4
AUGUST 15, 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
limiting our geographic service area to Sheridan to Otis on Highway
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 box-
es 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. 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.
Smoke Signals
yesteryears
a look
back...
2015 – Grand Ronde Tribal artisans joined other artists from
throughout Oregon who were being featured as part of the Ikanum
art exhibit at the Chehalem Cultural Center in Newberg. Ikanum
featured contemporary artwork from the Columbia River and Willa-
mette Valley. The art form is of traditional stories that were often told
through markings on a wall, the pattern in a weave, shadows cast in
a piece of wood or stone, and the deliberate forms in nature. Featured
artists included Grand Ronde Tribal members Greg Archuleta, Con-
nie Graves, Jon A. George, David Harrelson, Brian Krehbiel, Bobby
Mercier, Jordan Mercier and Travis Stewart.
2010 – The Confederated
Tribes of Grand Ronde hosted
an event in honor of Sue Shaf-
fer, a former chairwoman of the
Cow Creek Band of Umpqua
Tribe of Indians, for her years
of service to Indian County,
both in Oregon and nation-
ally. The event was emceed
by Tribal Council Secretary
File photo
Kathleen Tom and attended by 2010
Tribal Council members Wink
Soderberg, Steve Bobb Sr., June Sell-Sherer, Valorie Sheker and
Chairwoman Cheryle A. Kennedy. “We are a witness of greatness,”
Kennedy said, adding that Tribal sovereignty had been a goal of
Shaffer’s for many years.
2005 – More than 70 canoes from Tribes as far north as St. Paul,
Alaska, and as far south as Grand Ronde participated in the 2005
“healing and unity” Canoe Journey. The 200-mile “Paddle to Elwha,”
journey began at the Squaxin Island Tribe in Shelton, Wash., and
ended in Port Angeles, Wash. The trip took 12 days. “This event
helps strengthen unity between the old Tribes,” Tribal member and
Language Specialist Bobby Mercier said. “Just getting the traditional
feeling back was a big thing for us.”
2000 – The Tribal Elders housing site was dedicated, bringing to
fruition an idea that had been in the works since Restoration to build
affordable housing for Elders. Tribal leaders were seeking to build
a community within a community, a place where Elders would be
safe, comfortable and close to each other. “During Restoration, Elders
would call and a lot of them wanted to come back, but we didn’t have
a place for them to live,” Tribal Chair Kathryn Harrison said. “Now,
today when they call and want to come home, we say, ‘Yeah, come
on, we got a place.’ ”
1995 – Spirit Mountain Casino’s Job Fair attracted more than 1,000
applicants who had the opportunity to fill out job applications and
have on-the-spot interviews. The casino planned to hire 850 people
for full- and part-time work in 59 different job categories. Job seekers
hailed primarily from the West Valley communities near the casino.
Yesteryears is a look back at Tribal history in five-year in-
crements through the pages of Smoke Signals.
• Editorial Board meets monthly. The next meeting will be held at 10 a.m. 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.
• 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.
cultural
education
Chair: Debi Anderson.
• Fish & Wildlife Committee meets at 5:30 p.m. the second Tuesday of the month at
the 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.
A re you missing out on what Cultural
Education has to offer? Follow us on Facebook
to get detailed class information, photos from
events, and updates.
• Housing Grievance Board meets at 3 p.m. the third Thursday of the month in the
Housing Department conference room. Chair: Simone Auger.
Plus, check out the tribal calendar for a quick
glance of upcoming events and classes.
• 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
Open to Tribal and Community members.
Join us!
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 been
suspended during the Tribe’s reaction to the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic.)
Search Facebook for Grand Ronde Cultrual Education
Tribal Calendar // www.grandronde.org/tribal-calendar