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About Smoke signals. (Grand Ronde, Or.) 19??-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 1, 2016)
6 S moke S ignals OCTOBER 1, 2016 'This is a meaningful event' ENCAMPMENT continued from front page and he wanted to start using his powers to only benefit himself. So he started doing this and people kept telling him he was doing bad things. He kept doing those things that would only benefit him and his family. “The Blue Jay went and told the Red Tail Hawk about the things that he was doing and so Red Tail Hawk came and told him to stop doing this. He came back five times and on the fifth time he grabbed that man and he took him out and when he spread his wings he knocked the tops of those moun- tains off.” Red Tail Hawk placed the med- icine man in the middle of the top of the mountain and he became a cedar tree. “And he took his wife and his two kids and he stuck them up on the north side and they became those great big pillar rocks,” said Mercier. Mercier said that Red Tail Hawk told the people that ev- ery time they see these rocks they would be reminded that you shouldn’t Tribal Education Department Manager Leslie Riggs just use your powers gives an overview of the Grand Ronde Tribal History to benefit yourself curriculum, which was developed by the Tribe with and your family, but that you should hopes of it being taught in Oregon schools, during always help your “Coffee & Conversation with the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde” held at the Marriott Courtyard people. Mercier’s presen- Medford Airport in Medford on Friday, Sept. 16. tation was part of the Tribe’s annual trip to southern important things that happened Oregon that also featured a pre- with our Tribe. sentation by the Tribe’s Education “When you come to our chambers Department Manager Leslie Riggs. we have all seven of our treaties Tribal Council Chairman Reyn hanging on the wall because it’s the Leno led a contingent of seven Trib- guide; it’s the guide for us to what al Council members to Medford for we should do for our people.” the meeting that was organized by Among the guests in attendance Tribal Council Chief of Staff Stacia were Grand Ronde Tribal member Martin, Tribal Council Adminis- Celia Randolph, who lives in the trative Assistant Shannon Simi area, Alison Chan of the city of Med- and Public Affairs Administrative ford, Molly Morison of The Nature Assistant Chelsea Clark. Conservancy, Jeanne Klein, Bonnie Tribal Council Vice Chair Cheryle Million and Jennifer Sanborn of the A. Kennedy, Secretary Jon A. Bureau of Land Management and George and Tribal Council mem- local historian Ben Truwe. bers Jack Giffen Jr., Brenda Tuomi, Giffen talked about the Reserva- Tonya Gleason-Shepek and Denise tion lands in the Grand Ronde area Harvey also attended. before Riggs gave a presentation on Tribal Attorney Rob Greene, the Tribe’s fourth- and eighth-grade Tribal Photographer Michelle Alai- Native American curriculums that mo, Riggs’ wife Heather and Simi’s are finding their way into schools daughter Kaleigha attended as well. throughout Oregon, including the Mercier, George, Riggs and Clark Medford School District. performed the opening welcome Riggs introduced himself in song and George gave the invoca- Chinuk Wawa and said that his tion. great-great-grandfather Solomon “This is a meaningful event,” Riggs was from the Rogue River said Leno during his welcoming and Umpqua Tribal people. address. “I really hope one of these Riggs said that the curriculum years we can have a larger event. project was a collaboration between Many of our Tribal members have the Grand Ronde Education De- Rogue River blood. I hope we can partment, the Tribe’s former Land have a small powwow or something and Culture Program and the Wil- to celebrate this treaty signing lamina School District. because it’s really one of the most “This curriculum is the product of Photos by Michelle Alaimo Tribal Council Vice Chair Cheryle A. Kennedy, left, talks about the necklace she gifted, on behalf of the Tribe, to Ben Truwe during “Coffee & Conversation with the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde” held at the Marriott Courtyard Medford Airport in Medford on Friday, Sept. 16. Truwe is a local historian in the Medford area. years of hard work and dedication by a number of committed staff,” said Riggs. “It’s the first of its kind in Oregon. All of the lesson plans follow common core standards and the lessons also meet Oregon social science academic content standards.” Riggs said it is increasingly im- portant to the Tribal membership, especially the leadership, that a historically accurate, place-based curriculum that taught the true story of the Grand Ronde people be created for schools. Riggs said that the project came about after many of the Tribal children/students reported having to explain their history to teachers and fellow students at local schools. “Our desire is that teachers find it useful and we appreciate the pos- itive difference they are making by teaching it,” said Riggs. “We know it will have an incredible impact on the generations to come.” Randolph said that homeschool- ing is popular in the area and she encouraged Riggs to keep up the work of educating young people in southern Oregon about the true history of the area. She said a more realistic viewpoint of the current state of Native Americans needs to be a priority. Truwe asked Tribal representa- tives if they had any information about the treaties that came before the Treaty of Table Rock. Greene said that those were considered “agreements” and not considered treaties by the Tribe because they did not go through the government-to-government process. Mercier said that some of the wording of those original agree- ments made its way into the trea- ties that were eventually signed and recognized. Greene added that the agree- ments were important because they often provide details, such as the names of chiefs and headmen and the descriptions of lands and areas. Truwe said he attended the meet- ing because of his intense interest in the local history of the people. “The topic of the get-together was the Table Rock Treaty, one of my areas of interest,” Truwe said. “I’m also interested in what becomes of Rogue Valley residents after they move on, and that certainly in- cludes the area’s original owners.” Truwe thanked the Tribe for the dentalia necklace he was gifted at the meeting. “It’s now one of my prized posses- sions,” said Truwe. Sanborn, who supervises re- search specialists, said the BLM hopes to hire a Tribal member to work with them on their Table Rocks projects. “We would like to get a Tribal person hired to be an interpretive specialist for the Table Rocks pro- gram in the spring when we take all the kids up,” said Sanborn. “We want a more active presence in the history of the area.” After the meeting, a group went up to an encampment at the Upper Table Rock Trailhead off Modoc Road for beading and Greene es- corted Tuomi and Harvey on a hike. “I really enjoyed the hike,” said Harvey. “It was kind of spiritual going up on that hike and getting up there to the top and admiring the view, but then realizing that our people were encamped there.” Kennedy said she was at the first gathering in celebration of the treaty in 2011 when the memoran- dum of understanding was signed between the Tribe, BLM and The Nature Conservancy. “It was a very moving experi- ence,” said Kennedy. “I was thrilled because the agreement was signed at the Lower Table Rock near where our original Rogue River Treaty was signed in 1853. As chairwoman of the Tribe when the MOU was signed I knew our Tribe was beginning to exercise its treaty rights in southern Oregon. I feel that our ancestors are pleased with the undertaking of the Con- federated Tribes of Grand Ronde’s effort in educating others on who the inhabitants of southern Oregon really are. This year’s gathering was a great experience.” Leno said he was thankful for the staff members who made the trip to Medford and that he hoped the meetings would continue. “When we come down here I al- ways try to think of what it was like here in the valley 100 years before the treaty,” said Leno. “This is a very meaningful event for us.”
