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may 1, 2020
Tribal Council
OKs $400 virus
relief payments
By Dean Rhodes
Smoke Signals editor
D
uring a special meeting held Thursday,
April 23, Tribal Council approved a $1.8
million supplemental budget that will
fund $400 COVID-19 coronavirus relief pay-
ments to all adult Tribal members.
Tribal Council initially approved the program
during its April 1 meeting, but details about how
it would function still needed to be worked out.
During a Facebook Live event held Wednes-
day, April 22, it was announced that all Tribal
members 18 and older will receive one-time
payments of $400 to help with the financial toll
the coronavirus pandemic is taking on individual
Tribal members and their families.
Tribal members were encouraged to update
their contact information with the Member
Services Department by sending an e-mail to
memberservices@grandronde.org.
Checks were mailed and direct deposits were
made on Wednesday, April 29, Finance Officer
Chris Leno said. He added that the payments
are tax-free since they are considered general
welfare payments.
The payments were made to approximately
4,500 Tribal members.
During the same Facebook Live event, Leno
and Tribal Council Chairwoman Cheryle A.
Kennedy said the likelihood of a June per capita
distribution is miniscule since Spirit Mountain
Casino closed in mid-March and any extra
revenue made before then was almost non-exis-
tent. No firm date has been set for the casino’s
re-opening. n
Record-setting
service
Photo by Timothy J. Gonzalez
Chairwoman Cheryle A. Kennedy discusses her record-setting service on Tribal Council at her
Governance Center office on Tuesday, April 21.
Kennedy becomes longest tenured Tribal Council member
By Dean Rhodes
Smoke Signals editor
S
ometime in April, while she was leading
the Grand Ronde Tribe as it navigat-
ed its unprecedented response to the
COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic that in-
cluded closing Spirit Mountain Casino, Tribal
Council Chairwoman Cheryle A. Kennedy
unceremoniously became the longest-serving
post-Restoration Tribal Council member.
Kennedy, who also turned 72 in early April,
served on an early post-Restoration Tribal
Council from May 1985 through September
1986 – one year and four months. Add that
time to her consecutive years of service start-
ing in September 2000 and Kennedy has sur-
passed former Tribal Council member Reyn
Leno, who served 21 consecutive years from
1996 through 2017.
Kennedy has received more than 3,800
votes during her eight runs for Tribal Coun-
cil and holds the record for most votes ever
received in an election – 712 in 2018. She
has been the No. 1 recipient of votes five of
the last seven times she has run for Tribal
Council and has lost only one recent election,
finishing fourth in 1999.
Her service even pre-dates Restoration,
having been appointed to serve one year in
1979 on an honorary Tribal Council.
Kennedy also has been elected by her fel-
See SERVICE
continued on pages 8-9
Schools considering options to celebrate seniors
Iyana Holmes on the first day of the
2019 Grand Ronde Contest Powwow
when she was named as 2019-20
Miss Grand Ronde at uyxat Powwow
Grounds on Friday, Aug. 16. Holmes
is one of many Tribal member
seniors who will not to get to cross
the stage and accept her high
school diploma due to the COVID-19
coronavirus pandemic.
Photo by Timothy J. Gonzalez
By Danielle Frost
Smoke Signals staff writer
F
or high school seniors, April,
May and June are typically
filled with fun events like
breakfasts, proms, celebrations and
graduations.
With the COVID-19 coronavirus
pandemic resulting in mandatory
school closures statewide for the
remainder of the year, educators
and families are grappling with
how to honor graduating seniors
and also ensure they have the tools
needed to successfully complete
high school.
Grand Ronde Tribal Youth Ed-
ucation Manager Tim Barry has
three staff members connecting
with seniors on a regular basis.
“We launched a ‘Connect With
All Kids’ project these past couple
of days through personal phone
See SENIORS
continued on page 12