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Elders fishing trip
photos — pg. 17
JUNE 15, 2017
Tribal Council
Chair Reyn Leno
bows out of
2017 election
Rainy day parade
By Dean Rhodes
Smoke Signals editor
A
n emotional Reyn Leno
announced during the
Wednesday, May 31, Tribal
Council meeting that he will not
seek re-election in 2017, ending 21
years of service on Tribal Council.
Leno, whose seventh consec-
utive three-year term on Tribal
Council ends in
September, said
he will be on a
plane to Hawaii
with his children
and grandchildren
when Tribal Coun-
cil candidates are
Reyn Leno
nominated on
Sunday, June 25.
His grandson, Justin Fasana,
was valedictorian for the 2017
class at Willamina High School
and requested the trip as part of
his graduation gift.
Leno, 66, was first elected to
Tribal Council in September 1996.
He served as Tribal Council vice
chair for 11 years before being
elevated to Tribal Council chair by
his fellow council members in Sep-
tember 2012. His 21 years on Tribal
Council are the most of any Tribal
member who has been elected since
1983’s Restoration.
“It has been a quick 21 years,”
Leno said while announcing his
intention to not seek re-election.
See LENO
continued on page 5
Photo by Michelle Alaimo
Spirit Mountain Casino’s float “Persistence of Culture” rolls down Northeast Weidler Street in Portland during the
2017 Spirit Mountain Casino Grand Floral Parade on Saturday, June 10. The float depicts the Tribe’s continuous
struggle to retain culture and traditional knowledge and to stay afloat during trying times. The float won the
Governor’s Award, which is awarded to the float with the best depiction of life in Oregon. More photos on page 11.
Tribe’s dental team plays prevent defense
By Brent Merrill
Smoke Signals staff writer
I
f you are the mother of a 3-year-
old child or younger, Tribal
Dental Hygienist Sheila Black-
eter wants to visit your home and
sit across from you knee-to-knee
to safely deliver dental services to
young patients while they are held
and comforted.
“I bring my loupes and I have my
container of fluoride varnish and
toothbrushes and gauze,” Blacketer
says of her home visit routine. “I
put my loupes on and sit knee-to-
knee with the mom and the baby’s
head is on my lap and I can see if
there is any cavities starting.”
Dental loupes are small magnifi-
cation devices used to look closely
at a patient’s teeth.
Blacketer’s home visits were still
dreams on paper in 2012, but those
dreams started becoming reality
in 2013 with the first of what are
now regular and welcomed home
visits aimed at improving the den-
tal health of Tribal members of all
ages.
By 2014, the visits were a regular
offering and now they are part of
the overall strategy of the clinic’s
dental staff. It’s all about building
trust and establishing relationships
that will hopefully lead to lifelong
improved dental health, she says.
See DENTAL TEAM
continued on page 8
First Foods celebration honors ancestors
Culture Committee’s annual event held at Tribal plankhouse
By Brent Merrill
Smoke Signals staff writer
T
he Tribe’s annual First Foods celebra-
tion held on Saturday, June 3, was
about new beginnings and honoring
ancestors and the foods they ate to survive.
Tribal Council Secretary Jon A. George
hosted the event held at the Tribe’s plank-
house, achaf-hammi. He was joined by fellow
council members Chris Mercier, Brenda
Tuomi, Tonya Gleason-Shepek, Denise Har-
Photo by Michelle Alaimo
vey and Kathleen George, and former council
members and Tribal Elders Kathryn Harrison
and Wink Soderberg.
Tribal members gathered in the morning
in the outdoor area behind the plankhouse to
prepare traditional Native foods like salmon,
venison, lamprey, fry bread, salad, stew and
berries.
See FIRST FOODS
continued on page 12
Dakota Smith serves salmon to Kalea Liebelt during the Culture Committee’s First Foods
celebration held at achaf-hammi, the Tribe’s plankhouse, on Saturday, June 3.