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About Smoke signals. (Grand Ronde, Or.) 19??-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 1, 2018)
S moke S ignals JANUARY 1, 2018 2013 – An electric car charging station opened at Grand Ronde Station. The Tribe was planning a grand opening/ribbon cutting ceremony for late February or early March. Oregon, with 1,300 elec- tric cars, was leading the nation in its buildout of the Electric Highway, File photo which predicted that by 2013 2020 there would be an estimated 2 million electric cars that would be able to travel between Canada and Mexico. 2008 – Tribal member David Harrelson, 22, was headed to Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. Although he was unsuccessful in his bid for the Mark O. Hatfield Fellowship, he networked his way into the office of Sen. Gordon Smith for a three-month internship. Harrelson said he wanted to work in Smith’s office because of the senator’s placement on the Indian Affairs and Energy and Natural Resources committees. 2003 – The journey of Danyel Leach, the 13-year-old daughter of Spirit Mountain Casino employee Kathleen Salleng, who had a brain tumor removed, was chronicled. Despite her condition, the teenager attended school regularly, played volleyball and participated in other activities with friends. 1998 – More than 200 memory bricks were laid into place at the new Health & Wellness Center. The bricks were a Health Committee fundraiser and purchased by people to honor living and dead family members. 1993 – The Tribe finalized a land purchase with the Zimbricks, whose property was located near the Tribal forestry offices near Highway 18. The land had been looked at for several economic pos- sibilities because of its location along the highway and across from the South Yamhill River. The Zimbrick family agreed to sell the land to the Tribe for $420,000. It marked the single largest land purchase the Tribe had made to expand its land base. 1988 – The Tribe’s oldest living member, Georgia Renfrow, turned 100. She recalled growing up in Grand Ronde, attending school at St. Michael’s Catholic Church and learning French from Father Adrian Croquet, the priest who lived in Grand Ronde from 1860-98. According to daughter Lucille, her mother’s greatest joy was dancing and she stayed active well into her 90s, giving her grandchildren piggyback rides. Yesteryears is a look back at Tribal history in five-year in- crements through the pages of Smoke Signals. Need something notarized? Tribal Court staff is available at no charge for notaries 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday though Friday with the exception of noon to 1 p.m. Please be sure to bring a photo ID with you. If you have any questions, contact the court at 503-879-2303. n Smoke Signals starts podcast Smoke Signals has started a new podcast on the hosting website Spreaker.com. The first episode, posted on Thursday, Dec. 28, features Trib- al Council Vice Chair Chris Mercier discuss- ing podcasting and expansion of Tribal media outreach efforts and Editorial Board Chairwoman Siobhan Taylor talks about the board and its activities since it started meeting in June. The pod- cast can be heard at https://www. spreaker.com/show/2745752. “I think that podcasting will augment and complement the news coverage offered to the Grand Ronde Tribal membership by Smoke Sig- nals,” said Editor Dean Rhodes, who will host the podcast shows until a full-time podcast journalist is hired in 2018. “I can see us highlighting news that occurs between our current publication cycle, which is the first and 15th of each month, and also conduct more in-depth interviews with Tribal employees and Trib- al members to com- plement stories that appear in the Tribal newspaper.” Mercier has been a proponent of expand- ing Tribal media and the five-member Edi- torial Board accepted the responsibility and assigned Rhodes to create at least one pod- cast show before the end of 2017. Tribal Lands Department Manag- er Jan Looking Wolf Reibach, a mul- tiple Native American Music Awards recipient, granted Smoke Signals blanket permission to use his Native flute-oriented music in the podcast. The first episode features his song “Wind-Jammer” off his 2008 release “The Looking Wolf Project.” “We will eventually ramp up to posting a weekly podcast,” Rhodes said. “As we start, I would suggest Tribal members keep checking out the Tribe’s Facebook page or visiting the Spreaker site for new shows.” For more information about the podcast or to suggest show ideas, contact Rhodes at 503-879-1463 or dean.rhodes@grandronde.org. n 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 Walker-Her- nandez at 559-847-7565. n Food Bank provides boxes, seeks help The Grand Ronde Food Bank – iskam mfkhmfk haws – is operated by Marion-Polk Food Share, which has been leading the fight to end hunger since 1987 because no one should be hungry. Recipients of SNAP, TANF, SSI or LIHEAP assistance automat- ically qualify for assistance at the Grand Ronde Food Bank, 9675 Grand Ronde Road. No one will be turned away in need of a food box. “We believe that everyone deserves to have enough to eat,” Food Bank Coordinator Francene Ambrose says. “You are welcome to get a food box at each of our regular weekly distributions. No one will be turned away in need of a food box.” Upcoming food box distribution dates will be: • 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Friday, Jan. 5; • 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 13. Those who are unable to pick up a food box can fill out an autho- rized representative form and that person can pick up a food box on your behalf. The authorization is good for one year. The Food Bank continues to seek volunteers to help with repacking food, putting food on the shelves, handing out food boxes and end- of-month inventory. Call to ensure someone is available to assist. People also can sign up for a monthly e-mail for the Food Bank calendar and events, as well as follow the Food Bank on Facebook. The Food Bank is an equal opportunity provider. Call Ambrose at 503-879-3663 or contact her at fambrose@mari- onpolkfoodshare.org for more information or to volunteer. n Ad created by George Valdez 5