2
JULY 15, 2020
Smoke Signals
General Council meeting
11 a.m. Sunday, Sept. 13
Tentatively: Tribal Community Center
NOTICE — Monthly Tribal Council Wednesday Meetings
DATE
TIME
Wednesday, July 22.............................................................................4 p.m.
Wednesday, Aug. 5.............................................................................10 a.m.
sNok signflz
PUBLICATIONS OFFICE
9615 Grand Ronde Road, Grand Ronde, OR 97347
1-800-422-0232, FAX: 503-879-2173
Website: www.smokesignals.org
E-mail: news@grandronde.org
Editorial.Board@grandronde.org
Please note that these times and dates are subject to change if needed.
Twitter: CTGRSmokeSignal
www.facebook.com/SmokeSignalsCTGR/
Letter s
www.youtube.com/channel/UCMDXdTzfGjzJ_j3NPpCrtcw
Dear Smoke Signals:
We would like to start by saying “thank you” for letting us address the
Tribal Council and the Tribal membership in this manner.
We appreciate our ancestors who were true warriors who fought to keep
our Tribe together. As most of you know, every day is a battle being Native
American Indian and fortunately none of us have had to endure the hard-
ships, pain and suffering that our ancestors had to keep our Tribe united.
For various reasons, our mother was unable to enroll in the Tribe be-
fore her passing. She was 1/4th Grand Ronde. My siblings and I are 1/8th
Grand Ronde.
Our grandmother, Mary Lachance Spohn, was born on the Reservation
along with her siblings as well as her mother and father. Our grandmother
and great-grandfather are on the Restoration Roll of the CTGR. Our
great-grandmother was on various Grand Ronde rolls before Termination,
but she passed away in 1917.
As with many on the Reservation, they all experienced tremendous hard-
ships, but were able to take comfort in the united family within the Tribe.
Our grandmother, great-grandmother and great-grandfather have since
passed, but unfortunately their family is not united. Their family and many
other families like ours have become divided due to the 1999 enrollment
amendment, which states an applicant must be “born to a parent who was
a member of the Tribe at the time of the applicant's birth.”
We would like to propose the Tribal Council bring this issue up for discus-
sion during a current Tribal Council meeting and put forth as a standalone
survey question and placed on a ballot in this fall's Tribal Council election
so the Tribal membership can vote to remove the current constitutional
membership requirement to be “born to a parent who was a member of
the Tribe at the time of the applicant's birth.”
If such a proposal could be approved this fall and then be placed on a
constitutional amendment ballot it would bring hope to our family and
all the other families within the Tribe in similar situations. Please help
us and others to claim our Native American Indian heritage birthright.
We hope to count on your support and vote in changing the current
membership requirement to be “born to a parent who was a member of
the Tribe at the time of the applicant's birth.”
Melissa DeVoss Bayles
Chris DeVoss
Jill DeVoss Burkhalter
DEAN RHODES
PUBLICATIONS
COORDINATOR
503-879-1463
DANIELLE
FROST
TIMOTHY J.
GONZALEZ
STAFF WRITER
503-879-4663
PHOTOJOURNALIST
503-879-1961
dean.rhodes@grandronde.org
danielle.frost@grandronde.org
timothy.gonzalez@grandronde.org
SAMUEL F.
BRIGGS III
JUSTIN
PHILLIPS
KAMIAH
KOCH
GRAPHIC DESIGN
SPECIALIST
503-879-1416
PAGE
DESIGNER
503-879-2190
SOCIAL MEDIA/
DIGITAL JOURNALIST
503-879-1461
samuel.briggs@grandronde.org
justin.phillips@grandronde.org
kamiah.koch@grandronde.org
DEADLINE DATE
ISSUE DATE
monday, july 20 ...................aug. 1, 2020
wednesday, aug. 5 ............aug. 15, 2020
friday, aug. 21 ......................sept. 1, 2020
tuesday, sept. 8 ...................sept. 15, 2020
Editorial Policy
smok signflz , a publication of the Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde Communi-
ty of Oregon, is published twice a month. No portion of this publication may be reprinted
without permission.
Our editorial policy is intended to encourage input from Tribal members and readers
about stories printed in the Tribal newspaper. However, all letters received must be
signed by the author, an address must be given and a phone number or e-mail address
must be included for verification purposes. Full addresses and phone numbers will not
be published unless requested. Letters must be 400 words or less.
smok signflz reserves the right to edit letters and to refuse letters that are determined
to contain libelous statements or personal attacks on individuals, staff, Tribal administration
or Tribal Council. Not all letters are guaranteed publication upon submission. Letters to the
editor are the opinions and views of the writer. Published letters do not necessarily reflect
the opinions of smok signflz .
Members of:
Native American Journalists Association
Oregon Newspaper Publishers Association
2020
Tribal Council
tribalcouncil@grandronde.org
Cheryle A. Kennedy
Tribal Council Chairwoman
— ext. 2352
cheryle.kennedy@grandronde.org
Chris Mercier
Tribal Council Vice Chair
— ext. 1444
chris.mercier@grandronde.org
Jon A. George
Tribal Council Secretary
— ext. 2355
Ad by Samuel Briggs III
Jack Giffen Jr.
— ext. 2300
jack.giffen@grandronde.org
Denise Harvey
— ext. 2353
denise.harvey@grandronde.org
Michael Langley
— ext. 1777
michael.langley@grandronde.org
Lisa Leno
— ext. 1770
jon.george@grandronde.org
lisaleno@grandronde.org
Kathleen George
Steve Bobb Sr.
— ext. 2305
— ext. 4555
kathleen.george@grandronde.org
steve.bobb@grandronde.org