S moke S ignals
JANUARY 1, 2019
Helping Hands awards
Spirit Mountain Community Fund annually selects two individuals
to receive the Ye? lan Lima (Helping Hand) awards: One non-man-
agement staff member and one volunteer who are recognized for their
outstanding service within the nonprofit community.
Photos by Timothy J. Gonzalez
For 2018, Jim Landkamer received the Helping Hand Volunteer Award
from Community Fund Executive Director Mychal Cherry on Monday,
Dec. 17, in Corvallis. Landkamer has been volunteering for Dial-A-Bus
for 31 years and has now volunteered for more years than he worked in
his career as an engineer. He started volunteering for Dial-A-Bus in 1987
and completed his third decade of service earlier this year.
Hortensia Mandujano received the Spirit Mountain Community Fund
Helping Hand Award for non-management from Community Fund
Administrative Assistant Jesse Knight on Wednesday, Dec. 19, in
Cornelius. Hortensia began as a participant in the Adelante Mujeres
Adult Education Program. Originally from Michoacán, Mexico, she
immigrated to Oregon at 23. It was difficult when she got to the United
States because of the language barrier. Eventually, she decided that she
wanted to go back to school, though she knew it would be a financial
sacrifice. She took a leap of faith and enrolled. She did homework
alongside her children in the evenings, and they helped her with her
English. Soon, Hortensia passed her GED exams. Some years later, after
some convincing from a friend, she applied for an opening in the Early
Childhood Education Program and was offered a position. “I didn’t have
any experience. I had never been in a classroom, and they gave me that
opportunity to be a teacher. So, it was like, if they believe in me, why
don’t I believe in myself, too. I can do it,” she said. Adelante Mujeres
helped Hortensia get training and her teacher certification.
Are you frustrated with your diabetes control?
Do you have questions about diabetes?
Do you need help managing your diabetes?
If so…
Call the Medical Clinic today at 503-879-2002
To schedule an individual diabetes education appointment
2014 – Jan Looking
Wolf Reibach released
his new album, “Ta-
manawas,” with High
Spirit Records based
in Arizona. The mul-
tiple Native American
Music Award recipi-
ent recorded melodies
that he had stockpiled
during his more than
10-year career, as well
as a few new songs.
This move allowed Rei-
bach to return to the
subdued, organic flute
playing that launched
his career in the early 2014
File photo
2000s. “Because this
was the last record with the label, I really wanted to put my heart
into it,” he said. “My own heart and spirit more than ever, and have
it represent me more personally than the other albums.”
2009 – An arctic blast that moved into the Pacific Northwest the
week before Christmas buried the Grand Ronde area beneath sev-
eral blankets of snow and shut down the Tribal campus for a week.
Several Elders were transported to Spirit Mountain Casino, where
30 rooms were set aside for emergency use. Some residents reported
snow depths of almost three feet in their yards. “It was the worst
snow event I’ve experienced,” Director of Tribal Operations John
Mericer said.
2004 – Grand Ronde Station opened its doors with a dedication
ceremony featuring Tribal leaders, staff and Tribal members. The
station, which employed 35 people, featured a convenience store, gas
and propane service, and a 24-hour car wash.
1999 – A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held during the grand
opening of Spirit Mountain Lodge on Monday, Dec. 21. Community
members and staff dropped by the new hotel to hear Spirit Moun-
tain Board of Directors Chairman Mike Larsen dedicate the facility.
Tribal Council Vice Chair Reyn Leno thanked all of the different
groups of people who made building and opening the lodge possible.
“Spirit Mountain Lodge will add to the success the Tribe has had
here,” Leno said. “We have a very successful gaming operation and
this will make it an even greater attraction.”
1994 – Tribal Council adopted stricter criteria for all individu-
als applying for enrollment. The change was in response to Tribal
membership swelling from 862 to 3,393 members in the 10 years
since Restoration. All members enrolled prior to Jan. 1, 1994, were
not subject to the new regulations. The new eligibility requirements
were that enrollees must be descended from a Grand Ronde Tribal
member, possess at least 1/16th Indian blood of a federally recognized
Tribe, and must be accepted as a Tribal member by demonstrating
social and economic ties to the Grand Ronde Tribe.
1989 – The Grand Ronde Tribe signed a six-month lease agree-
ment with Southwestern Washington Hospitals Inc. for the former
TurnAround Treatment Center in Keizer. The Tribe planned to use
the facility to operate the American Indian Residential Treatment
Center to provide youth with substance abuse recovery services. The
Tribe decided to set up a youth residential program after developing
an action plan on alcohol and substance abuse. The planning process
identified the need for such a program, according to Health Director
Cheryle A. Kennedy.
Yesteryears is a look back at Tribal history in five-year in-
crements through the pages of Smoke Signals.
Adult Members’ Trust and Minors’
Custodial & Rabbi Trust Funds
Investments in the Adult Members’ Trust Fund and the Minors’ Cus-
todial and Rabbi Trust Funds are updated each business day.
If you are a trust participant and/or if you are the parent/guardian
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. n
5