as "unresolved issues in one's life, often
(but not always) left over from childhood."
How does this stuff bring us together in a relationship? People are
often drawn to one another for seemingly inexplicable and uncon
scious reasons. A woman who grew up witnessing abuse may find one
man after another who seems like Prince Charming only to discover
six months down the road he is as violent as the last.
A man who was raised surrounded by drugs and alcohol may, even
as he attempts to stay sober, find himself repeatedly attracted to
women with substance problems.
The easy explanation is we do it because it's what we know. Hu
man beings seem to be unconsciously attracted to people who are
guaranteed to bring up every issue they're still holding onto. If one's
stuff included feeling abandoned as a child, we will go out and find
the perfect mate to stimulate that wound. If one had a controlling
parent, many will find the perfect partner to play this role in their
lives.
I knew a therapist who would have couples walk around their house
wearing signs that said, "I am not your mother" and "I am not your
father." The message is clear what we didn't get as children, we
look for as adults; things like love, safety and acceptance. We often
want others to provide these things for us, and when they don't, our
"stuff awakens.
The good news is that as we become more aware, each relationship
presents us with an opportunity to heal past wounds. When we run
into our old baggage, we can either repeat our not very helpful (but
familiar) patterns in the hope that this time things will be different,
or we can use our relationships as a springboard to heal and grow.
Ignoring one's stuff doesn't work or we would all be saints. The
key is to own one's wounds and care for them like one would a small
child.
Stop, slow down and shine a light on the places you'd rather avoid.
You just might be surprised by your own beauty. D