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About Smoke signals. (Grand Ronde, Or.) 19??-current | View Entire Issue (May 1, 2021)
4 MAY 1, 2021 Smoke Signals Food Bank news yesteryears 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 automat- ically 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 continuing COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, the Food Bank will hold May food box distributions on Fridays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. “We are asking clients to not come for a food box if they are hav- ing 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 quarantined 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 the 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@mari- onpolkfoodshare.org for more information or to volunteer. Committee & Special Event Board meeting days and times • 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 is still to be determined at press time. 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. 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: Harold Lyon. a look back... 2016 – The Oregon Fish & Wildlife Commission voted to allow ceremonial fishing by members of the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde at Wil- lamette Falls, restoring rights lost by the Tribe in the 1980s when it was seeking support 2016 File photo for its Reservation Plan. The new rule allowed for the harvest of hatchery spring Chinook salmon and/or hatchery summer steelhead for ceremonial purposes with a limit of no more than 15 fish per year taken by Tribal members. 2011 – A two-day small business conference for Native Ameri- can entrepreneurs called “Trading at the River” was held at Spirit Mountain Casino. Topics included how to keep Tribal dollars on the Reservation through small, Native-owned businesses, and how to be a catalyst for change in the community by providing jobs for Native people. The conference was sponsored by the Oregon Native American Business and Entrepreneurial Network, which was formed in 1991 as a nonprofit, public benefit corporation by four Tribes, including the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde. 2006 – Willamette University repatriated a 2.2-pound fragment of the meteorite Tomanowos after finding it in a supply closet. “I am relieved to return it,” Willamette Associate Professor of Anthropolo- gy Rebecca Dobkins said. For Tribal members, having a piece of the meteorite returned was a bright moment in a troubling episode. “This piece is home,” Tribal Council Chairwoman Cheryle A. Kennedy said. “But it’s not a good situation because there has been so much cutting on the meteorite. To me, it’s like carving up a body.” 2001 – Several representatives from New York’s American Museum of Natural History visited Grand Ronde. Tribal Council met with the representatives to confirm details for the Tribe’s first visit with the meteorite Tomanowos. They agreed the museum would be closed for all other visitors during the visit and blessings from Tribal members. Tribal Education Department representatives also met with the mu- seum delegation. “What we talked about was the opportunity for local Tribal member students to participate in an internship at the museum in New York,” Tribal Education Manager Marion Mercier said. 1996 – Construction information for the new Health & Wellness Center was discussed at a General Council meeting when architect Frank Whalen gave an update on the progress of the new clinic. He expected groundbreaking to begin in August and construction taking approximately one year for the 29,000-square-foot, two-story building budgeted at approximately $3.5 million. Whalen added that future expansion of the building would be easy as all four wings could be expanded depending on the growth in each department. 1991 – Tribal youth Joe Mercier won the state freestyle wrestling championship in the 9- and 10-year-old division. His regular season record stood at 33-1. By winning the state championship, Mercier qualified for the national tournament in Boise, Idaho. 1986 – Tribal Council Chair Mark Mercier updated the membership about the Tribe’s Reservation Plan. “Last month, the BIA requested a draft legislation copy for the BIA in the central office in Washington, D.C., for their review,” he said. Tribal Council members also met with the local community, timber and lumber businesses and local govern- ment officials. “I cannot stress enough the importance of asking you, the membership, to write (letters) of support to your congressional delegation, (to) let your voice and feelings be heard,” Mercier said. Yesteryears is a look back at Tribal history in five-year in- crements through the pages of Smoke Signals. • 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 4 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 Tuesday 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 been suspended during the Tribe’s reaction to the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic.) Tribe schedules ceremonial fishing at Willamette Falls OREGON CITY – The Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde will resume ceremonial fishing at Willamette Falls on Tuesdays and Thursdays in May, said Tribal Fish & Wildlife Program Manager Kelly Dirksen. The first excursion will occur on Tuesday, May 4. Ceremonial fishing at the falls was canceled in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Oregon Department of State Lands granted approval to the Grand Ronde Tribe on Aug. 31, 2018, to build a platform at Willamette Falls on which to harvest its annual state-approved take of 15 Chinook salmon and/or hatchery summer steelhead for ceremonial purposes. The Tribe blessed the site on Sept. 4, 2018, and constructed a removable fishing platform at Willamette Falls in October 2018. The first fish netted at Willamette Falls by Tribal ceremonial fishermen occurred in May 2019. Fishing from the platform can continue through the end of July or until the Tribe catches its allotment of 15.
