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AUGUST 1, 2020
Food Bank providing
boxes on Fridays in August
The Grand Ronde Food Bank – iskam mfkhmfk haws – is operated
by Marion-Polk Food Share, which has been leading the fight to end
hunger since 1987 because no one should be hungry.
Recipients of SNAP, TANF, SSI or LIHEAP assistance automatically
qualify for assistance at the Grand Ronde Food Bank, 9675 Grand Ronde
Road. No one will be turned away in need of a food box.
“We believe that everyone deserves to have enough to eat,” Food Bank
Coordinator Francene Ambrose says. “You are welcome to get a food box
at each of our regular weekly distributions. No one will be turned away
in need of a food box.”
In reaction to the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, the Food Bank
will be holding August food distributions from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Fridays.
“We are asking clients to not come for a food box if they are having
any symptoms or concerned about their health,” Ambrose said. “We are
going to limit our geographic service area to Sheridan to Otis on High-
way 18 and Sheridan to Hebo on Highway 22. We are asking clients and
volunteers to wash their hands immediately upon entry to the building.
Our lobby is closed until further notice.
“Food box distribution is happening outside while maintaining a safe
distance between clients. We are sanitizing and keeping the food quar-
antined for three days before distribution. Pre-made boxes are available
on distribution days, limited to two days of food for two adults. Clients
within our geographic service area are still welcome to visit us weekly.”
People must check in 15 minutes before closing to receive a food box.
If you need immediate assistance, call 211 or visit 211info.org.
Those who are unable to pick up a food box can fill out an authorized
representative form and that designated person can pick up a food box
on your behalf. The authorization is good for one year.
The Food Bank is continuing to disburse Farmers to Families food
boxes from 2:30 to 5:30 p.m. Tuesdays at various locations and has
started Farm Share Rx program with 35 farm shares being distributed
from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Wednesdays at the food bank. It is a first-come,
first-served distribution until the shares are depleted.
The Food Bank continues to seek volunteers to help with repacking
food, putting food on the shelves, handing out food boxes, end-of-month
inventory and picking up food donations at area stores.
Call to ensure someone is available to assist. People also can sign up
for a monthly e-mail for the Food Bank calendar and events, as well as
follow the Food Bank on Facebook.
The Food Bank is an equal opportunity provider.
Call Ambrose at 503-879-3663 or contact her at fambrose@marion-
polkfoodshare.org for more information or to volunteer.
Committee & Special Event
Board meeting days and times
Below is the most current information on the meeting days and times for Tribal Committees
and Special Event Boards:
• Ceremonial Hunting Board meets as needed. Chair: Marline Groshong.
• Culture Committee meets at 5:30 p.m. the second Tuesday of the month at the Grand
Ronde Food Bank/iskam mfkhmfk haws, 9675 Grand Ronde Road. Chair: Francene
Ambrose.
• Editorial Board meets monthly. The next meeting will be held Friday, Aug. 28, using the Zoom
conferencing program. Chair: Siobhan Taylor. Contact: Editorial.Board@grandronde.org.
• Education Committee meets at 5:30 p.m. on the first Tuesday of the month in the Adult
Education building. Chair: Tammy Cook.
Smoke Signals
yesteryears
a look
back...
2015 – Archeology students
from the University of Wash-
ington in Seattle participated
in an archeological dig at a
site on Grand Ronde Road. The
Tribe’s Historic Preservation
Office, in collaboration with
the university’s Department of
Anthropology, hosted a summer
archeology “field school” on the
Tribal homelands for students. 2015
File photo
The course, “Field Methods
in Indigenous Archeology,” taught students how to document and
preserve Tribal cultural resources by working with Tribal staff and
students. “There is a need for additional information about the time
period from the settlement of the Grand Ronde Indian Reservation up
until Termination,” Tribal Historic Preservation Program Manager
David Harrelson said. “This is an era of history where we don’t have
living people to tell us about those days and so the material evidence
by archeology can help with that.”
2010 – The Grand Ronde Canoe Family completed the Paddle to
Makah in Neah Bay, Wash. More than 80 canoes participated in the
journey. Tribal member and Grand Ronde Canoe Family skipper Bob-
by Mercier introduced the family during the Landing Day ceremony.
Other participants included Social Services Manager David Fullerton,
Tribal members Brian Krehbiel, Kailiyah Krehbiel, Shannon Stanton,
Kalene Contreras and Christina Lara, and Elder Henry Petite.
2005 – A group from the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde visited
New York City and the American Museum of Natural History to see
Tomanowos, a 15.5-ton meteorite that holds spiritual and cultural
significance to the Tribe. “It holds a lot of power,” Tribal member
and Language Specialist Bobby Mercier said. “Who knows how many
generations before us have touched it in the same spots that we have.”
Other members of the Grand Ronde delegation included Elder and
past Tribal Council Chairwoman Kathryn Harrison, Elders Pat Allen,
Betty Lambert and Patsy Pullin, and Tribal members Hope Lafferty,
Ashley Bedortha, Denise Harvey, Alicia Selwyn and Tribal Council
member Angie Blackwell.
2000 – Grand Ronde’s Polk County Sheriff’s Office deputies contin-
gent grew to six. Sgt. Jeff VanLaanen and Deputy Allister Bunch were
the latest additions to the Grand Ronde community. VanLaanen had
worked in the area before and recently returned as a supervisor. Bunch
was a former Los Angeles Police Department officer and had moved to
Polk County after living in Southern California for many years.
1995 – A historical marker was unveiled in Grand Ronde, marking
the 97th marker to be erected for Oregon’s Historical Marker Program.
The marker, located one-fourth of a mile east of Grand Ronde Road,
depicted Tribal photos and a summary of the history of the Grand
Ronde Tribe and its people. Tribal Council and staff members had
been working on the marker project for several years. The process
included meeting about location, text and design of the marker. At
the dedication ceremony, Tribal Elder Ila Dowd delivered “The Lord’s
Prayer” in Chinuk Wawa.
Yesteryears is a look back at Tribal history in five-year in-
crements through the pages of Smoke Signals.
• Elders Committee meets at 10 a.m. the third Wednesday of the month in the Elders
Activity Center. Chair: Penny DeLoe.
• Enrollment Committee meets quarterly in Room 204 of the Governance Center. Chair:
Debi Anderson.
• Fish & Wildlife Committee meets at 5:30 p.m. the second Tuesday of the month at the
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED
Natural Resources building off Hebo Road. Chair: Bryan Langley.
• Health Committee meets at 10 a.m. the second Tuesday of the month in the Molalla
Room of the Health & Wellness Center. Chair: Bernadine Shriver.
• Housing Grievance Board meets at 3 p.m. the third Thursday of the month in the Housing
Department conference room. Chair: Simone Auger.
• Powwow Special Event Board meets monthly at noon at the Community Center. Dates
vary. Contact Dana Ainam at 503-879-2037. Chair: Dana Ainam.
• TERO Commission meets at 10 a.m. the first Monday of the month in the Employment
Services building. Chair: Russell Wilkinson.
• Timber Committee meets at 5 p.m. the second Thursday of the month at the Natural
Resources building off Hebo Road. Interim Chair: Jon R. George.
• Veterans Special Event Board meets at 5:30 p.m. the first Tuesday of the month in the
old Elders Craft House. Chair: Rich VanAtta.
To update information on this list, contact Publications Coordinator Dean Rhodes
at 503-879-1463 or dean.rhodes@grandronde.org.
(Editor’s note: All committee and special event board in-person meetings have
Sheridan, SW Polk and West Valley Fire Districts
are recruiting volunteers for fire response,
emergency medical response, and support functions.
Please see our websites for volunteer applications
and instructions.
been suspended during the Tribe’s
reaction to the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic.)
sheridanfd.org – swpolkfd.org – westvalleyfd.org
