S moke S ignals
MARCH 1, 2018
5
Hatfield Fellow Program
seeking applicants
By Angela Sears
Community Fund Program Coordinator
2013 – Grand Ronde Trib-
al members fared well at the
state wrestling tournament
held in Portland, winning
two state titles and taking
two second places. Dallas
High School sophomore
Matthew Hofenbredl, 16,
added a second consecutive
title to his record. He had 2013
File photo
been wrestling since the
age of 5. Scio High School senior Josh Parazoo, 18, did the same while
his brother, Scio freshman Justin, 15, placed second in the finals.
The brothers had been wrestling in Scio since they were 4 years of
age. Michael Reyes, 15, a freshman at Willamina High School, took
second place in the Class 3A 113-pound division.
2008 – Tribal members were to have five opportunities to testify
about the Warm Springs Tribe’s proposal to build an off-reservation
casino in Cascade Locks, which is part of the ancestral and historic
lands of the Tribes and Bands that make up the Confederated Tribes
of Grand Ronde. The first meeting concerning the Cascade Locks ca-
sino draft environmental impact statement was set for Kah-Nee-Ta
High Desert Resort and Casino on the Warm Springs Reservation.
The Warm Springs Tribe was seeking to build a 603,000-square-foot
riverfront destination resort and casino on 60 acres of industrial-
ly-zoned land in the environmentally sensitive Columbia River Gorge.
2003 – Tribal member Jake McKnight joined a team comprised of
Natural Resources Department firefighters who were deployed to
Texas to help find wreckage of the space shuttle Columbia, which
disintegrated upon re-entering Earth's atmosphere, killing all seven
crew members. In addition to six Tribal employees, the team also
included four Forest Service workers from the Siuslaw National
Forest and nine from the Willamette National Forest. The team’s
expertise was in gridding the search areas by walking as well as
following compass lines in rough vegetation.
1998 – The new governance building was under construction and
scheduled to open in September. The 40,000-square-foot building
and parking was expected to take up four acres and allow views of
Spirit Mountain. “Appearance is only part of the overall function
that the Tribe intends for the building,” an article stated. “The
Tribe is striving to create quality services within the building. The
administration building will centralize many programs that are
currently widespread throughout many buildings.” The building
was to become home to Tribal Council, the Legal Department,
Tribal Court and Finance, as well as function in a manner similar
to a State Capitol building.
1993 – Tribal member Charlene Freeman was featured as entrepre-
neur of the month for her business, C Street Hair, in Independence.
She worked “very closely” with Economic Development Specialist
Elaine Moore to refine the details of her business, such as having
customers in a database, utilizing tax write-offs and working on
expense tracking. “Thanks to the Tribe, I am a lot more organized,”
Freeman said. “I have learned more than I ever dreamed. Every day,
there’s something new.”
1988 – A Tribal voter registration drive was occurring by Social
Services staff to make an effort to register every eligible voter for
upcoming elections. “Too often individual voting rights are viewed as
inconsequential or unimportant,” an article stated. “And sometimes
it is difficult to feel your vote has much of an impact on the outcome
of an election or how an issue is resolved. However, nothing could
be further than the truth.” In an effort to help Tribal members par-
ticipate, staff offered to assist in the voter registration process and
had forms available at the offices or could arrange for an in-home
visit if needed.
Yesteryears is a look back at Tribal history in five-year in-
crements through the pages of Smoke Signals.
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 con-
dition. 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.
The web-based application for the
2018-19 Hatfield Fellowship opens
on Friday, March 16, for members
of Oregon, Washington, Idaho and
Montana Tribes and will close on
Monday, April 30.
Each year, Spirit Mountain Com-
munity Fund sponsors a congres-
sional fellowship with a member of
the Oregon delegation to enhance
the mutual understanding between
the federal government and Indian
Country.
Past fellows have served in a
number of Senate and House con-
gressional offices, including those
of Sens. Ron Wyden, Jeff Merkley
and Gordon Smith and Reps. Kurt
Schrader, Darlene Hooley, Peter
DeFazio and Greg Walden.
“The Hatfield Fellowship is a
yearly investment in strengthening
the understanding between Oregon
Tribes and our congressional rep-
resentatives,” Community Fund
Director Mychal Cherry said. “By
spending eight months as part of
a congressional office, these Tribal
members come away with an invalu-
able understanding of how things are
done in D.C. During the fellowship
experience, working relationships
are formed that will benefit the
fellow throughout their career. The
congressional staff also learn from a
colleague about the realities in Indi-
an Country and the huge potential
for our communities. This is abso-
lutely a learning exchange.”
Fellows begin their time in Wash-
ington, D.C., in November with a
monthlong orientation with the
American Political Science Asso-
ciation.
The Hatfield Fellowship was
created in 1998 to honor Sen.
Mark Hatfield’s public service to
Oregon and the Pacific North-
west. Additional information
about the program is available
at www.thecommunityfund.com/
hatfield-fellowship.
Community Health Program
Medical Transport
Services
Medical transportation
services are available to
Tribal members within
the six-county service
area when an alternate
means of transportation
is not available. Advance
notice required.
Please call 503-879-2078
to schedule a reservation.