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About Smoke signals. (Grand Ronde, Or.) 19??-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 15, 2017)
PRESORTED STANDARD MAIL U.S. POSTAGE PAID PORTLAND, OR PERMIT NO. 700 Chachalu still under construction — pg. 7 NOVEMBER 15, 2017 Tribal government dumps Wells Fargo Dual summits By Dean Rhodes Smoke Signals editor T he Grand Ronde Tribal gov- ernment will no longer be do- ing business with Wells Fargo Bank, Tribal Council Chairwoman Cheryle A. Kennedy announced during the Sunday, Nov. 5, General Council meeting to applause. Tribal Council voted 8-1 in a staff directive approved on Oct. 13 to end the financial relationship. Tribal Council member Jack Giffen Jr. vot- Chris Leno ed against the decision. Kennedy cited three reasons for the Tribal government ending its fi- nancial relationship with the bank, including Wells Fargo’s involve- ment in the controversial Dakota Access Pipeline project in North Dakota, it creating millions of fake bank and credit card accounts for customers and forcing unnecessary auto collision insurance on more than 800,000 clients. Kennedy said that Columbia Bank, based in Tacoma, Wash., with more than 150 branches in Washington, Oregon and Idaho, will become the Tribal govern- ment’s new banking partner. The Tribal government’s ac- counts with Wells Fargo are used to hold money only for short periods of time, Tribal Finance Officer Chris Leno said. The Tribal government is cur- rently going through a transition period and the transferring of ac- counts should be accomplished by early 2018. The Tribal government first em- ployed Wells Fargo for banking services from 1996 to 2005 and then rehired the bank starting in 2013. The Tribe started re-assessing its relationship with Wells Fargo earlier this year when the Finance Department issued a request for proposals for banking services. The loss of Tribal business will cost Wells Fargo less than $100,000 in processing fees, Leno said. However, the statement is more important than the lost revenue. In late 2016 and early 2017, the Dakota Access Pipeline project See WELLS FARGO continued on page 5 Fifth History & Culture event attracts more than 250 By Danielle Frost Smoke Signals staff writer T he overall message of the two-day Grand Ronde History & Culture Sum- mit is that Tribal culture is rich in tradition and very much alive today. The event, now in its fifth year, attracted a record num- ber 250 people from across the state, ranging from Grand Ronde Tribal members to cul- tural resource firms to educa- tors who spent Wednesday and Thursday, Nov. 1-2, soaking up Tribal history and culture in the Tribal gym. The annual summit started in 2013 to help remedy that the histories of Oregon’s Tribes have not been properly docu- mented. “Looking at this as a person See HISTORY continued on page 10 Photo by Michelle Alaimo Tribal Cultural Education Coordinator Jordan Mercier talks about plankhouses, including achaf-hammi, during the Grand Ronde History & Culture Summit held in the Tribal gym on Wednesday, Nov. 1. Tribal Council members attend state meeting By Dean Rhodes Smoke Signals editor L INCOLN CITY — At the conclusion of the 18th an- nual State-Tribal Summit held Thursday, Nov. 2, at Chi- nook Winds Casino in Lincoln City, Gov. Kate Brown signed Executive Order 17-12 that establishes an Oregon Tribal Cultural Task Force tasked with surveying the Tribal cultural items currently held in storage or on display by state agencies, universities, colleges and public schools. Brown was flanked by Grand Ronde Tribal Council Chair- woman Cheryle A. Kennedy and See MEETING continued on page 11 Photo by Michelle Alaimo Tribal Council Chairwoman Cheryle A. Kennedy, middle, speaks during the 18th annual State-Tribal Summit held at Chinook Winds Casino Resort in Lincoln City on Thursday, Nov. 2. Also on stage with Kennedy is Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Tribe of Indians Chairman Dan Courtney, left, and Gov. Kate Brown, right.