4
S moke S ignals
NOVEMBER 1, 2017
'Basically we had a name and a cemetery'
RESTORATION continued
from front page
on Nov. 22, 1983, when President
Ronald Reagan signed the Grand
Ronde Restoration Act.
The federal government also re-
turned 9,811 acres to the Tribe as a
Reservation on Sept. 9, 1988, which
also occurred during Reagan’s ad-
ministration.
The Restoration effort began in
the 1970s. One of the first acts
Tribal members took toward Resto-
ration occurred when Kimsey and
Holmes testified before Task Force
10 of the American Indian Policy
Review Commission in Salem in
March 1976.
The commission was created to
gather information about American
Indian Tribes and make recom-
mendations. Task Force 10 was
specifically concerned with western
Oregon’s terminated Tribes.
Kimsey and Holmes, as well as
representatives from as many as
nine other Tribes, recounted the
effects of Termination and what it
had brought upon the Grand Ronde
Tribe.
Kimsey and Holmes said that
Tribal members did not understand
the devastation that Termination
LIHEAP program open in service area
The Tribal Social Service’s LIHEAP – Low Income Home Energy As-
sistance Program – is open to eligible Tribal members in the six-county
service area and Clackamas County.
This is a first-come, first-served program and income criteria applies.
LIHEAP is federally funded through the Department of Health and
Human Services and is designed to help low-income households with
home heating costs.
For more information, contact Social Services at 503-879-2034.
Clothes Closet open Friday mornings
The Clothes Closet is open from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. the first and
third Fridays of the month and 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. all other Fridays
on the Tribal campus near the Elders Activity Center at the end of
Blacktail Drive.
The Clothes Closet accepts clothing, small appliances, small pieces
of furniture, electronics and household goods that are clean and in
good condition. It does not accept books, large TVs or large furniture,
but there is a community board where people can post those items.
Donations are accepted during regular business hours.
For more information or emergency clothes, contact Lori Walk-
er-Hernandez at 559-847-7565.
ATTENTION
TRIBAL MEMBERS
COMMITTEE AND SPECIAL EVENT BOARD VACANCIES
The following Committees and Special Event Boards have vacant positions.
Election Board
1 alternate vacancy
Housing Grievance Board
1 vacancy
Fish & Wildlife Committee
1 vacancy
Please send completed applications to Stacia Hernandez,
9615 Grand Ronde Road, Grand Ronde, OR 97347.
would wreak on the community
and they explained how the last 820
acres of the Tribe’s original land
base was sold and that the Tribe’s
cemetery was all that remained
of the more than 60,000 acres of
Reservation land that was reserved
by President James Buchanan’s
executive order of 1857.
Fourteen Tribal members filled
out detailed questionnaires for Task
Force 10. Among those providing
information were Russ Leno, Velma
Mercier, Kimsey, Holmes and others.
Those Tribal members and many
others, working with Oregon Sen.
Mark Hatfield and his staff and
representatives at the Native
American Program Oregon Legal
Services, provided information
about employment, health, housing,
educational needs and the problems
associated with not having a land
base. Together, they strategized
how to achieve Restoration.
In October 1983, Tribal Elder
Kathryn Harrison and her son and
daughter, Frank Harrison and Karen
Askins, as well as Kimsey and Jackie
Whisler testified before the House
Interior and Insular Affairs Commit-
tee about restoring the Grand Ronde
Tribe to federal recognition.
Sponsored by U.S. Rep. Les Au-
Coin, the Grand Ronde Restoration
Bill had 57 letters of support and no
opposition. It passed the House on
Nov. 7, 1983, and was introduced
in the Senate by Hatfield four days
later. The bill passed the Senate on
a voice vote.
Less than two weeks later, Rea-
gan signed the Restoration Bill
into law.
“Basically we had a name and a
cemetery. Nothing more than that,”
former Tribal Council Chairman
Reyn Leno has said previously
about the importance of marking
Restoration Day. “Everything on
top of that people should be very
thankful for.”
The 34th Restoration Celebration
begins with a Canoe Family per-
formance and program starting at
10 a.m. followed by a meal in the
Tribal gym at noon. There will be a
break at 2 p.m. and a powwow be-
ginning at 3 p.m. There also will be
youth specials during the powwow
in honor of Saige Selwyn, a Tribal
youth who walked on in 2015.
The Planning Committee for this
year’s celebration includes Tribal
Council Secretary Jon A. George,
Tribal Council Chief of Staff Sta-
cia Hernandez, Tribal Council
Administrative Assistant Shannon
Simi, Culture Committee members
Tracie Meyer, Joanna Brisbois and
Shayla Murphy, Cultural Resources
Department employee Julie Brown,
Food Bank Coordinator Francene
Ambrose, Tribal Elders Faye Smith
and Steve Bobb Sr., Portland Area
Office Tribal Services Represen-
tative Lisa Archuleta and Public
Affairs Administrative Assistant
Chelsea Clark.
Grand Ronde Tribal vendors who
wish to set up a table during the
event should contact Ambrose at
503-879-3663. Space for vendors
is limited.
RSVP to Public Affairs at 503-
879-1418 or send an e-mail to
publicaffairs@grandronde.org so
that organizers can determine an
approximate number of attendees.
The 35th Restoration Celebration
will be held Sunday, Nov. 18, 2018,
at Spirit Mountain Casino, accord-
ing to an authorization to proceed
approved by Tribal Council on Oct.
26. Otherwise, 2018’s Restoration
Day would have fallen on the same
day as Thanksgiving.
Includes information from previ-
ous editions of Smoke Signals.
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 5:30 p.m. the second Tuesday of the
month at the Grand Ronde Food Bank/iskam mfkhmfk haws, 9675
Grand Ronde Road. Chair: Francene Ambrose.
• Editorial Board meets at 10 a.m. Friday, Nov. 3, in Room 204 in the
Tribal Governance Center. Chair: Siobhan Taylor.
• 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: Gladys Hobbs.
• Enrollment Board 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:
Tyson Mercier.
• Health Committee meets at 10 a.m. the second Monday 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. 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 5:30 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.
