Smoke Signals 7
OCTOBER 1, 2009
HALO program covers the bases in Grand Ronde
Summer program
stimulates Polk County
youth, economy
By Ron Karten
Smoke Signals staff writer
The $787 billion federal stimu
lus package, signed by President
Barack Obama on Feb. 17, brought
$720,000 for jobs for Polk County
youth this summer.
Eighteen of 96 Polk County youth,
17 to 24 years old, came through
Tribal programs, and from June 30
through the end of September, they
worked on Tribal projects all over
Grand Ronde.
The program had many goals:
providing disadvantaged youth
with jobs and job skills, as well as
promoting recycling.
The dugouts at the new baseball
diamond on the Tribal campus are
a perfect example. They fulfilled a
number of those goals. They gave
the youth experience in building
and work readiness skills. They
enabled them to meet the recycling
goal of the stimulus money because
they recycled wood from the old
Elders' seating at the powwow
grounds into new dugouts.
And beyond that, said Curtis
Rentsch, Tribal Environmental
Services supervisor, the project
enabled the Tribe to finish the
baseball field without more funds
from Tribal Council.
"Not only was the lumber free,"
Rentsch said, "80 to 90 percent of
the materials were recycled lumber.
My hat's off to (Tribal member)
Duke Kimsey, who was foreman,
because he did a'Teally good job of
working with that crew."
Thi9 kind of enterprise and learn
ing also took place at the Elders'
Activity Center where the Grand
Ronde group built raised planting
beds for the Elders.
The group helped with comple
tion of the plankhouse and built a
footbridge up off Coast Creek.
Two HALO employees worked in
the Tribal GIS office. As September
drew to a close, they cleaned the
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Photo by Michelle Alalmo
Members of the HALO (Help Achieve Lifelong Objectives) crew recently completed two dugouts that they built for the
new baseball field on the Tribal campus. The crew was supervised by Jimmy Brandon, front row left, Tribal member
and a maintenance technician for the Tribe. The HALO team included, front row from second from left, Rebecca
Leader, Tribal member Duke Kimsey and Jeremy Galloway, and second row from left, Justin Rawlins, Kevin Hills, Erik
Stroeder, Eric Guardiola, Tribal descendant Kristy Mikkelsen, Matthew Sawyer, Tyler Biggar and Kenny Seagrove.
alder chips out of the play area at
the Tribal Head Start program. It
was then to be filled with shredded
rubber, a. safer, cleaner and more
pleasant material to play on.
Tribal member R.J. Nelson
worked that job.
"I learned about teamwork and
focusing on priorities on a number
of projects in the Grand Ronde area
as well as using various tools and
equipment properly," Nelson said.
"I also received my Career Readi
ness and OSHA 10 certificates."
Tribal member Jack Ham, for
merly an intern at Smoke Signals,
was hired as journalist for the
projects. His byline appears in ev
ery issue of The Future at Work"
publication for the "Polk Summer
Work Program Stimulus Dollars
at Work."
Through Ham's work, we have
j? Attention Parents aprinunyautfclteig of Grand Ronde ?
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we are creating a sjapport group tor parents ana caregivers
h of Grand lUde ehfldieu with special fSMdi.Vrewa fast 2
begin an e-mail and telephone contact fist and later we wQ
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Ifyourdifld,prannVWM,foetcrcM
lenges (medic airy, emotjonany, or derelopmcntalrjr) andyoa ?
would like to collaborate and share resource with other
parents, please tend your contact iixfbrmatkn in an e-mail
to: lewis .dmecomcarLnet or call us at 503-566-3093.
Thank von,
David (2741) and Dorma Lewis
parents to Saghaley (5132) and Imtye (5323)
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Ad ctvaled by Oeorqv Valdcf
insights into the thinking of crew
leader Rachel Walsh, for example,
who gave her workers "a sense of
direction" by setting goals for them
and checking on how well they were
meeting their goals.
Crew members Eric Gome and
Richard Brown, working with the
National Guard, "learned about
the operation of heavy construction
equipment, such as A15s and roll
ers," Ham wrote.
"'We're getting to learn a whole
variety of different vehicles,' said
Gome." i
Here in Grand Ronde, "Partici
pants Cassi Crawford, Shekinah
Yubeta and Sasha Oman worked at
the Elder Care Center. While there,
the three assisted in making beds,
making meals, and interacting with
Tribal Elders."
It was not all work all summer,
however, said Tribal member and
Mentorship and Workforce Develop
ment Coordinator Denise Harvey,
whose membership on the county
Workforce Investment Board with
Katherine Bartlett, executive direc
tor of the Polk HALO (Help Achiev
ing Lifelong Objectives) program,
opened the door for Grand Ronde's
community and Tribal members.
"Every Friday, they coordinated
a field trip," said Harvey.
Sometimes, it was job-related.
One week, they went to OMSI.
Another, just for fun, they went to
Family Fun Center & Bullwinkle's
Restaurant in Wilsonville.
On Aug. 10, Jack Ham and Shny
lyn Connelly reported that "past
members of the Civilian Conser
vation Corps attended their 12th
annual summer picnic" where
members of the nation's current
jobs program heard stories about
an even bigger one held during the
1930s.
The federal dollars came through
the state and then through the
Enterprise for Employment and
Education agency that funds the
Workforce Investment Act for Re
gion 3 (Polk, Marion and Yamhill
counties). The stimulus dollars,
said Bartlett, were extra dollars
in a pipeline already receiving fed
eral dollars to help disadvantaged
youth.
But this experience was some
thing special, Bartlett said.
"It was one of the most beneficial
things we've ever done for youth,"
she said. "We kept 95 kids em
ployed for 12 weeks. Nobody was
bailing out at all. One moved. The
results have been fantastic. The
youth have all gained relevant work
readiness skills.
"These youth now have skills and
experience to move on to another
job, and we were also able to buy
the materials needed from local
Polk County businesses. At least 70
percent of the funds was put back
into Polk County between youth
wages and using local vendors."
Harvey stretched the dollars by
using Oregon Department of Trans
portation funds to buy tools for the
sidewalk repair crew and OSHA
10 safety training, so more money
could go into staffing. The initial
grant was set for six weeks, but
with the extra dollars, employment
stretched on for 12 and more youth
than expected were hired.
"We got to make our folks crew
leaders," said Harvey, naming Jer
emy Galligher, husband of Tribal
member Lacey Leno, and com
munity member Rebecca Leader.
"And when Tribal member Andrew
Freeman got a job, I IALO was able
to provide htm with the supplies he
needed for his new job.
"Rebecca never worked construc
tion before, but she just shines
now."
The key, Harvey said, is "making
them feel secure enough" to succeed
at work that really comes nnturally
to them, and allow them to learn
enough and have confidence to "go
places with the job." B