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About Smoke signals. (Grand Ronde, Or.) 19??-current | View Entire Issue (March 1, 2010)
PRESORTED STO U S. POSTAGE PAID PERMIT NO. 178 P-2 P46 or neusphper proj, uo library system pre 1299 university of oregon eugene or 97403-iz05 SALEM. OR HlllllllllllllllllliiilfiMilllllillllililififiliililiiiiilfl MARCH 1,2010 y A Publication of the Grand Honda Tribe rap www.grandronde.org U1VEPQXJA. MOLA1LA a BOGUE BIVBB a KA1APUYA a CHAflTA TTirn Lb D OfeD3 samd Drag Photo by Michelle Alaimo Tribal Elder and Librarian Marion Mercier adds a book to a full shelf as sha rashelves books at tha Tribal Library on Monday, Feb. 22. The Tribe has received a $325,000 Indian Community Development Block Grant to make the library larger. Tribe receives $325,000 grant to double size of current facility By Dean Rhodes Smoke Signals editor The Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde has received a $325,000 Indian Commu nity Development Block Grant that will help double the size of the current 1,390-square-foot Tribal Library. Added to $108,334 in Tribal matching funds, the federal grant will pay for the addition of 1,500 square feet to the Tribal Library located in the Tribal Education Building. The Tribe originally requested $500,000, said Tribal Planning & Grants Development Man ager Kim Rogers, for an almost 2,900-square-foot addition and finished just out of the running for federal funding. However, when other regions did not spend all of their federally allocated block grant funds, the Tribe received a call from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's Office of Public and Indian Housing, asking if it would accept a $325,000 award instead. The answer was "Yes," and the Tribe scaled back the expansion to 1,500 square feet because of the reduced funding. Still, the addition will more than double the library's size and address one of the more press ing needs on the Grand Ronde Tribal campus. The Tribal Library, which serves the entire community, has issued 1,200 library cards to Tribal and community members. In 2009, it had more than 7,000 visits and more than 6,500 circulations. See LIBRARY continued on page 5 Satem Transit seeking more ridership April promotional push hopes to increase use by Salem and Grand Ronde residents ' By Dean Rhodes Smoke Signals editor The 1 -year-old Spirit Mountain Casino Express bus service between Salem and Grand Ronde is about one-third of its way toward meeting original revenue estimates, said Salem-Keizer Area Mass Transit District Director of Finance Pat Mercier. In an effort to improve awareness and increase ridership, the district is planning an April promotional push to coincide with Earth Week to get people to try the bus. "We're looking to increase rider ship from staff at Spirit Mountain Casino, as well as Grand Ronde com munity members," Mercier said. The bus service between Grand Ronde and Salem started in Janu ary 2009 with nine round trips daily Monday through Friday between the Salem-Keizer Transit Mall and Spirit Mountain Casino. It has since expanded and now offers 10 round trips during week days with stops in front of the Tribal Governance Center at 7:45 a.m. and 5:10 p.m. Mercier said there are approxi mately 250 to 300 casino employees See TRANSIT continued on page 7 . .Mil I 1 :f Day's dlinssififi) f Photo by Michelle Alaimo Tribal Elder Don Day, Tribal Site Protection specialist, received final approval for his Master of Arts degree from the University of Oregon on Friday, Feb. 1 9. It is a multi-disciplinary degree that includes the fields of anthropology, archaeology, linguistics and geology. Tribal 'force of nature' earns Master of Arts degree from UofO By Ron Karten Smoke Signals staff writer It is totally amazing to me that 500 years ago, some body figured out how to build a house, and how to make the tools to do that," says Tribal Elder Don Day. Today, the Tribe's latest Mas ter of Arts holder knows how his ancestors did that. When he picks up a chunk of oak or yew to adze into a wedge, he knows ahead what that house and even that wedge is going to look like. With his 53-page master's thesis and an 8-by-10-foot model See DAY continued on page 11