S moke S ignals
OCTOBER 1, 2018
13
Kathleen George discusses power of Tribal philanthropy
By Danielle Frost
Smoke Signals staff writer
Tribal philanthropy and the
new relationships it has created
among Oregon and Washington
Tribes, as well as their sur-
rounding communities, was one
of the topics discussed during
the Grantmakers of Oregon and
Southwest Washington Confer-
ence: Grantmakers as Change-
makers held at Spirit Mountain
Casino on Wednesday, Sept. 26,
through Friday, Sept. 28.
Grand Ronde Tribal Council
member and former Spirit Moun-
tain Community Fund Director
Kathleen George was one of four
guest speakers at a Wednesday
afternoon breakout session, “The
Power of Tribal Philanthropy.”
George also serves on the Spir-
it Mountain Community Fund
Board of Directors.
The Tribe was a premier spon-
sor of the event with Community
Fund employees doing most of
the organizing, which took up
much of the past year. The three-
day conference included full days
of networking, breakout sessions
and evening events.
“It is wonderful to be back with
my peers in the philanthropic
community,” George said. “I had
the honor to serve as Community
Fund director for several years.
Potlatch is a social contract of
giving among Tribes and is a
deeply rooted value in all of
our communities. It is always
Photo by Timothy J. Gonzalez
Tribal Council member Kathleen George, right, joins Jackie Chambers, second
from left, of the Coquille Tribal Community Fund, and Karissa Lowe, left,
Cowlitz Indian Tribe/Meyer Memorial Fund, in a panel discussion on Tribal
philanthropy during the Grantmakers as Changemakers conference held at
Spirit Mountain Casino on Wednesday Sept. 26. George was head of Spirit
Mountain Community Fund before being elected to Tribal Council.
important to me to recognize that
the role of being invested in the
community is a deeply rooted tra-
dition.”
In addition to George, other
guest speakers on the panel were
Coquille Tribal Community Fund
Administrator Jackie Chambers,
Siletz Tribal Charitable Contribu-
tion Fund Administrative Assis-
tant Denise Garrett and Cowlitz
Indian Tribal Council member
Karissa Lowe.
Panelists were asked questions
Madalyn (Mady) Volz
ranging from memorable partner-
ships to the challenges of managing
a philanthropic fund.
George told attendees, mostly
nonprofit grantmakers from Ore-
gon and Washington, about how
Tribes struggled in the recent past
to even be federally recognized, and
how the ability to have casinos has
allowed them to give back to the
local community and other Tribes
in need.
“All of our Tribes have experi-
enced the worst of federal govern-
ment policy, but there is lots of
hope and rebuilding now,” she
said. “It is good to take a mo-
ment to remember these hard
times. We now have a wonderful
opportunity to invest in a lot of
communities and affect a lot of
lives.”
Spirit Mountain Community
Fund was launched in 1997 and
since then has funded 2,570
grants totaling $76.5 million to
local nonprofits and other Ore-
gon Tribes.
“A few years after the Commu-
nity Fund was going, we decided
to invest in the other Tribes
through our Tribal grants pro-
gram,” George said. “There are
many ways in which we interact
and connect with other Tribes,
but this allows us to partner
with our sister Tribes in a way
we would not normally.”
George said a few memorable
Tribal grants over the years in-
cluded helping the Burns Paiute
Tribe keep its youth center open
and providing a bus to help teens
from the Warm Springs Tribe
attend summer credit recovery
sessions so they could graduate
from high school.
“Those really felt like import-
ant investments,” George said.
“In Warm Springs, they were
really excited about the program
because high school graduation
See GRANTMAKER
continued on page 14
MARRIAGES IN TRIBAL COURT
Hello, my name is Madalyn Volz. I am 14 years old
and I’m a freshman at McMinnville High School. I
am on the junior varsity coed cheerleading squad. In
the spring I will be joining the rugby team. When I
get older I would like to become a registered nurse.
Tribal Court is now issuing marriage licenses and is able
to perform marriage ceremonies for a filing fee of $40.
For questions regarding scheduling, contact the Tribal
Court at 503-879-2303.
Madalyn Volz
Isabelle Grout
Hello, I am Isabelle Grout. I am 15 years old
and I’m a sophomore at Willamina High School. I
have been honored to serve my Tribe on the CTGR
Royalty Court since 2009 and I am currently the
Senior Miss Grand Ronde for 2018-19. Serving
on Royalty has provided me with some amazing
opportunities and adventures. My favorite has to
be traveling to New York City and participating
in a ceremony with the meteorite Tomanowos
on display at the American Museum of Natural
History. I am involved with our Canoe Family
and have participated in journey. It is hard work,
but it felt so good to work as a team, sharing our
Isabelle Grout
songs with other Tribes and meeting some great
new friends. I can’t wait for next year.
At school I participate in the SMILE program. SMILE stands for Science,
Math and Investigative Learning Experiences and is a precollege program
put on by Oregon State University. I am on the cheerleading squad and
involved in Club Med and Student Council.
I am so honored to be involved in the Youth Council to further my lead-
ership skills and to be a voice for the youth in our Tribe.
I would like to thank the Tribe for continuing to offer these great expe-
riences and opportunities and let you all know how lucky I feel to repre-
sent you and my family in this capacity. Thank you for all your continued
support and love.
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