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About Smoke signals. (Grand Ronde, Or.) 19??-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 15, 2019)
S moke S ignals JANUARY 15, 2019 5 Tribal Council OKs government- to-government MOU with Salem By Dean Rhodes Smoke Signals editor Chalk up the state’s capital city as the latest governmental entity to agree to a government-to-govern- ment memorandum of understand- ing with the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde. At its Wednesday, Jan. 9, meet- ing, Tribal Council OK’d the mem- orandum with the city of Salem. Salem joins myriad other govern- mental entities that have recently signed MOUs with the Tribe, includ- ing the city of Portland, University of Oregon, Oregon Department of Transportation, Willamette, Mount Hood and Siuslaw national forests, and Willamina and Sheridan school districts, among many others. The agreement is designed to “strengthen the government-to-gov- ernment relationship and facilitate communication and cooperation on matters of mutual interest.” Salem is part of the area ceded during the 1855 Willamette Val- ley Treaty by several bands of the Kalapuya and other Willamette Valley Tribes. The city also has proclaimed Jan. 22 as Willamette Valley Treaty Commemoration Day. In other action, Tribal Council: • Accepted a $249,850 Meyer Me- morial Trust grant for the Port- land Harbor cleanup effort. The funds will be used by the Tribe to compile information on the loss of natural resources that are culturally relevant as a result of the harbor’s environmental con- tamination; • Approved two grant applications to the Bureau of Indian Affairs. The first application is not to ex- ceed $250,000 to continue achiev- ing habitat restoration goals at Rattlesnake Butte northwest of Junction City in Lane County and the second application is not to exceed $120,000 and would sup- port fishery monitoring for winter steelhead and Coho salmon on Tribal lands. During the Tuesday, Jan. 8, Legislative Action Com- mittee meeting, Fish & Wildlife Program Manager Kelly Dirksen reported that 11 percent – 299 – of Coho salmon that returned to the Willamette Basin in 2018 were counted on Reservation water- ways, such as Agency Creek; • And approved the enrollment of three infants and 11 non-infants into the Tribe because they meet the requirements outlined in the Enrollment Ordinance and Tribal Constitution. The meeting opened with former Yamhill County Commissioner Stan Primozich thanking the Tribe for its work within the communi- ty during his term as an elected official. Tribal Council member Denise Harvey had previously pre- sented Primozich, who also served many years on the McMinnville School District Board of Directors, with a Tribal Pendleton blanket to thank him for his years of public service. The entire meeting can be viewed by visiting the Tribal website at www.grandronde.org and clicking on the News tab and then Video. 2014 – The U.S. House of Representatives passed an amendment to the 1988 Grand Ronde Reservation Act that would streamline how the Tribe takes land into trust. Tribal Council Chairman Reyn Leno testified before the House Subcommittee on Indian and Alaska Native Affairs in support of the amendment in May 2013 and during the previous Congress in July 2012. The legislation was introduced by Oregon Rep. Kurt Schrader and received bipartisan support from the Oregon congressional delegation. 2009 – Tribal Elder Marcellus “Marce” Norwest, 79, was hon- ored by the Grand Ronde and local veter- ans’ communities. The ceremony attracted more than 100 people and had been in the works for two months, according to Mark Weippert, commander for AMVETS Post 2000 File photo in Willamina, who or- 2009 ganized the event. “We wanted to pay tribute to him while we still can,” Weippert said. After a long life of service to the Tribe, community and nation in the Korean War, Norwest was fighting pancreatic cancer. “I want to fight it and fight it to the end,” he said. “Life is short, but if you keep at it, you can accomplish a lot in a short time.” 2004 – Almost $10,000 had been raised for Tribal member Aman- da Jones Schulte. The 19-year-old was in need of a heart and lung transplant. At the time, her physical condition remained “stable,” except in cold weather. A board of directors was set up to adminis- ter the fund, and one provision noted that should Schulte not use the money, it would be given to another young person who needed a transplant. 1999 – Alaska Native Ted Mala was featured after being named the Tribe’s new executive officer. Mala, who spent his career working with Native Americans, was the first in his family to receive a college education, which included a master’s degree from Harvard Univer- sity. Before accepting a position with the Grand Ronde Tribe, Mala worked as a Tribal planner, served as Alaska secretary of health, a professor of health sciences and was a member of the Association of American Indian Physicians. 1994 – The Tree of Giving, sponsored by the Tribe’s Social Services Department and coordinated by Mychal Childers and April Howren, was deemed a success in its second year. More than 60 Tribal staff and community members participated so that children in need would receive Christmas gifts. 1989 – Tribal Council began reviewing proposals for establishing a burial insurance policy for Tribal members. In addition to looking at proposals from insurance companies, Tribal Council was consid- ering the feasibility of self-insurance. The policy benefit had not been determined, but would be paid for with Tribal timber revenues. Tribal Council also was formulating guidelines for burial standards at the Tribal cemetery. Yesteryears is a look back at Tribal history in five-year in- crements through the pages of Smoke Signals. Gathering of Grand Ronde Tilixam January 23, 2019 Gymnasium 10:00am to 3:00pm A follow up gathering from the April 2018 Gathering of Grand Ronde Tillixam. A <me to reflect, check-‐in with each other and discuss collec<ve healing opportuni<es for the community in the new year! Door Prizes Lunch Provided Ad created by George Valdez Sponsored by the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde Social Services Department and facilita<on provided by the Na<ve Wellness Ins<tute.
