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About Smoke signals. (Grand Ronde, Or.) 19??-current | View Entire Issue (April 15, 2016)
S moke S ignals APRIL 15, 2016 3 Food Bank provides Membership evenly boxes, seeks help split on building pool If you receive SNAP, TANF, SSI or LIHEAP assistance, you auto- matically qualify for assistance at the Grand Ronde Food Bank, 9675 Grand Ronde Road. No one will be turned away in need of a food box. Upcoming food box distribution dates are 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Friday, April 15; 2 to 6 p.m. Wednesday, April 20; and 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Friday, April 29. Those who are unable to pick up a food box may fill out an authorized representative form and that person can pick up a food box on your behalf. The authorization is good for one year. The Grand Ronde Food Bank – iskam mfkhmfk haws – is run by Marion-Polk Food Share, which has been leading the fight to end hunger since 1987 because no one should be hungry. “We believe that everyone deserves to have enough to eat,” says Food Bank Coordinator Francene Ambrose. “You are welcome to get a food box at each of our regular weekly distributions. No one will be turned away in need of a food box.” The Food Bank continues to seek volunteers to help with repacking food, putting food on the shelves, handing out food boxes and end-of- the-month inventory. All volunteers must attend annual mandatory training once a year. The next training, which will cover safe food handling, non-discrimination and warehouse safety, will be held from 1 to 3 p.m. Monday, April 18, at the Food Bank. Call on non-distribution days to ensure someone is available to as- sist you. You also can sign up for a monthly e-mail for the Food Bank calendar and events, as well as follow the Food Bank on Facebook. The Food Bank is an equal opportunity provider. Contact Ambrose at 503-879-3663 or at fambrose@marionpolkfood- share.org for more information or to volunteer. Official Tribal Facebook pages • Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde: www.facebook.com/CTGRgov • Grand Ronde Tribal Council: www.facebook.com/TheConfederatedTribesOfGrandRondeTribalCouncil • Grand Ronde Higher Education: www.facebook.com/grand.r.ed • Grand Ronde Youth Education: www.facebook.com/CTGRYouthEducation • Spirit Mountain Community Fund: www.facebook.com/SpiritMountainCommunityFund • Grand Ronde Station: www.facebook.com/GrandRondeStation • Grand Ronde Royalty: www.facebook.com/CTGRRoyalty • Veterans Special Event Board: www.facebook.com/pages/Veterans-Board-of-the-Confederated-Tribes-of- the-Grand-Ronde-Community • Community Garden: www.facebook.com/GrandRondeCommunityGarden • Grand Ronde Food Bank: www.facebook.com/GrandRondeFoodBank Committee & Special Event Board meeting days and times Below is the most current information on the meeting days and times for Tribal Committees and Special Event Boards: • Ceremonial Hunting Board meets as needed. Chair: Marline Groshong. • Culture Committee meets at 1 p.m. the first Wednesday of the month at Chachalu Museum & Cultural Center. Chair: Betty Bly. • Education Committee meets at 5:30 p.m. on the second Tuesday of the month in the Adult Education building. Chair: Tammy Cook. • Elders Committee meets at 10 a.m. the third Wednesday of the month in the Elders Activity Center. Chair: Julie Duncan. • Enrollment Committee meets quarterly in Room 204 of the Governance Center. Chair: Michael Mercier. • Fish & Wildlife Committee meets at 5:30 p.m. the second Tuesday of the month at the Natural Resources building off Hebo Road. Chair: Harold Lyon. • Health Committee meets at 10 a.m. the second Wednesday of the month in the Health & Wellness Center. Chair: Patti Tom-Martin. • Housing Board meets at 3 p.m. the third Thursday of the month in the Housing Department conference room. Chair: Matt Thomas. • Powwow Special Event Board meets monthly at noon at the Community Center. Dates vary. Contact Dana Ainam at 503-879-2037 or Kalene Con- treras at 503-879-2165. Chair: Dana Ainam. • Timber Committee meets at 5 p.m. the second Thursday of the month at the Natural Resources building off Hebo Road. Chair: Bob Mercier. • Veterans Special Event Board meets at 5 p.m. the first Tuesday of the month in the old Elders Craft House. Chair: Steve Bobb Sr. To update information on this list, contact Publications Coordinator Dean Rhodes at 503-879-1463 or dean.rhodes@grandronde.org. By Dean Rhodes Smoke Signals editor A survey of the Tribal member- ship found an almost 50-50 split when it comes to building a com- munity swimming pool in Grand Ronde. The survey, which was distrib- uted on Feb. 2 and allowed Tribal members until March 18 to respond either via mail or the Internet, received 824 responses. Of those who responded, 425, or 51.6 per- cent, said they support the Tribal government building and operating a pool in Grand Ronde while 399, or 48.4 percent, opposed the idea. Interestingly, the surveys that could be identified as coming from the local or regional area also re- sulted in a close vote: 252 in sup- port and 230 opposed. The idea of building a communi- ty pool in Grand Ronde has been around for a while, but received added impetus when Tribal mem- ber Rex Haller began a serious push for its construction, citing the lack of recreational and exercise oppor- tunities for Tribal members living in the Grand Ronde area. Haller submitted a petition to Tribal Council in 2015 with more than 250 signatures in support of building a pool. In reaction, Tribal Council au- thorized a feasibility study and then a survey that was sent to all Tribal members 18 and older. Tribal members were given three options to consider that ranged in construc- tion cost from approximately $4.5 million to $7.4 million and operating expenses from $171,345 to $346,574 annually. In all three options, pro- jected annual revenues fell far short of annual operating expenses. Those who supported a pool said the three most important benefits or uses would be recreation, health and well-being, and swimming les- sons. They also favored a pool built on the Tribal campus, 55.3 percent, instead of at Spirit Mountain Casi- no, 40 percent. When pool supporters were asked if they support using Tribal rev- enues to fund construction and annual operating costs if that funding might cause a reduction in per capita payments or funding for other programs, 64.9 percent said no and 35.1 percent said yes. The survey also found that Tribal members would support use of the pool by Tribal members and family, community members and the pub- lic, but favored Tribal members and their family members not having to pay to use the pool while all others would have to pay. Overwhelmingly, most of the paper surveys came from Oregon: 478 or 669 returned. At the Sunday, April 3, General Council meeting held in Eugene, Tribal Council members said a final decision has not been made about whether to build a pool based on the survey results and that another work session will need be held to discuss the issue. NOW ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS Grand Ronde Head Start Preschool is accepting applications for the upcoming 2016-17 school year. We are now recruiting expectant mothers and children ages 0-5 for our home-based and center-based programs. The application deadline is 5 p.m. Tuesday, July 5, and selection will take place on Friday, July 15. Please stop by the school or call 503-879-2161 for an application, or go to our website: www.grandronde.org/departments/education/ early-childhood-education. The first day of school is scheduled for Monday, Sept. 12. Children with special needs are strongly encouraged to apply. Transportation may be provided in the Grand Ronde/Willamina/ Sheridan area. ATTENTION TRIBAL MEMBERS COMMITTEE AND SPECIAL EVENT BOARD VACANCIES The following Committees and Special Event Boards have vacant positions. Ceremonial Hunting Board Election Board Powwow SEB 1 Vacancy 1 Vacancy, 1 alternate vacancy 2 Vacancies Please send completed applications to Stacia Martin, 9615 Grand Ronde Road, Grand Ronde, OR 97347.
