S moke S ignals
DECEMBER 15, 2017
Enrollment training
Tribal Council approves
education expansion contract
By Dean Rhodes
Smoke Signals editor
Photo by Michelle Alaimo
Clockwise from left, Tribal Council Vice Chair Chris Mercier, Enrollment
Board member and Tribal Elder Ann Lewis, Tribal Council member
Kathleen George and Enrollment Board member and Tribal Elder Debi
Anderson discuss enrollment topics during a Tribal Enrollment On-Site
Training by James Mills, president of Creating Stronger Nations, held
in the Employment Service Center on the Tribal campus on Wednesday,
Nov. 29. Representatives from Tribal Council, Tribal Council staff, Audit
Services, Information Systems, the Tribal Attorney’s Office, Member
Services Department, Records and the Enrollment Board attended the
two-day workshop. According to Creating Stronger Nations, they are an
innovator in the fields of Tribal enrollment and Tribal Council leadership
training, creating new avenues for Nations, Tribes, Bands and Pueblos to
voice concerns, exchange ideas and find solutions to the most pressing
issues in Indian Country.
Smoke Signals photo
reprint policy
See a photo you like in Smoke Signals?
Want a copy, or several copies?
Want to see if a photo that was taken but not printed in Smoke Signals
because of space limitations might be something you’d like hanging on
your living room wall? Tribal members can order 8-by-10-inch copies of
photos taken by Smoke Signals staff members regardless of if they were
published in the newspaper. Charge is $1 for each print ordered. Reprint
orders must be pre-paid with a check made out to Smoke Signals. A photo
reprint order form is available in the Publications Office of the Tribe’s
Governance Building in Grand Ronde, or can be mailed upon request.
All photos contained in Smoke Signals’ current archive are available for
purchase, but people interested in going through the archive must make
an appointment to review photos for possible purchase.
No rush orders are permitted and requestors must allow 30 days for
delivery. Requestors must be Tribal members. In addition, reprint re-
questors must agree that the reprint is for personal use only, and not
for use in an ad, or for commercial, political or promotional purposes.
Smoke Signals reserves the right to decline a reprint request. To re-
quest a reprint order form, write to Smoke Signals at 9615 Grand Ronde
Road, Grand Ronde, OR 97347, or call Michelle Alaimo at 503-879-1961
or 800-422-0232. 
Grand Ronde
Housing Department
Housing Board seeks community input
The Grand Ronde Housing Board is inviting Tribal members and Trib-
al housing residents to provide input to assist its members in carrying
out its advisory role to the Housing Department and Tribal Council
regarding policy guidance. The Housing Board meets at 3 p.m. the third
Thursday of each month in the Housing Department conference room,
28450 Tyee Road. Its chair is Matt Thomas. For more information,
contact the Housing Department at 503-879-2401. 
9
Tribal Council approved a
$739,500 contract with Whisler
Construction of Otis on Wednesday,
Dec. 13, to expand the Early Child-
hood and Youth Education areas of
the Tribe’s educational facilities.
General Manager David Fuller-
ton said during the Tuesday, Dec.
12, Legislative Action Committee
meeting that the initial bidding
process that occurred in May re-
ceived only one bid that was not
within the approved budget for the
expansion project.
Fullerton said he thought a busy
construction season decreased
interest in bidding on the Tribal
project.
This time around, the Tribe re-
ceived two bids and Whisler was
the low bidder. The Tribe’s procure-
ment policy requires that Tribal
Council approve contracts valued
at more than $100,000.
In an Oct. 19 authorization to pro-
ceed, Tribal Council set a $740,000
budget for the project that includes
$208,000 from an U.S. Department
of Housing and Urban Develop-
ment Indian Community Develop-
ment Block Grant, $65,000 from a
Spirit Mountain Community Fund
grant and $300,000 in Tribal funds.
Fullerton said Whisler is pre-
pared to start work as soon as the
contract is approved.
The 1,800-square-foot project
will construct a preschool addition
to the Early Childhood Education
building and renovate the cur-
rent kitchen, expanding it by 200
square feet. The addition also will
include a classroom and additional
restrooms, storage and office space.
Additionally, Youth Education
will be expanded by approximately
250 square feet. Construction will
include restrooms, storage and
laundry facilities.
Tribal Council approved applying
for the federal grant in October
2015.
In other action, Tribal Council:
• Approved a resolution to join the
Native Farm Coalition, which
will provide the Grand Ronde
Tribe an opportunity to partici-
pate in lobbying efforts for federal
agricultural policy.
• Approved amendments to the
Tribe’s Children and Families Or-
dinance that ensure permanent
plans in the ordinance comply
with federal funding require-
ments.
• Re-appointed Tribal member Ron
Reibach to the Spirit Mountain
Community Fund Board of Trust-
ees.
• Nominated Tribal Council mem-
ber Brenda Tuomi to possibly
serve on a task force regarding
domestic violence against Native
American women.
• And approved the enrollment of
four infants into the Tribe be-
cause they meet the provisions
outlined in the Enrollment Ordi-
nance and Tribal Constitution.
Also included in the Dec. 13
Tribal Council packet were autho-
rizations to proceed that appointed
Tribal Council member Michael
Langley to the Oregon Tribal Cul-
tural Items Task Force created
by Gov. Kate Brown, authorized
transferring $205 from general con-
tingency to the Ceremonial Hunt-
ing Board budget to cover harvest
processing costs and authorized a
new broadcast journalist position
in the Publications Department
who will primarily be responsible
for creating a weekly news podcast.
Tribal Cultural Resources Depart-
ment Manager David Harrelson
gave a brief cultural presentation
regarding winter and traditional
Native practices and Tribal Council
Chairwoman Cheryle A. Kennedy
memorialized Vera Katz, former
mayor of Portland who walked on
on Monday, Dec. 11.
“Vera was a close friend of the
Tribes of Oregon and supported the
cleanup of the Willamette River,
which is vital to the Willamette Val-
ley Treaty,” Kennedy said. “She also
consistently referred to the Confed-
erated Tribes of Grand Ronde as the
Tribe of Portland and recognized us
as valuable business partners.
“We admired her ability to ad-
vance social and economic devel-
opment in the Portland area and
saw her as being a leader who
could champion even the most chal-
lenging issues. She was a staunch
advocate for the city of Portland
and its people. She will be missed
tremendously and her legacy will
continue to live on through those
that knew her and through the
great city Portland has become.”
The meeting can be viewed by
visiting the Tribal website at www.
grandronde.org and clicking on the
News tab and then Video. 
Adult Members’ Trust and Minors’
Custodial & Rabbi Trust Funds
Investments in the Adult Members’ Trust Fund and the Minors’
Custodial and Rabbi Trust Funds are updated each business day.
If you are a trust participant and/or if you are the parent/guard-
ian of a minor member, you can access and review your balance
and your minor child’s balance by visiting www.401Save.com.
To log-in, the initial User ID is your (or your child’s) Social Security
number, and the initial Password is “00” followed by your (or your
child’s) membership number. Once logged in, you can customize your
User ID and password for security purposes. If you have any trouble
logging in to or using the system, contact the 401Save Call Center
at 1-888-700-0808 between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. Pacific time, Monday
through Friday. 