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About Smoke signals. (Grand Ronde, Or.) 19??-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 1, 2015)
PRESORTED STANDARD MAIL U.S. POSTAGE PAID PORTLAND, OR PERMIT NO. 700 Tribal Council swearing in — pg. 9 OCTOBER 1, 2015 Gaming enterprise transformed Grand Ronde Tribe in myriad ways By Brent Merrill Smoke Signals staff writer O n Oct. 16, Spirit Moun- tain Casino will mark its 20th anniversary of the opening. Consistently one of Oregon’s top tourist attractions, Spirit Mountain Casino has been the driver that put the Confederat- ed Tribes of Grand Ronde on the Oregon map economically, culturally and politically, as well as helped lead the Tribe to prosperity. “I think this anniversary is a huge event,” says Tribal Coun- cil Vice Chairman Jack Giffen Jr. “I really think that the people who drove the casino in the beginning really thought it would last only 10 years. So a 20-year anniversary is huge in my eyes.” Tribal gaming in the United States began Oct. 17, 1988, with passage of the National Indian Gaming Regulatory Act. Tribal gaming in Grand Ronde started when Tribal Council member Merle Holmes and a handful of Tribal Council members visited the Poarch Band of Creek Indians in Al- abama. The Poarch Band had estab- lished a bingo hall on its Res- ervation and used the profi ts to build a fi sh hatchery and paint recycling business, and it had begun building Elder housing. The Poarch Band now operates three casinos in Alabama. Before the trip to Alabama, Holmes had opposed gaming. But when he saw the economic opportunities brought about by something as simple has a bingo hall, he thought about how gaming could benefi t the Grand Ronde Tribe. Holmes was one of the most respected Tribal leaders in the North- See CASINO continued on pages 10-13 Country singer Martina McBride will be performing in Spirit Mountain Casino’s Events Center on Saturday, Oct. 17, as part of the casino’s 20th anniversary. Photo by Michelle Alaimo Tribe off ers coff ee, conversation and encampment By Dean Rhodes Smoke Signals editor M EDFORD – The annual pilgrimage to southern Oregon called “Coffee & Conversation with the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde” couldn’t have been more appropriately named. On Friday, Sept. 25, in the Courtyard Marriott near Medford Airport, Tribal representatives shared cups of coffee and conversation with local representa- tives from the Medford area. And on Saturday, Sept. 26, on the shores of the Rogue River and in the shadow of Table Rock, Tribal members held an encampment at TouVelle State See ENCAMPMENT continued on page 16 Photo by Michelle Alaimo Tribal Council member Jon A. George beads a necklace for Tribal Elder Kathy Kain during the Table Rock Tribal Encampment at TouVelle State Recreation Site in Central Point on Saturday, Sept. 26. Kain lives in Phoenix, south of Medford.