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Photo by Michelle Alalmo
Tribal Elder and former Tribal Cultural Resources
Manager June Olson sits at the desk in her
Happy Valley home where she wrote her recently
released book "Living in the Great Circle, The
Grand Ronde Indian Reservation 1855-1905."
'Living in the Great Circle, The Grand
Ronde Indian Reservation 1855
1 905' due out for Christmas
By Ron Karten
Smoke Signals staff writer
Through the collections of many first- and
second-generation Grand Ronde Tribal
people, Tribal Elder June Olson has pro
duced a volume of Tribal history that starts with
the times of the treaty signings and the removal
of Tribal peoples to the Grand Ronde Reserva
tion in the 1850s and continues through the first
years of the 20th century.
Olson, who now lives in Happy Valley, started
the Tribe's Cultural Resources Department in
1996 and served as its manager until 2005.
"When I first became interested in Tribal his
tory, (Tribal Elder) Don Haller was the family
historian," Olson said in an e-mail. "He had been
actively collecting historical material along with
the late Merle Holmes since the early 1970s.
"Sometime in the late 1980s, the two of them
allowed me to go on a trip with them to the re
gional archives in Seattle where they introduced
me for the first time to archival research. This
experience set the course of my life."
Being hired to build a cultural resources
program for the Tribe in 1996 gave Olson the
opportunity to collect Tribal history in every
form, she said.
"After spending years sorting through thou
sands of historical records, talking with Tribal
Elders, listening to old audio-taped interviews
See BOOK
continued on page 8
Kennedy,
G iff en attend
Tribal Nations
Conference
By Dean Rhodes
Smoke Signals editor
Tribal Chairwoman Cheryle A.
Kennedy and Tribal Council
Secretary Jack Giffen Jr.
attended the third annual White
House Tribal Nations Conference
held at the Sidney R. Yates Audito
rium at the Department of Interior
in Washington, D.C., on Friday,
Dec. 2.
The goal of the event, according
to the White House's Web page, is
to provide leaders from America's
565 federally recognized Tribes
the opportunity to interact directly
with members of the Obama admin
istration. See CONFERENCE
continued on page 6
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Tribal members
KylieSmith,6,
left, and her sister
Jacey, 7, share a
songbookasthey
sing "Rudolph
the Red-Nosed
Reindeer" during
the Tribal Council
Christmas Party
In the Tribal
gymnasium on
Sunday, Dec. 4.
See more photos on
page 4.
P r ft r
" " I f , V
Photo by Michelle Alalmo
Tribal member receives award for
work at Spirit Mountain Casino
By Ron Karten
Smoke Signals staff writer
Every year since 2005, the Seattle-based
Potlatch Fund has named five Northwest
Indian leaders for awards honoring great
leadership in such areas as culture and economic
development.
And each year, following the November
awards ceremony, the grant
ing agency posts videos of
the award winners speak
ing about the interests and
talents that led up to the
awards.
This year, Tribal Elder
Bruce Thomas, Spirit Moun
tain Casino's first chief exec
utive officer, had this to say:
"I've always loved business, loved finding a win
win situation and creative ways to succeed."
Bruce Thomas
Thomas was honored with the 2011 Antoine
Minthorn Economic & Community Development
Award. The ceremony, held Nov. 21, honored
Thomas for his work setting up Spirit Mountain
Casino, said Potlatch Fund Director of Develop
ment and Communications Lawrence Leake.
"Setting it up in a way that did not (turn over
control to) outside management," said Leake.
"The idea is to highlight the work that is being
See AWARD
continued on page 10