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About Smoke signals. (Grand Ronde, Or.) 19??-current | View Entire Issue (May 15, 2023)
sNok signflz MAY 15, 2023 Tribal Council establishes enterprise funds for fire department, TERO By Danielle Harrison Smoke Signals assistant editor/staff writer Tribal Council established enter- prise funds for two Tribal depart- ments during its Wednesday, May 3, meeting. Enterprise funds allow reve- nue-generating programs within the Tribe to retain those funds and reinvest them into their depart- ments, Interim General Manager and Finance Ofocer Chris Leno said. In 2022, the Tribal Employment Rights Ofoce and the Tribal Fire Station generated $1.31 million and $75,521 in various fees, re- spectively. During a Legislative Action Com- mittee meeting on Tuesday, April 25, Tribal Council Secretary Mi- chael Langley said that TERO fees were never meant to create revenue for the Tribe and that establishing enterprise funds allows the pro- gram to have steady funding levels. <The funds generated allow the department to keep consistent in its training dollars for our members,= Langley said. <I am really happy about this change.= TERO Director Harris Reibach thanked council members during the same meeting. <Establishment of this fund will help ensure we can continue to fund ourselves and ensure sovereignty in TERO,= he said. In other action, Tribal Council: " Approved applying for a $2.5 million development and imple- mentation grant from the Admin- istration for Children & Families for a Tribal Maternal, Infant and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program; " Approved three credit cards for the Youth Education Department with $2,500 credit limits on each; " Approved applying for a ove-year, $1.25 million continuation grant from the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration that will fund the Tribe9s Native Connections program; " And approved re-appointing Joann Mercier and Michael Mer- cier and appointing Lori Sterling to the Election Board with terms expiring on March 31, 2025. Two approved authorizations to proceed also were included in the May 3 Tribal Council packet. One approved the Natural Resources Department building and main- taining a small trail near the tiny shelter village adjacent to the com- munity garden site. The other OK9d applying for a $31,380.30 Wildore Season Stafong grant that will pay for personnel costs for additional seasonal firefighters during the high-risk ore season. To watch the entire meeting, visit the Tribal government9s website at www.grandronde.org and click on the Government tab and then Videos. þ 2023 MARCELLUS NORWEST MEMORIAL VETERANS POWWOW LOGO CONTEST The Veterans Special Event Board is seeking submissions for the 2023 Veterans Powwow logo contest. • $200 Cash Prize • Due by May 31, 2023 Submit to lisa.schmid@grandronde.org or drop off at the front desk of the governance building. For more information please call 503-879-1446. Print ready files preferred but not required. Ad by Samuel Briggs III 5 Tribe rehires former general manager David Fullerton in new position By Dean Rhodes Smoke Signals editor Former General Manager Da- vid Fullerton, who was relieved of his duties on Jan. 13, did not stay unemployed for long. Less than four months later, Fullerton has been hired as the new Community Transitions Program manager for the Health & Wellness Department, accord- ing to an all-employee e-mail distributed on Tuesday, May 9. Fullerton9s new duties will be ensuring the community tran- sition properties are developed and ready for occupancy. He also is accountable for establishing program policies and procedures for the transitional housing sites supported by Health & Wellness. No ofocial reason for Fuller- ton9s termination as general manager was given since per- sonnel matters are considered conodential. The general manager, who is a direct report to the nine-member Tribal Council, exercises direct authority over most Tribal de- partments in carrying out day- to-day operations of the Tribal government. Tribal Council Chairwoman Cheryle A. Kennedy said during the Jan. 25 Tribal Council meet- ing that the decision to dismiss Fullerton was not unanimous. Following his termination as general manager, Fullerton re- ceived support from community members who signed a petition and spoke at Tribal Council meetings. An online petition calling for Tribal Council to reconsider Ful- lerton9s <without cause= termi- nation was posted at ipetitions. com and more than 330 people e-signed it. Former Tribal Coun- cil member Tonya Gleason-She- pek presented the petition to Tribal Council during its Jan. 25 meeting. Fullerton became interim gen- eral manager in 2015 and ofo- cially became general man- ager in Janu- ary 2016. During his tenure as gen- eral manag- er, Fullerton guided the David Fullerton Tribe through the COVID-19 pandemic, which broke in March 2020. An emer- gency declaration approved by Tribal Council put him in charge of the Tribe9s response to the pandemic. The emergency dec- laration is still in effect. Fullerton started working for the Grand Ronde Tribe in June 2001 as an Indian Child Wel- fare caseworker. He managed the Social Services Department from December 2001 through late August 2015 when he was tapped to serve as interim gen- eral manager. Before joining the Grand Ronde Tribe, Fullerton was the Social Services director for the Quinault Indian Nation in Wash- ington state. He also worked as a probation ofocer for the Lake County Youth Court in Poulson, Mont., and as a sociology in- structor for Stone Child Tribal College on the Rocky Boy Indian Reservation in Montana. Fullerton earned a bachelor9s degree in sociology from the Uni- versity of Montana in Missoula, where he minored in both Native American studies and criminolo- gy. He also has a master9s in busi- ness administration from Western Governors University, an online college located in Millcreek, Utah. He graduated from Jesuit High School in Portland, Ore. Finance Officer Chris Leno has assumed the general man- ager duties until a new person is hired. He has previously served in the general manager position and stated he does not want to return to the position perma- nently. þ Community Health Program Services Medical Transport Services Medical transportation services are available to Tribal members within the six-county service area when an alternate means of transportation is not available. Advance notice required. Please call 503-879-2078 to schedule a reservation.