Smoke Signals 7
JUNE 1,2012
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MEMORIAL DAY continued
from front page
40-minute event.
Jim Willis, director of the Oregon
Department of Veterans Affairs,
read a national proclamation that
honored the 50th anniversary of
the start of the Vietnam War and
the veterans who served and died
in that conflict.
And Vietnam War-era veterans
were asked to stand and be hon
ored. "We were always very proud
of what we did," Leno said about
the brotherhood of fellow Vietnam
War-era veterans. "People can hate
whatever they want about a war,
but don't ever hate your veterans."
The Grand Ronde Memorial Day
event was preceded by a lunch in
the Tribal Community Center that
attracted about 150 to 200 people.
Tribal Food Services Coordinator
Kristy DeLoe and her staff prepared
a buffalo stew, salad and rolls and
purchased cakes that featured
American flag designs in the icing.
The meal was served by Tribal El
ders Violet Folden, Gladys Hobbs,
Claudia Leno, Richard Ray and
Ellen Fischer and Senior Service
Cook Kevin Campbell.
After the meal, attendees went out
side for the ceremony. The weather
cooperated with partly cloudy skies
and a cool, but not uncomfortable,
westerly breeze that kept the eight
flags flying at the Veterans Memo
rial in constant flutter.
Leno, who served as master of
ceremonies, became emotional when
discussing cleaning off a grave on
Friday, May 25, at the Tribal cem
etery and finding a neglected grave
marker of a Tribal member who died
in 1943 during World War II.
"There was no flag on that grave
and that really bothered me," Leno
said. "So, today when I was down
there I took a flag and put it there
and I'll always watch that grave to
Senior Veterans Queen Kallie
Provost hands a veterans memorial
pin to Rand Rydell of Grand Ronde.
Rydell is a Vietnam veteran who
served in the U.S. Army.
make sure that flag is there because
that is what this day is about ... re
membering and acknowledging our
veterans for what we do and what
we did and what we trained for.
"... Like I've always said, veter
ans don't want a lot. All they ever
want is a little respect for what
they did."
Bobb, who also gave the invoca
tion, recalled being sent to Vietnam
in the 1960s.
"I can see the faces of the veterans
of my era, the Vietnam era," Bobb
said. "I can still remember the day
that I first hit Vietnam. The two
things that I remember are the heat
and the smell. We were kids. We
were 18, 19, 20 years old, and every
day we said a little prayer, 'Just get
me through this day, Lord.'
"We were there with the belief that
we were bringing a democracy like
our own to a people. The Vietnam era
was a tumultuous time. There was
racial conflict, the start of the drug
culture, free love and anti-war pro
tests that infested this entire nation,
but we answered a call to service like
so many men and women throughout
history have answered to put our
lives on the line in a hot, humid,
steamy little country half a world
away for a cause and belief that we
were bettering people's lives."
Tribal Council Secretary Jack
Giffen Jr. encouraged audience
members to take the Memorial
Day celebration one step further
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Photos by Michelle Alalmo
Grand Ronde Honor Guard members, including from front. Tribal Elders Wink
Soderberg, Gene LaBonte and Alton Butler and Tribal member Zach Bly post
the colors at the beginning of the Tribe's Memorial Day observance at the
West Valley Veterans Memorial in Grand Rondo on Monday, May 28.
and thank a veteran every day
while Tribal Council member Toby
McClary expressed his "deepest,
sincerest appreciation" to veterans
for what they have done to protect
America's freedoms.
"As we observe the 50th anniver
sary of the Vietnam War, we reflect
with solemn reverence upon the
valor of a generation that served
with honor," Willis said while
reading the proclamation. "We pay
tribute to the more than 3 million
" ' "' T j ... f, . n, ,K
Grand Ronde Royalty kneel at the end of the Lord's Prayer after performing it in sign language at the Tribe's Memorial
Day observance at the West Valley Veterans Memorial in Grand Ronde on Monday, May 28.
page to see mompnotos
service men and women who left
their families to serve bravely a
world away from everything they
knew and everyone they loved."
The eight new names added to
the West Valley Veterans Memorial
were Arnold E. Eldebrant, Army;
Charlotie A. Brock and Robert
B. Hollinger, Air Force; Ronnie
L. Locke and Dennis L. Gleason,
Marines; and Douglas A. Elerath,
Daniel M. Burgess and Leonard
A. Rydell, Navy, bringing the total
number of names of West Valley
veterans on the four black granite
columns to 2,252. The names were
read by Tribal Elders Alton Butler
(Marine Corps), Eugene LaBonte
(Army), Wink Soderberg (Navy)
and Bobb (Air Force).
Bud Abbott of the Willamina
Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 4211
recited the poem "Remember Me,
America" by John Dirusso during
the event.
Tribal Elder Jolanda Catabay
sang the national anthem and
Tribal Royalty performed the Lord's
Prayer as sung by Aaron Neville.
This year's Tribal Royalty includes
Senior Miss Grand Ronde Nakoosa
Moreland, Junior Miss Princess
Makenzie Aaron, Junior Miss Grand
Ronde Iyana Holmes, Senior Vet
erans Queen Kallie Provost, Little
Miss Princess Amaryssa Mooney,
Little Miss Grand Ronde Amelia
Mooney, Junior Veterans Queen
Isabelle Grout and Junior Miss
Princess Elizabeth Watson-Croy.
The posting of the colors was
performed by Wayne Chulik, So
derberg, LaBonte, Butler, Zack Bly
and Al Miller.
In addition, Tribal Public Affairs
and Information Systems staff as
sisted with the event's technical
aspects.
The ceremony closed with the
solemn playing of taps and Leno an
nounced that fundraising has started
to add two more columns to the West
Valley Veterans Memorial to accom
modate the Army and Navy columns,
which are nearing capacity. B