April 2021 CUJ

MILESTONE REACHED: CTUIR member Rob Quaempts, Wenaha celebrate 10 years. He and Dave Fishel reflect on a decade in business.

BASKETBALL BROTHERS: CTUIR members Trevon and Tru Allen finish professional and collegiate basketball seasons in March.

Story begins on A8

Story begins on 2B

Confederated Umatilla Journal The monthly newspaper of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation ~ Pendleton, Oregon April 2021

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Volume 29, Issue 4

HISTORY MAKER

CTUIR member is the second Native American appointed to the Northwest Power and Conservation Council

By Cary Rosenbaum of the CUJ

MISSION - Appointment to the Northwest Power and Conservation Council is a goal Chuck Sams has had for 26 years.

A 24-year-old Sams was working one of his first jobs after his service in the Navy with the Earth Conservation Corp’s Salmon Corps Program.

His work regularly crossed paths with the Council.

Before long, he began aspiring to join it.

“Over the years working with the Council, I knew that someday I was hoping that somehow I would get a chance to work for them,” Sams, 50, said. “I was told to forge a rela-

tionship with someone who might become governor someday, and that appointment could come through.

“So if you do the right work in your career, some day you hopefully will have a governor who recognizes that.”

Gov. Kate Brown was a young legislator in Oregon when she met Sams, who lived in Portland.

“She represented a district in Portland where I lived,” Sams said.

“She was on the Legislative Commission on Indian Services, so I knew her from my work with the Salmon Corps Program. She was very helpful.”

Brown, however, never knew

Sams appointment on page 10A

Natalie Rodriguez, of Pendleton High School, received her COVID-19 vaccination during a mass vaccination event at Wildhorse Resort & Casino held March 17 in Pendleton. The event encouraged area teens 16 and up to receive their dose, along with followups to nearly 1,000 more area residents.

CUJ Photo/Miranda Vega Rector

Area teens among vaccinated

By Cary Rosenbaum of the CUJ

‘If you do the right work in your career, some day you hopefully will have a governor who recognizes that.’

-Chuck Sams Former CTUIR Interim Executive Director Chuck Sams

MISSION - Teenage students, 16 and up, from four different school districts in Umatilla County came to Wildhorse Resort & Casino March 17 for an opportunity to receive a COVID-19 vaccine -- many for the first time.

“Our children are our future,” CTUIR Board of Trustees Chair Kat Brigham said in a March announcement. “And to that end, if we can help stop any spread of this virus through teenage students, we are happy to help provide some vaccinations.”

“We encourage teens to be smart about their safety inside and outside of school,” said then-CTUIR Incident Commander Chuck Sams. “Stopping the spread in this sector is critical to opening schools and keeping our whole county moving toward a full recovery.”

Including area students and staff were part of a few changes made since the last mass vaccination event, which was a Mass vaccination event on page 3A

CTUIR offering 1,755 more vaccinations

By Cary Rosenbaum of the CUJ

MISSION - Furthering its role in helping vaccinate the greater Pendleton area against COVID-19, the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation announced it will inoculate 1,755 more people in an attempt to bring Umatilla County closer to herd immunity.

A third mass vaccination event in as many months will be held April 12 and 13 at Wildhorse Resort & Casino in another joint effort with Yellowhawk Tribal Health Center and the National Guard. The event

Yellowhawk on page 2A

Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation 46411 Timine Way Pendleton, OR 97801

Presorted Standard U.S. Postage PAID Pendleton, OR Permit #100

Yellowhawk

ABOVE: CTUIR member Tayler Craig checked people in during the mass vaccination event at Wildhorse Resort & Casino on March 17 in Mission. RIGHT: Carlos Orellana, of Franklin High School, was a teen in attendance for the vaccination event.

CUJ Photos/Cary Rosenbaum and Miranda Vega Rector Continued from page 1A

will offer the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine to Blue Mountain Community College staff and students, and all students 16 and over, and employees of school districts throughout Umatilla County. In addition, employees of Pendleton’s restaurants, food trucks and grocery stores are eligible, a March 31 press release stated.

The CTUIR is acquiring the doses from the Indian Health Service, a federal division responsible for providing direct medical and public health services to members of federally-recognized tribes.

“When IHS offered to provide us with additional doses, we jumped at the chance,” said Kat Brigham, Chair of the CTUIR Board of Trustees. “We asked the National Guard if they would once again step up and they didn’t hesitate to say yes. The fastest way to rebuild our economy and stop the fourth wave is to vaccinate more people. We are all in this together.”

The message of unity was carrier further with by Blue Mountain Community College President Connie Green. “(The vaccination opportunity) is such a gift,” she said of the Tribe’s offer. “It helps us to receive vaccinations because it would be difficult to come back on campus. For (the CTUIR) to include us, makes it possible

for all of us to get vaccinated. Some have gotten vaccinated elsewhere.

But by the time we get the second vaccinations in May, we can be ready for summer term in June.

“To be included is part of an extension of how we do good things for each other in our local community.”

BMCC Associated Student Government President Megan Van Pelt, a CTUIR member, stated the vaccination opportunity was “a huge step to get us back into classrooms at BMCC. I hope all of my fellow students will sign up today.”

Previously eligible groups can sign up for the vaccination event, including CTUIR members; CTUIR employees and immediate family members; UIR residents 16 and over and Yellowhawk Tribal Health Center eligible patients.

Students need to schedule an appointment in advance and bring proof of enrollment to their appointment. BMCC students should bring a copy of their term schedule from the CNS portal and high school students should bring their school ID. Appointments can be made by calling the vaccine appointment hotline at: 541-240-8733 or by registering online at https://airtable. com/shrb74wCvIR6fnNJR.

Confederated Umatilla Journal

46411 Timine Way Pendleton, OR 97801 Phone 541-429-7005

April 2021

Fax 541-429-7005 Email cuj@ctuir.org www.ctuir.org

‘To be included (in the vaccination effort) is part of an extension of how we do good things for each other in our local community.’

- Connie Green, Interim BMCC President

Mena Laude and Celestine Crawford proudly posed with their vaccinations cards on March 17.

CUJ Photo/Miranda Vega Rector

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Mass vaccination event Continued from page 1A

joint effort by Yellowhawk Tribal Health Center and Oregon National Guard. The team also decided to boost the vaccination pace from 60 per hour to 90.

The CTUIR was classified as low risk for further transmission, perhaps in part due to the mass vaccination events. But Umatilla County continued to have the highest case numbers in the Region 9 COVID-19 dashboard, totaling 7,867 cases, as of March 30, since testing began in 2020. Region 9 includes Umatilla, Baker, Malheur, Morrow, and Union counties.

Umatilla County numbers included 13,480 vaccinated; among those, a large portion of the 4,346 provided by the CTUIR, as of late March.

Rabb takes on Incident Commander role With Sams’ resignation to join the Northwest Power and Conservation Council, Paul Rabb, who was assigned to be the Tribe’s Interim Executive Director, took over Sams’ role as Incident Commander.

During a March 26 work session, Rabb recommended extending the CTUIR’s Public Health Emergency to May 31.

BOT member Boots Pond questioned the move.

“Was there any consideration about having it 30 days, 45 days?” he said in a work session.

“Not really,” Rabb followed, noting the Tribe had done 90-day increments in the past. “I didn’t think we needed to go out to 90 days. We’ve got school starting up. I felt like, really, Incident Command needs to stay in place until the end of May. “I think once we get to June 1, everything’s going to be shook out. I don’t expect any peaks. But once these kids start mixing up, in their spaghetti bowls. ...

I really want to get through the school year.”

A resolution for the extension was passed during the March 28 BOT meeting, where the vote was 4-11, with General Council Chair Lindsey Watchman voting no.

Rabb noted the Incident Command Team would meet twice a week instead of three times, citing the strength of the group, which had weathered the storm for nearly a year.

Sams, whose last day was March 12, commended the Incident Command Team he led.

“We were very fortunate to have some of the best and brightest working for us, both Indian and non-Indian alike,” he said. “They stepped forward when the emergency called. There was no one who said no. That’s what impressed me the most. Most people were willing to do what they needed to do.”

Michael Beers, the Bingo Manager at Wildhorse Resort & Casino, took a break from duties to receive his second vaccine.

CUJ Photo/Cary Rosenbaum

Aaron Hines, right, regulated traffic, which increased from 60 vaccinations per hour at the last mass vaccination event to 90, he said.

CUJ Photo/Cary Rosenbaum

ABOVE: Rebecca Bearchum and Janine Winn sit and receive their COVID-19 vaccines on March 17 at Wildhorse Resort & Casino. RIGHT: Ida Senator, a beverage server at Wildhorse Resort & Casino, got vaccinated on March 17.

CUJ Photos/Miranda Vega Rector & Cary Rosenbaum

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Confederated Umatilla Journal

April 2021

CUJ News Seventeen found not guilty in alleged 2020 COVID violation

Judge’s ruling hinged on question of whether or not family feast was ‘essential’

By Wil Phinney for the CUJ

MISSION – Seventeen people cited for violating COVID-19 social gathering restrictions during a 2020 Easter day feast were found not guilty March 8 by Associate Tribal Judge Dave Gallaher.

The ruling followed a 90-minute civil hearing on March 4 in Tribal Court on the Umatilla Indian Reservation.

The “stay home” resolution had been issued in March of 2020 by the Board of Trustees (BOT) for the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR). Violation of the resolution carried a potential sentence of a year in jail or a maximum fine of $5,000.

However, the 17 were cited as a civil matter rather than arrested on criminal charges, so jail would not have been ordered, and a fine would be substantially less than $5,000, Tribal Prosecutor Kyle Daley told the Court before any testimony was taken.

Toby Patrick, a CTUIR member, hosted a First Foods celebration on April 26, 2020, with more than two dozen family members at his home on the Umatilla Indian Reservation.

First Foods include water, salmon, deer and elk, roots and berries.

Patrick and his wife, Julia Johnson, appeared in Tribal Court while the others appeared telephonically.

The other defendants included Hailey Sloan, Williams Sigo IV, William Sigo V, Suzie Patrick, Kanisha Perry, Eva Looney, Ella Looney, Janice Jones, Elizabeth Looney, Brian Goatsen, Diane Goatsen, Midnight Brockie, Joshua Spencer, Mason Looney-Britton, and Marcus

Looney.

Judge Gallaher’s ruling hinged on the question of whether Patrick’s family feast was an “essential” event.

The BOT resolution prohibited “non-essential tribal, longhouse, social and recreational gatherings of individuals outside of a home or place of residence (parties, celebrations or other similar gatherings)” regardless of size, “if a distance of at least six feet between individuals cannot be maintained.”

According to the verdict and judgment, Patrick presented evidence that the gathering was a “family religious observance” that was “essential to the spiritual and cultural well-being of the family.”

and that the gathering was backed up by two recent Supreme Court cases.

More than once, Klahn referred to First Foods as first fruits, and asked Patrick if the feast was “similar to a Jewish Passover” or “Jewish bar mitzvah.” He also asked if sacramental wine was served.

But the case was ultimately about Patrick’s own religious beliefs and practices.

Patrick told the Court those gathering did “everything we could under the guidelines, but still be who we are and do what we’ve been taught.” He said the gathering was held “not to offend anybody, not to fight the government, or that we don’t believe in Coronavirus.”

‘In the absence of evidence on a material element of the violation, the Court of left to speculate as to what is meant by ‘essential,’ and ‘essential’ to whom? Such guesswork and speculation may not be the basis of a finding of guilt.’

-Dave Gallaher CTUIR Associate Tribal Judge The Judge’s ruling said the Tribes, represented by Daley, presented no evidence that a family religious observance is a “non-essential gathering.”

“In the absence of evidence on a material element of the violation, the Court is left to speculate as to what is meant by ‘essential’, and ‘essential’ to whom? Such guesswork and speculation may not be the basis of a finding of guilt,” Judge Gallaher wrote.

Attorney Robert Klahn, representing Patrick, initially sought dismissal, unsuccessfully, arguing that the resolution violated his client’s First Amendment rights,

Rather, he said, the gathering was held to demonstrate “what we are as Natityt honoring First Foods regardless of what happens in the world.”

Patrick said his family came together out of reverence not only for the foods, but to honor the elders who taught him to respect the Earth.

“I’m just trying to be who I am, not trying to fight anybody,” Patrick said, adding that the gathering is also meant to instill in his children the same teachings he received from his elders – parents, grandparents, Court Case on page 11A

Food distributions continue into April By the CUJ

MISSION – The Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR) held their 22nd food distribution since the beginning of the COVID pandemic with plans to continue into April.

The distribution was held on March 18 near the Mission Longhouse in partnership with The Wave Foundation, a non-profit located in Portland whose mission is to help end domestic violence, sexual assault, and sex trafficking. There were roughly 325 boxes distributed to the community which included Tribal supplies such as bison meat from the Shoshone-Bannock Tribe of Idaho and maple syrup from Red Lake Nation of Minnesota.

Upcoming distributions will be held at the Mission Longhouse parking lot at 3 p.m. on April 1 and April 29. All distributions are first come first serve and each household is allowed two bags.

Once distributions subside, DCFS will continue offering emergency assistance to CTUIR Tribal members in need.

For more information and to stay up to date on any changes, follow the Tribal Facebook page, www.face- Keri Johns, left, of the Wave Foundation and community volunteer Kamala Tewee prepare free bags of food for community members book.com/CTUIR or listen to KCUW radio 104.3 fm. during a food distribution event held in Mission on March 22. The next food distribution will occur on April 29. CUJ Photo/Miranda Vega Rector

April 2021

Confederated Umatilla Journal

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Opinion Uniquely Umatilla: Prayer power returned to the rotunda NPR and a iHeartRadio were silently and then loudly conflicting as I attempted to get a miniature sound bar working in my new office on March 22. As I resolved the issue that morning, I heard an overpowering sound in the distance.

There was a bell, a few booming voices and a slow migration to a small circle in the Nixyaawii Governance Center’s rotunda. Prayers in Washat were being conducted for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic began, and large circles were turned into small circles.

Sin-ka-leep (Coyote) Cary Rosenbaum I’m no stranger to the longhouse, as it’s practiced on my Reservation, as well.

Also, my media brother to the north, Yakama Nation Radio’s Roy Dick, plays a prominent role on his reservation and within the Native American Journalists Association. But that Monday was the first time I heard it ring in-person in more than a year. It was very powerful, to say the least.

“That was much needed,” a woman said beside me on the second level as prayers commenced.

The Monday morning prayers were a staple here at NGC. But a year since the start of the pandemic, with cases identified on this reservation serving as the first known in Indian country, the booming voices and bells have been missing.

It was inspiring to hear the songs.

I was about the seventh person to the circle, and watched as Tribal members and employees – one-by-one, and two-

Randall Minthorn, Alan Crawford and Sam Spino led the Monday morning prayer, which returned to Nixyaawii Governance Center in March. The trio of singers boomed through the rotunda and beyond, causing Tribal employees to emerge from various wings.

CUJ Photo/Cary Rosenbaum

by-two -- began to number around 20.

Some of the few familiar faces I know thus far began to show up. Cor Sams and Sandy Sampson came from the west wing. Steven Hart emerged. Enola Dick

appeared across from me on the second story.

From what I understand, the return of the prayer didn’t hold a candle to the usual Monday prayer gathering. But to

catch a glimpse of the local culture live was a sign that times may be changing.

Cary Rosenbaum, (Sin-ka-leep/Coyote in Okanogan Salish) is the editor of the Confederated Umatilla Journal. Contact him at caryrosenbaum@ctuir.org.

Three projects to get our communities ready for wildfire season Last year, Oregon experienced some of the most devastating wildfires in its history. Wildfires are destructive, but controlled fires, from cultural and prescribed burns, are necessary for the habitat and first foods, such as huckleberries and salmon, to thrive.

Cultural and prescribed burns are safe and effective ways to maintain the health of fields and forests across the state. Another effective way to maintain a healthy habitat is by working together to protect our communities from wildfire. Protecting our communities from wildfire makes it easier to use the cultural burns that help the habitat and first foods flourish.

Wildfires can quickly destroy communities. Embers can travel more than a mile on high winds and start new fires by landing on dry brush, pine needles, and wood.

Wildfire Community Preparedness Day is May 1.

This is a nationally recognized day to work together to protect our homes and communities from wildfire.

For the 2021 Wildfire Community Preparedness Day, here are three projects we can do together to limit the spread of wildfires and keep our families and communities safe.

Project 1: Create defensible space around homes.

This is done by removing dry leaves, dead brush, de-

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bris, and pine needles from yards and gutters. Next, trim trees away from homes, barns, and sheds, and place screens over open vents on homes. These tasks reduce the fuels that enable wildfires to spread and give firefighters time to slow the blaze.

Project 2: Create a home inventory and build a financial backpack. To start a home inventory, use a phone or camera to take pictures of each room in the home. Open closets, drawers, and cupboards, and do not forget storage areas, such as barns, attics, and the garage.

Next, build a financial backpack. Collect important documents, such as titles, deeds, and financial records. Make copies or place them and your home inventory in a safe place to quickly grab if you need to escape an approaching fire. These tasks help people recover by saving them time, money, and stress during and after a wildfire.

Project 3: Review insurance policies. Take time to meet with your insurance company or agent. Review the deductibles, exclusions, and coverage limits of your policies, and discuss any major purchases or home improvements that were made. Keeping policies up to date helps make sure you have the right amount of coverage if disaster strikes.

Confederated Umatilla Journal

If you do not have insurance, talk to a professional about the cost and how it can help you recover from accidents and disasters. If you do not own a home, consider renters insurance. It costs about $15 to $30 per month and helps cover your personal belongings.

The 2021 wildfire season will soon be upon us.

Communities that work together to complete these three projects will be better prepared to keep their families, homes, and communities safe from wildfire.

These communities will also help improve the effectiveness of cultural and prescribed burns; allowing the habitat and first foods to thrive.

For more Wildfire Preparedness Day resources, visit the National Fire Prevention Association’s free toolkit and resources page.

For more information on creating a home inventory and financial backpack, visit the Oregon Division of Financial Regulation’s wildfire preparedness page.

If you have insurance questions, contact your insurance company. If you still have questions, contact the Division of Financial Regulation’s insurance advocates.

This guest column is brought to you by the Oregon Division of Financial Regulation. For more information, visit dfr.oregon.gov.

April 2021

Opinion Communication and calling your loved ones

Communication is a key component that will help strengthen bonds. For example our Board has done many government to government meetings recently. Like meeting with the Grand Ronde Tribal council and the Pendleton City Council through zoom. Overall it was so beneficial to be a part of those sessions despite not meeting in person.

The foundation is there. Consistency is vital to strengthen communication bonds which can be done with the advancement of telecommuting.

As some of the Boots Pond BOT member readers may have noticed, I have been typing a column for every CUJ so far this year. I plan on doing so until the end of summer. There are plenty of reasons for me to type for the paper: I want to give insight, as a BOT member, on what is happening in our tribal government, offer words of encouragement, and writing in the CUJ is another platform tribal members can use to express themselves.

Again Communication is crucial in this sense.

The Tribal radio station, KCUW, is another option for communicating with the community. Fellow Board member Jill-Marie Gavin and I began a radio program late last year for the purpose of offering transparency to the community.

Board of Trustees Member Boots Pond with his grandpa Ron Pond.

It took me a while to realize the avenue the CUJ and KCUW provide for Tribal Members to gain more understanding about the issues facing our community and to give input. Just giving a shout-out to these two media outlets our tribe has at its disposal.

For this month, I also wanted to

Courtesy/Boots Pond

express the importance of being able to reach out. Especially to your loved ones. The Corona-era looks to be dialing down. Thank goodness! I, myself, have been getting more comfortable and have been visiting my grandpa, Dr. Ron Pond, at least twice a week. Man, he is still in mood for long walks! Grandpa is

Rape is occurring in our community The rape of human beings is occurring within our Tribal community. Teens are forcing sex on other teens, adults are having house parties which some people use as an opportunity to force or take advantage of party-goers especially those that have passed out. Often times, others at the party watch or take part in the rape while others laugh about it or ignore it – like it is normal. Forcing or manipulating sex is not respectful nor honorable, and is something our ancestors would not condone. We should not condone.

The top two reasons community members have identified as barriers for sexual assault victims lack of reporting, based on initial findings during our 2021 evaluation, include 1) stigma and feelings of shame and, 2) lack of trust in the system.

The impact of such crime on the victim lasts a lifetime. According to the National Resource Center on Domestic Violence, Psychological Consequences of Sexual Trauma, March 2006: Childhood sexual trauma is associated with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, suicide, alcohol problems, and eating disorders.

Survivors may also experience low sexual interest and relationship difficulties and engage in high-risk sexual behaviors and extreme coping strategies.

Adulthood sexual trauma is associated with shortterm and long-term psychological consequences.

Short-term effects include shock, fear, anxiety, con-

April 2021

fusion, and withdrawal. Many survivors experience a reduction in symptoms within a few months, whereas some women experience distress for years.

Long-term outcomes include PTSD, depression, eating disorders, sexual dysfunction, alcohol and illicit drug use, nonfatal suicidal behavior and suicidal threats, physical symptoms in the absence of medical conditions, amongst other risks and issues.

Often times when any person, young or old, experiences forced or manipulated sex to talk about something so intimate is embarrassing and often they can’t believe it actually happened to them. When they are brave enough to speak it out loud to someone, believe them. Don’t blame them. Don’t doubt them.

Talking about it is especially hard when the person who forced or manipulated them into sex is someone they trust like their family or someone situated like a family member or is in a trusted position such as doctor, longhouse, church member or leader or best friend who brought them to a party. The trust is broken. The victim is beyond crushed. The added pain and loneliness piles on when the victim tells the mom, dad, grandparent, law enforcement, doctor, mental health and child investigator and they are drilled and questioned as if they caused the offender to force sex on them. The person who forced or manipulated the victim to have sex is the one who should be drilled and questioned and held

Community on page 7A

unintentionally hilarious nowadays, like when he is mishearing words or doing his best to keep his house tidy. It’s good to see him more and more, and I wish I was able to see my other close relatives like I do with Grandpa Ron. Last year, I had it all planned out. I was going to visit my family who are spread out all across the country. My sister and her daughters currently live in the Plains Area and the Famous Amos, along with my mother and baby brother are now residing in the Great Lakes region. In the end, due to CoVid I had to settle with frequent phone calls to my relations. Yes, calling is not the same as visits, but when you call your loved ones there are still many hearts to hearts and precious moments made. I have literally heard my 2-year-old niece in South Dakota grow up with each phone call made.

To the readers, I wish for this column to give some notice to take some time out of the week to, in some way, contact close family. With social media and cellphone development, technology has made connections with family a little easier. I hope that my communication serves some of you well too! As a last note, day by day the doors of the Board are close to opening up with looser restrictions, don’t be afraid to pop in to visit or voice concerns.

Boots Pond serves on the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation’s Board of Trustees.

Contact him at bootspond@ctuir.org.

Letter to the editor: It is time that an editorial board be created to have oversight authority of The Confederated Umatilla Journal. The current structure of having only paid staff members, i.e. publisher, editor, making all decisions for our tribal newspaper is outdated, and can be problematic.

For example, human nature being what it is can easily compel the editor, paid solely and directly by the tribe to present issues in favor of the tribe. This clearly was the situation during Wil Phinney’s tenure as CUJ editor, and primary reporter. A newspaper needs to be independent.

The current structure is also problematic in the important issue of free speech and free expression rights of tribal and community members. I have never submitted a letter to the CUJ that was threatening, obscene, undermined confidentiality, or was otherwise inappropriate to run, but twice - my free speech rights were unjustifiably denied and censored by the tribally paid CUJ staff. I had to hire an attorney and the situations were resolved before going to tribal court.

A five-person editorial board representing a cross-section of our tribal community would better serve the purpose and integrity of the CUJ, rather than just two or three paid staff. Current staff would continue their roles and would work in coordination with the board. The board, with staff input, would also decide what is legitimately newsworthy in our community.

The details, responsibilities, and requirements, etc., of a CUJ editorial board, such as qualifications, job duties, stipends, etc., could be worked out in due time. Thank you.

Bob Shippentower

Confederated Umatilla Journal

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Opinion Proposing the Range Management Plan The Department of Natural Resources DNR-Range Agriculture and Forestry Program of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR) proposes development of a Rangeland Management Plan during the period of March 1, 2021 to June 30, 2022. The intent of the Rangeland Management Plan is to provide guidance and direction for management of rangelands on the Umatilla Indian Reservation and all Tribal owned rangelands outside of the Umatilla Indian Reservation. The goal of this planning process is to develop management actions that provide for healthy natural ecosystems which support the First Foods Mission of protecting rangelands along with their stream habitat for the perpetual cultural, economic, and sovereign benefit of the CTUIR. DNR will use a three-step process to develop the Rangeland Management Plan. First, DNR wants to identify community issues and concerns to be addressed in the Rangeland Management Plan. DNR wants to hear from individual members of the CTUIR regarding any issues and concerns they have for the management of rangelands. DNR also plans to meet with the Land Protection Planning Commission, Water Commission, Fish and Wildlife Commission, Economic and Community Development Committee, Cultural Resources Committee and the Land Acquisition Committee in the next two months to hear their views on management of rangelands.

DNR will then develop goals and objectives that address these community derived issues and concerns. Finally, DNR will identify alternatives for management of rangelands that meet the goals and objectives including any necessary change in management actions. In making their recommendation for any change in management of rangelands to the Board of Trustees, DNR will consider the effects of the management alternatives on the cultural and natural resource values of the CTUIR. The Board of Trustees will have the final decision on which management alternative will be implemented.

Community Continued from page 6A

accountable for the lifetime damage they caused by the violent act, betrayal of trust, dehumanizing act. The offender made a choice to force sex on another human being. Boys and men also have a difficult time sharing that they were forced to have sex and the embarrassment is somewhat different as most do not want to state that they were raped.

No! Your trusted family circle does not have the right to “teach” little or teen girls or boys how to have sex nor should they be sold for drugs, alcohol or money.

No! It is not right for your neighbor down the road to host parties and that allow young kids or adults to drink alcohol just so he and his friends can force sex upon them.

No! Those in leadership or positions of power should not take advantage of you or your friends by forcing or manipulating you to have sex; providing you alcohol, drugs or making promises for a better life.

Yes! You are a precious human being born to assist with the next seven generations.

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The CTUIR Department of Natural Resources’ Range Agriculture and Forestry Program is proposing a Range Management Plan to provide guidance and direction for the management of rangelands on the Umatilla Indian Reservation.

Courtesy/CTUIR DNR

If you would like to express your views, including any concerns you feel must be addressed in the Rangeland Management Plan, please submit your written comments either by mail to Gordy Schumacher, Department of Natural Resources, CTUIR

46411Timine Way, Pendleton, OR 97801 or by email at GordySchumacher@ctuir.org.

This guest column is brought to you by Gordy Shumacher of the CTUIR Department of Natural Resources (DNR).

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at 541-240-4171. To speak with our confidential Child Youth Advocate please call anytime day or night at 541-215-9904 This guest column is brought to you by the CTUIR Family Violence Services staff.

Confederated Umatilla Journal

April 2021

Business Wenaha Group celebrates a decade Employees of Rob Quaempts and Dave Fishel’s company celebrate on Zoom

LEFT: The Wenaha Group, co-owned by Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation member Rob Quaempts (left) and business partner Dave Fishel celebrated a decade in business in December 2020.

Courtesy/Wenaha Group

By Cary Rosenbaum of the CUJ

The host location of Wenaha Group’s 10-year anniversary was cyberspace. It wasn’t how they envisioned their annual company gathering celebration, but the 30-plus employees of the construction management and consulting company met on Zoom, sharing their stories and successes for the milestone event.

Co-owner’s Rob Quaempts and Dave Fishel listened to their 30-plus employees share highlights and appreciation for their careers with Wenaha Group, all from their respective homes and workspaces.

Though Wenaha has completed dozens of projects to be proud of, Quaempts said the Zoom conference call was the biggest “wow” moment of his career.

“It was impactful to hear from our staff how rooted our guiding principles are within our company and how we operate, and that was our goal from the beginning,” Quaempts said. “We need to stand on those values and those guiding principles in everything we do. In fact, it’s the first thing we ask ourselves before we propose on projects or work with a new client, do they align with our guiding principles?”

Until the company hit the decade mark, they hadn’t stopped long enough to reflect on how the company had expanded.

“I’ve just kind of had my head down plowing forward’,” Fishel said, “and Rob reminded me, ‘Hey Dave, we’re coming up on 10 years, that’s kind of a big deal.’

It’s caused me to pause and reflect. Both Rob and I really did set out with the grand vision to grow a company like we have today.”

That grand vision began over 10 years ago, when Rob Quaempts was the CTUIR Public Works Director. He wanted to start a construction management company, and the idea kept recurring.

Fishel remembered working with an ambitious Quaempts prior to the genesis of Wenaha Group.

“When Rob and I really started working closely together was when the Nixyaawii Governance Center was being built,” he said. “He was Public Works Director and was the point person for that project. I had gone out on my own and was a budget management consultant and was acting as the Tribe’s owner’s representative. We got to know each other even better on that project working closely, hand-in-hand.”

Not long after, Quaempts decided to

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make his move.

“I realized it was time to finally launch my own business and although a difficult decision I resigned from the Tribe to start on my own,” he said.

Fishel and Quaempts reconnected thereafter and it was a natural progression from there. “Rather than be competitors,” Quaempts said, “we decided to join forces and form a partnership.” The duo started Wenaha Group as a project management consulting group.

“The first three years were a struggle,” Quaempts said. “It taught us to deal with a lot of adversity by standing by our principles.”

Fishel joked a business partnership isn’t too unlike being married at times.

“But we really stayed grounded in our values,” he said. “Even though maybe we didn’t always have the same opinion about something, we’ve always remained committed to staying in the conversation and working through things. One of the strengths we have is different personalities and different perspectives, in the end, together we come up with more thoughtful solutions.”

Over the course of the last decade, Wenaha has worked on dozens of projects, including a handful of CTUIR opportunities where it all began.

“We have a pretty diverse resume,” Quaempts said. “We’ve done a lot of tribal work, like Yellowhawk Tribal Health Center, Nixyaawii Community School, Emerald Queen Casino, Benewah Medical Center, Warm Springs K-8 school, Quinault Resort and Casino, Angel of the Winds Casino and Resort, the Cayuse Technologies building and several others for tribes throughout the west coast. In fact, most of the developments that have taken place over the years at CTUIR we’ve had the opportunity to be part of.”

Quaempts shared: “Even though we are a Native-owned firm, Tribal work is

only about 30 percent of our business.

Education projects are the largest percentage of our work. We have become experts at managing large and small bond programs for many school districts including the Pendleton, Hermiston and

Walla Walla School districts, to name a few. We also have grown our expertise in health care and public administration work. Wenaha has been working with public agencies and municipalities like the City of Portland and their mass-transit systems for many years.”

Wenaha’s workload started relatively small, as the company broke into the Portland market with a $25,000 handrail project for metro parks.

“We’ve also done renovation work on the old Portland Coliseum and at the Rose Garden,” Quaempts said. “We have even done a massive expansion on Providence Park, where the Portland Timbers play professional soccer.”

One of their most recent projects was helping to manage the $400 million Emerald Queen Casino and parking structures project for the Puyallup Tribe near Tacoma, Washington.

Quaempts said, “As you can tell we’ve Wenaha Group on page 9A

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Wenaha Group Continued from page 8A

got a pretty broad breadth of different types of work and different types of clients.”

The company now has five regional offices, as it conducts work in Oregon, Arizona, California, Idaho and Washington.

Quaempts moved to Portland to build the regional office up in 2014, but western Washington became home after landing the Emerald Queen Casino project. He felt that the move was the best thing to do in order to properly serve the client in the best way possible.

Despite the move, Quaempts said Wenaha has always had a presence in Oregon, with an office located in downtown Pendleton and Portland. Even though the company has expanded beyond the local area, it is always looking for motivated and talented CTUIR members to join the team.

“We’ve been trying to hire tribal members from day one,” Quaempts said, “and we are very proud as a firm that we have been able to maintain 30 to 35 percent Native employment. Those employees are tribal members from all over the US, including Alaska, Arizona, and even the CTUIR.” Quaempts said he became emotional recently at the hiring of CTUIR member Anthony Bonifer to the Wenaha Group. Along with hiring his son Quentin in previous years -- who parlayed the opportunity into starting his own company in Pendleton -- it was special to see another Tribal member join the team and to see the younger generations stepping up, learning and looking for better opportunities for themselves.

“I’ve known Anthony since he was four or five years old,” Quaempts said. “It’s been very enlightening to see my dreams come full circle and see the next generations Anthony Bonifer take this opportunity to come on board and grow job opportunities within our home community. It’s very rewarding to be able to provide a quality career opportunity for our younger generation just like the Tribe did for me.”

COVID-19 and construction The COVID-19 pandemic did not slow Wenaha’s progress down, Quaempts said.

“Business remained strong for us as a lot of construction was deemed essential work by the governors,” Quaempts said. “There were a few projects that experienced delays, we had to make some adjustments, but we were very fortunate that we experienced growth and even gained new opportunities, despite the pandemic.

“An example of how we had to pivot,” he added, “COVID 19 highlighted the need for greater access to healthcare, especially for tribes and rural communities.

Many tribes had to make some drastic reprioritization of their projects and get their medical clinics and healthcare facilities moving forward to address the needs.

We were just very fortunate to have that experience on our resumes.”

Quaempts said that not only did Wenaha not slow down this past year but launched a new FFE Procurement Consulting division that is helping clients with purchasing and the logistics management for furniture, fixtures and equipment to completed buildings. Additionally, the logistics team provide consulting regarding how a person or group will function and circulate through their space and even the proper ergonomics of using the furniture that is purchased.

“The Logistics FFE team has done an amazing job growing the division” he said. “Even through COVID, we’ve expanded the market share and things are only looking up.”

“Overall the journey has been successful due to remaining true to our core values.” Fishel said. “We

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PROJECTS OF NOTE: • The Emerald Queen Casino for the Puyallup Tribe in Tacoma, WA (pictured at right) Project Cost: 4 phases: $340M Year Completed: 2020 This complex multi-phased project includes the design and construction of three Parking Structures (a total of 1,900 parking stalls), a 314,000 SF Casino with six Food Venues including a focal Center Bar and a 2,000 seat event center. The project also includes the design and construction of a new Roundabout and New Utility Infrastructure throughout the entire site. The project is all colocated between Interstate 5, a residential housing area and the Tribe’s Administrative Facilities.

• Benewah Medical Center for the Coeur D’Alene Tribe in Plummer, ID (pictured at middle right) Project Cost: $17M Year Completed: 2017 Benewah Medical Center provides medical and dental care, counseling and community health services, and houses a laboratory and pharmacy.

Features include 50,000 SF providing medical and dental care, counseling and community health services, a laboratory and pharmacy and provide service to 6,500 patients. It has been designed to look like it’s part of the earth, ‘like it has grown out as a formation.’

• Yellowhawk Tribal Health Center for the CTUIR in Pendleton, OR (pictured below) Project Cost: $60M Year Completed: 2018 Yellowhawk operates a 64,000 square-foot facility that encompasses many programs and services such as primary health care, pharmacy, dental services, behavioral health and community wellness.

Yellowhawk has been owned and governed by the CTUIR since 1996.

Photos courtesy Wenaha Group

just kept focused on living our values every day, hiring great people and really focusing on taking care of our clients and the rest takes care of itself.

That strategy has paid off. We’re proud of what we’ve accomplished and are really grateful for the

Confederated Umatilla Journal

opportunities we’ve been given.”

Quaempts credited his staff and his clients for the successes of Wenaha.

“Without them, we wouldn’t be who we are today,” he said.

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Sams appointment Continued from page 1A

the Council.

Nonetheless, a call from an unknown number came to Sams’ phone that he chose to ignore while he played soccer with his daughter. Though he’s recounted the story to media outlets and others since mid-March, he’s still tickled by the memory.

It was Gov. Brown, and she left a voicemail.

“She said, ‘Hi Chuck. This is Kate.

Kate Brown,” he recalled. “If you don’t mind and you’re not busy, I’d appreciate a call back.”

Sams’ young daughter, who was aware of who Gov. Brown is, said, “You might want to give her a call back, dad!”

During the call back, Gov. Brown offered a nomination to the Council.

“She cut right to the chase and said she wanted to know if I would like to be her nominee for the appointment of the Northwest Power and Conservation Council,” Sams recalled. “I was very excited. I said ‘Yes, I would be honored to be your nominee.’”

Sams was confirmed for the position in early March, and is set to start April 1, replacing Ted Ferrioli, a 20-year Oregon senator who had what Sams called an extremely good relationship with the CTUIR prior to retiring from the Senate.

“I think I have big shoes to fill,” Sams said. “He’s a man who was passionate about treaty rights and finding that balance. But I’m proud to know I’ll be following him.”

The Northwest Power and Conservation Council was created by way of the 1980 Northwest Power Act, which authorized Oregon, Idaho, Montana and Washington to develop a regional power plan and fish and wildlife program to balance the Northwest’s environment and energy needs. Council members include Chair Richard Devlin, Oregon; Vice-Chair Bo Downen, Montana; Jeffery Allen, Idaho; Douglas Grob, Montana; Guy Norman, Washington; Patrick Oshie, Washington; and Jim Yost, Idaho.

Three of Sams’ former colleagues wished him well on his next journey.

Debra Croswell, the former CTUIR Deputy Executive Director who hired Sams as Communications Director in 2013, said she’s happy for him.

“We’re sorry to see him leave CTUIR,” she said. “His extensive knowledge of our tribal history, treaty rights and community will bring forth a tribal voice the Council’s not had previously. He also carries experience from a wide variety of leadership roles, not only at CTUIR but with non-profit organizations and from his service in the military. It’s great to see Gov. Brown recognize that in Chuck and tap him for this important role.”

Bobbie Conner, the executive director of Tamastslikt Cultural Institute, said she will sincerely miss him.

“I have always appreciated his candor, willingness to listen to alternative points of view, and high regard for the best decision possible,” Conner said.

“His preference for open deliberation and direct communication, respect for confidentiality and chain of command, and action-oriented meetings has served

April 2021

us well.”

Board of Trustees Chair Kat Brigham appreciated his work for his people.

“I can’t thank Chuck enough for his service to the Tribe. We are sad to see him go, but happy that he has received such a prestigious appointment from Gov. Brown,” said Brigham. “We know that he will work for the benefit of the entire region. We wish him nothing but the best.”

A LARGER ROLE LOOMS Though he’s achieved a dream more than two decades in the making, Sams hasn’t ruled out trading a regional role for a national one under President Biden.

He’s in the running to be the National Park Service Director, and has the support of several Oregon political figures from both parties, including Brown.

“It’s a little surreal,” Sams said, “because you never know what’s going to happen. Before the governor had asked, I had been in discussions and conversations with the interior transition team as the Biden-Harris team was coming into their role.

“I still have an application that is on file with The White House. Gov. Brown has sent a letter of support for me to be appointed as the next National Parks Director. The Oregon delegation of senators have been very supportive of that if that is the wishes of the president and the incoming secretary.”

Margaret Everson was named acting director in August 2020, and is the fourth acting NPS director under then-President Trump.

The NPS is part of the Department of the Interior, and oversees more than 85 million acres in the United States, more than 20,000 employees and 279,000 volunteers. Its budget was close to $3 billion as of 2017.

If history serves as proof, Sams’ ability to adapt quickly will allow him to thrive in the role.

ADAPTING QUICKLY In March of 2020, Sams became the CTUIR’s Incident Commander for the COVID-19 pandemic, after being delegated the responsibility by former Executive Director Ted Wright.

“What Ted didn’t know at the time: Not only had I already done all the National Incident Management Systems training, and I’d been trained to be an incident commander, but mostly under fire,” Sams said. “And I’d also had an opportunity to work and go to school at the Nuclear and Biological Chemical Warfare School in the Navy and work on the Infectious Disease Board at the Lincoln Medical Center in New York City.

“Those are things I thought I would never put into practical use. When the (COVID-19 pandemic) came, all of those things I had learned so many years before started to make sense.”

The Incident Command Team (ICT) has been putting its philosophy in the hands of professionals, Sams said, since the CTUIR adopted its Emergency Operations Plan (EOP) in 2016.

“Our EOP covered all kinds of aspects of an emergency,” Sams said. The intent

was to “figure out how can we manage that system and ensure we were compliant with the Federal National Incident Management System. That way, not only because we wanted to have all that structure in place, but it’s important for when you’re doing the documentation for federal funding, state funding and other streams of funding and how does that get applied on the ground.”

The Umatilla Indian Reservation was the first federally-recognized reservation to have a COVID-19 case, a year ago. At that point Wright initiated the Emergency Operations Plan, which gave extraordinary powers to the executive director position, or their appointee.

By doing that, Sams said, “they are taking the decision-making process from political folks, and giving them to professional folks.”

Sams credits the leadership of Yellowhawk Tribal Health Center CEO Lisa Guzman for having strong relationships within the Indian Health Service, which has supplied more than 4,000 doses.

“More importantly, Lisa had a good staff, a strong staff that could quickly change from preventative medicine to emergency medicine,” Sams added, “which is not an easy task for a clinic that is predominantly designed as a preventative medicine organization.”

In his role as ICT commander, Sams was able to reach into the CTUIR organization any way he wanted to, he said, and pull the resources to the table that were necessary to the response to the situation.

“I was able to pull on resources from Legal Counsel, Planning, Public Works, Public Safety, Finance, Legislative Affairs for policy work, and bring all those people to the table,” for the Incident Command Team, he said. “And more importantly, this extraordinary power also consolidated our enterprises and entities under one command structure.”

Prior to the pandemic, CTUIR enterprises reported to boards, including the Board of Trustees.

“Now all of those entities reported directly to the incident commander, and the incident commander then can make decisions,” Sams said. “What the Board I don’t think fully understood is not only are we looking at this from the health and safety, which was our primary concern, we also had to figure out how continuity of government was going to work; continuity of enterprises and continuity of our economy.

“And those aren’t easy tasks.”

The ICT conducted analysis and made sure public safety was the first priority, Sams said.

“It was paramount,” he said. “Which is exactly what we did by setting restrictions we knew would not be popular, especially stay-at-home orders.”

One key was establishing business and government continuity, Sams said.

“If someone became sick or ill, there was somebody behind us to step into that role,” he said. “In the early days of the pandemic, we didn’t know if some one of us caught it, how long would we be out.”

Last March, the Board of Trustees and Tribal administrators were at a retreat at the Marcus Whitman Hotel in Walla

Confederated Umatilla Journal

Walla when they decided to take the COVID threat more seriously. The Tribe decided to declare a State of Emergency.

“Little did we all know, that would be the last time we’d all be together in one room,” Sams said. “A year later, we’re still not back together in one room.

We’re a lot closer because we’re being immunized, but that was the last time.”

Reflecting on the past year, Sams said he’s very proud of the fact the CTUIR staff were adaptive and able to keep the government and its entities up and running.

“Being able to work from home and figure out how to do that. ... Our Information Technology crew did a great job of working with staff so they could take their laptops; in a few instances, taking their desktop home,” Sams said.

“Figuring out how to connect them into our home internet so they could actually meet into our server so we could have that continuity of government and continuity of services.”

Though he was the face of leadership in the pandemic, the affects and aftermath of the virus hit him particularly hard.

First, his daughter caught the virus early on while in college in California.

“When my daughter got sick early on, as a parent, I was very scared,” he said.

“Very few things scare me. As a parent, you know when your child is down you want to be able to help. She was with family and I think that’s what helped her get through.”

Sams also lost a friend to COVID-19 whom he considered to be a little brother.

“That will always hurt,” he said. “That memory will probably never go away and I don’t think it should.”

Sams credits the Tribal community for ensuring the pandemic didn’t spread further.

“This crisis has shown our peoples’ character, more than anything we’ve seen in our modern history or even from our memory,” he said. “I’m just thankful they heeded the warnings that were provided by incident command, for tribal leadership. The people are the ones who should be applauded for the success of being able to keep this at bay.”

The CTUIR’s total of one death due to COVID-19 was among the lowest among Pacific Northwest Tribes.

“We’ve lost a lot more relatives among our cousins from Yakama, Warm Springs, Nez Perce,” he said. “I think because our people took the advice and the guidance, they were able to shelter themselves from that thus far. We’re very fortunate that most of them -- a good portion -- has stood up and said they will take the vaccine, recognizing they need to be inoculated even with a relatively new vaccine that we didn’t know everything about they were trying to ensure our way of life continues.

“I’m very thankful to the community for sticking through. I know that once we can all gather again, it will be a good time to reflect on those we lost, those who were sick, and move forward.”

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Court Case Continued from page 4A

aunties, and uncles.

Under questioning from Daley, Tony Barnett, who at the time of the feast was a member of the Umatilla Tribal Police working as an investigator for the CTUIR Department of Children and Family Services, testified that the Patrick residence is a “certified foster home.”

A Facebook photo, which spurred the investigation and subsequent citations, showed at least one child and an adult who had a “protection order against him.”

Barnett said he told Patrick such gatherings “can’t continue if you want to keep your certification as a foster home.”

However, there was no further discussion of foster children during the trial.

Two days after the verdict, CTUIR Board of Trustees Chair Kat Brigham, speaking on her own and not for the full Board, said the restrictions in the resolution were never meant to punish people for their religious beliefs.

She said the Patrick gathering was investigated and resulted in citations because of “other concerns” that were made apparent by the Facebook photo.

Brigham acknowledged that many families, including her own, had ceremonies at home.

“The resolution didn’t stop that. It just asked people to be careful of numbers,” Brigham said. “We didn’t have a lot of information at the time, other than the need for social distancing, washing your hands

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and wearing masks. We just wanted people to take seriously about being careful, being safe, and being healthy.”

Barnett issued two citations on April 28, 2020 at the Patrick home, and 15 others were issued by other Tribal police officers in ensuing days.

Barnett said Patrick was “very honest” and acknowledged that he did host the gathering and was aware of the restrictions.

However, Patrick testified that he did not know about the BOT resolution’s restrictions until his conversation with Barnett two days after the feast.

Klahn was intent upon arguing his First Amendment case until after Judge Gallaher questioned Patrick on several issues, including his interpretation of family and Tribal gatherings.

Patrick reiterated that the feast was for family to honor Tribal religion.

“I’m not going to invite you. You ain’t family,” Patrick told the Judge. “We were having it as a family doing our Tribal religion.”

Patrick, in response to a question from Judge Gallaher, said “Tribal” feasts are usually held at the Longhouse, which was closed under the BOT resolution.

Gallaher asked Patrick if he considered First Foods essential and Patrick answered in the affirmative.

At that point Klahn picked up on that line of questioning and noted the resolution prohibits “non-essential” gatherings. He asked Patrick if he considered the feast to be

a religious ceremony that was “necessary” each year and, again, Patrick said yes.

Two other defendants – Janice Jones and William Sigo IV – testified telephonically.

Jones, a leader of women in the Longhouse, responded to Gallaher’s question about prayer.

“When we pray it’s our songs, thanking the Creator for bringing foods back for us,” she said.

Sigo said families feel “deeply” about such ceremonies and noted that the annual events are dependent upon when First Foods, in this case roots, are ready for harvest.

In his final arguments, Daley said Tribal religious leaders were consulted before the BOT adopted the “stay-home” guidelines.

He said the resolution “doesn’t restrict only Tribal, but all gatherings … and this particular event falls within this resolution.”

Daley said Barnett identified individuals who were cited based on the Facebook photo. He said Patrick “conceded that he engaged in this gathering when the rule was in effect.”

Daley said the Judge should consider only if Patrick and others violated the BOT social distancing resolution. The prosecutor said the “religious aspect” was not relevant and should not be considered in the Judge’s ruling.

Judge Gallaher’s ruling said, “The Tribe has failed to prove the defendants’ guilt by a preponderance of the evidence.”

CUJ Briefs Hart, Spencer elected to NCS School Board MISSION - CTUIR members Steven Hart and Briana Spencer were elected to the Nixyaawii Community School Board on March 18.

Hart received 76 percent of the 193 ballots cast, and will serve in the Community Member Position.

Spencer, meanwhile, received 84 votes to gain the Tribal Member Position. Jaimie Crane (70 votes) and Modesta Minthorn (64) were also in the running.

Indian Lake clean-up effort scheduled for May INDIAN LAKE - A clean-up day is planned Saturday, May 8, at Indian Lake Campground on the Umatilla Indian Reservation southeast of Pilot Rock.

The clean-up is set for 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. with a free lunch provided at noon to all helpers. Free camping permits can be earned, one per household. Participants are asked to bring their own tools because there will be a limited supply available.

For more information contact Leigh Pinkham-Johnston or Tami Rochelle at 541-276-3873.

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April 2021

CUJ News A GREATER PRIORITY

Umatilla County to start Thornhollow Bridge construction in 2023

By Miranda Vega Rector of the CUJ

MISSION - Construction for the Thornhollow Bridge located on the Umatilla Indian Reservation will begin in 2023, about four years earlier than originally anticipated.

In February 2020, record-level flooding of the Umatilla River severely damaged the bridge, making it impassable. The bridge is located approximately 13 miles east of the Mission area and, up until its destruction, was considered the closest river crossing for those residing north of the river and in the Thornhollow area.

Drivers are now forced to take other routes when traveling into neighboring towns that not only add on to their commute, but are also risky.

“The alternate route puts northern residents at risk by forcing them to take the steep road up the Thornhollow grade, a gravel road which becomes hazardous and potentially impassable during winter weather conditions,” Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation Board of Trustees Chair Kat Brigham and Umatilla County Commission Chair George Murdock stated in a joint letter.

The letter was sent to U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley and Congressman Cliff Bentz as a combined effort to show them the urgency for funding to replace the Thornhollow Bridge.

“The Tribe did a really good job at letting the state and feds know how important the bridge was to the community,” said Frank Anderson, Director of the Public Works Department for the CTUIR. “Tribal members were really worried about it. We were getting a lot of inquiries and concerns.”

Damage to Thornhollow Bridge not only impacts commuters, but it affects the community as a whole: Tribal cultural activities are impeded; Athena-Weston school buses have to make lengthy detours and may not be able to serve students at the bottom of the grade during poor weather conditions; and emergency services will not have quick access to those residing near the area.

“This hazard may even put those residents at risk that their only egress route could fail during future flood-related evacuation,” Brigham and Murdock’s letter stated.

Lily Sheoships, a CTUIR Tribal member who has lived at the top of the Thornhollow Grade for 28 years, had a similar concern.

“I talked about this with my family,” she said. “If another flood were to happen and the bridge isn’t accessible, it’s more treacherous driving from Cayuse Road to Cayuse Bridge. “Last year during the flood when I had to drive to pick up my friend, you could see the waters rising slowly … Having the bridge accessible would make it quicker to get to higher ground during another flood.”

Alaina Mildenberger, Office Manager of the CTUIR Public Works Department, lives in Athena and used the bridge for many years. She is very familiar with alternate routes and backroads but stated that there are some surface issues and limited signage at intersections. Although Thornhollow Bridge is located on the Umatilla Indian Reservation, it is owned by Umatilla County and serves Tribal and non-tribal community members. With an estimated $5 million cost of construction and no readily available funding at the time, the county anticipated construction would not happen until at least 2027.

However, on March 10, 2021, a press conference was held by Umatilla County Commissioner Dan Dorran to announce that the county received funding that would

April 2021

‘The Tribe did a really good job at letting the state and feds know how important the bridge was to the community.’

-Frank Anderson CTUIR Public Works

Thornhollow Bridge, seen here in March, is a severely damaged crossing 13 miles east of Mission. Construction on a new bridge has been accelerated by four years to a start date of 2023, according to officials.

CUJ Photo/Dallas Dick

advance construction by “four plus years.”

Of the $5 million project cost, Umatilla County will contribute 10.27 percent while state funding will provide the remaining 89.73 percent.

Dorran said the county has been putting together a formula and timeline to obtain permits, remove the buckled bridge and design and construct the new bridge. Dorran said “he about fell over” after receiving an email from Ken Patterson, Manager of the Oregon Department of Transportation, saying that they would be able to start the demolition and removal of the damaged bridge immediately.

Confederated Umatilla Journal

“That was huge news, big news,” he said. ”You go from permitting in 2025 to immediate. That was a mind boggling movement forward that we were praying for.”

Tom Fellows of Umatilla County Public Works said that there are a lot of hurdles to go through with permitting such as environmental, historical, archaeological and wildlife issues, but they are now able to start the process of obtaining permits.

“If everything falls into place, we could get the demolition done this year but I am not an optimist, so I am more inclined to say demolition will happen in 2022,” Fellows said during the press conference.

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CUJ News Sams, Quaid part of honoring women panel

By Miranda Vega Rector of the CUJ

Tears filled their eyes as the panelists spoke with pride honoring the women who shaped them as adults.

Recalling their grandmothers, mothers, friends, and community members, panelists including Corinne Sams, Board of Trustees member for the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, and Katherine “KJ” Quaid, Communications and Outreach Coordinator of WeCan International, told stories of the matriarchs in their family and how their lives have impacted who they are today. It was an unexpected outcome that did justice to the International Women’s Day “Honoring Our Matriarchs” online event.

“I chose to participate in the panel because I believe in the empowerment of women,” said Sams.

“I was honored to participate and sit alongside such wonderful women who are doing the work to uplift our communities, restore healing and justice, and build the future we all know is possible for our future generations,” said Quaid.

The panel was hosted through Zoom and Facebook Live by sisters Jillisa and Jaylyn Suppah, who work for the Papalaxsimisha Program of the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs. The online event captured the attention of 55 Zoom participants and Facebook reached an audience of 1,426, although the live views steadied at 16 during the two and a half hour session.

Other panel participants included the Executive Director of the Native Wellness

Institute Jillene Joseph and Executive Director of McKenzie River Gathering Foundation Se-ah-dom Edmo.

During the session, panel members were asked a series of questions, one in particular that focused on women who were influential in their lives brought the most emotion out of the women.

“My entire life I have been loved by women who are passing on the tools I need to be a good matriarch, whether that’s through different skillsets like beading and weaving, or life lessons on how to deal with trauma,” said Quaid. “My number one matriarch would be my mom, Julie (Quaid), she’s so strong and takes care of our whole family … that’s who inspires me every day to do my work.”

Sams started by reading the definition of what a matriarch is - a woman who is

Letter to sexual assault survivor: Today I heard the news. It is not your fault. You did not ask for this. The way you dress is not the problem. How much alcohol you drank is not the reason. Your past actions are not an excuse. You have a right to fight back and press charges. You deserve to be treated respectfully. You deserve better. You should not feel ashamed. You did nothing wrong. You are a wonderful, beautiful person.

the head of a family or tribe or an older woman who is powerful within a family or organization. She said that the first woman who came to mind was her grandma Ruby Sams. “It’s been three years since she died, she was 92. She was a person in my life who was always patient, always kind, always had time for our community ...”

She went on to explain that her grandmother’s passion and involvement in the community was an influence to her even in her current career. “Being on the BOT and Tribal Council, I’ve heard many women

say, ‘You know how many times I’ve been at a table telling my truth but it wasn’t accepted until a man said it?’ …Well, my family gifted me with the courage to sit at a table and say my truth even with my voice shaking.”

The women paid homage to other members of their family as well, Quaid mentioned her aunt Celeste Whitewolf who has passed down seven generations of family history as well as her great grandma Jean Halfmoon who made recordings in their Nez Perce language. Sams called fellow CTUIR member Julie Taylor, Director of the Department of Child and Family Services, a mentor and said she is someone to whom she credits for helping find her passion for working with youth.

“I was in my early twenties wandering around my reservation trying to find a purpose. Julie Taylor offered me a job as the Title VI Indian Education Coordinator at Sunridge Middle School ... I became addicted to working with the youth, it was very humbling.”

The Suppah sisters have been hosting online events, webinars, and fitness classes through the program since the beginning of the COVID shut down. To view more of their content visit www.facebook.com/ Papalaxsimisha. The meaning of Papalaxsimisha is unity.

Celebrating our Employees

Congratulations to our March Employees of the Month:

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The person that hurt you made a terrible choice. It is their fault.

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I will stand by you. I will stand up for you. I will fight on your behalf. I will be right here if you need to talk. I am sorry you are going through this, but you are strong and you will be okay.

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Join our team! We have dozens of jobs open each month, including: Computer User Support Specialist, Desktop Technician, Executive Assistant, Helpdesk Agent, PMO Manager, Retail Support Service Helpdesk Agent, Watch Analyst, and Business Development Director.

Public Safety Family Violence Services 24/7 Advocate 541-240-4171 24/7 Child/Youth Advocate 541-215-9904

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Confederated Umatilla Journal

April 2021

OUR NEW G N I C U D O INTR EMBERS! M D R A O B CHAMBER

Shelley Wallis

Shelley Wallis was born and raised in Eastern Oregon and spent her life in Pilot Rock before moving to Pendleton more than 20 years ago. Working in the banking industry, she managed the Wells Fargo branch for years before it closed, Shelley thought it was a natural progression to go into business with her mother at Deana’s Auto Biz. She has spent her career working in banking and finance and now is a small business co-owner. Shelly decided to join the Chamber Board of Directors because of her passion for entrepreneurship. She has worked closely with Tribal Members for some time and has really grown to love the culture and rich history of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation. After being in a corporate environment for the majority of her career she learned all of the challenges and benefits of owning a small business. Shelley is a mother of three. Her oldest, Pearl, is 21 and finishing her degree to become a teacher.

Shelley’s second oldest, Rogan, is 12 and exceedingly active in rugby among other activities. Her youngest, Sophia, is 12 and plays all the sports, just like her brother. Shelley is excited to get started on the Board of Directors and offer her invaluable knowledge as a business owner to the Chamber of Commerce membership.

April 2021

Briana Spencer

2021 EVENT ANNOUNCEMENTS SOON!

Briana Spencer is an enrolled member of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR) and she is a descendent of the Cayuse, Nez Perce, Oklahoma Seminole, Cascade, and of Chief Spencer of the Klickitat tribe. She is also Afro-Puerto Rican, Irish, and French. She has been fighting for racial equity since she was a small child on the front lines with her mother. She recently stepped into a leadership role when she decided to be a co-lead organizer for a Black Lives Matter march in Pendleton, OR. She has continued that leadership and grassroots activism as the Founder of the Pendleton Community Action Coalition, a collective of human rights activists who advocate for accountability. Additionally, she is a Nixyaawwii Chamber of Commerce Board Member, Rural Network Council Member for Team Jamie for Oregon, and a Steering Committee Member for Luchadores por Cambio – Tri-Cities, CLAF of Eastern OR & WA, and Heal the Land Collective.

She has had the honor of being a speaker on; OPB Think Out Loud, ROP’s rural strategy session, Hermiston Cultural Awareness Coalition’s MLK Diversity Panel, at BMCC’s Art & Culture Festival and on KCUW-LP Pendleton’s Tac Maywii Nixyaawii.

Briana was born and raised in Pendleton and she is a Pendleton High School graduate.

Confederated Umatilla Journal

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Wildfire Community Preparedness Day is May 1.

Let’s work together to protect our families and first foods.

Cultural burns are a safe way to maintain a healthy habitat for first foods, such as deer, salmon, and huckleberries to thrive. Another way to maintain a healthy habitat is by working together to protect our communities from wildfire.

Visit nfpa.org for a free toolkit to help protect your home from wildfire.

Visit dfr.oregon.gov for tips and resources to create a home inventory and build a financial backpack.

Consumer and Business Services Division of Financial Regulation

TAMÁSTSLIKT CULTURAL INSTITUTE | EAT. SHOP. EXPLORE. | APRIL 2021 The Museum Store at Tamástslikt Cultural Institute

Annual Pendleton Home Beach Towel Sale!

Two for $75 Purchase two of these Pendleton Home oversized, fluffy beach towels for only $75 (reg. $49.50 each)!

We have many different colors and patterns. They're great for use at the beach or at home.

Visit us at the store, we're open 10am-5pm, Tuesday-Saturday. Or order online at www.tamastslikt.org/shop. Shipping is always free!

COVID-19 protocols are in place with masks and social distancing required.

Offer may not be combined with any other discounts/offers. Must be purchases in pairs.

Inwai Circle of Friends

Extended Benefits!

When you sign up to become a member of our Inwaì Circle of Friends, your membership will extend through June 2022! Enjoy benefits like free admission, discounts in the store and café, and free regular admissions to our cultural partners: Oregon Historical Society, North American Reciprocal Museum (NARM) Association, and Fort Walla Walla. Just go to www.tamastslikt.org/get-involved/ membership/ and select the membership level that suits you best. You may also write Virginia.conner@tamastslikt.org or call 541.429.7706 to sign up or request a brochure.

Kinship Café

April Specials!

April 2, Free First Friday: Indian Tacos, Frybread & Huckleberry Jam April 6-10: Smoked Salmon Mediterranean Salad April 13-17: Lemon Huckleberry Cheesecake Bars April 20-24: Tri-Tip Caesar Salad April 27-May 1: Grilled Chicken Wrap with Bacon and Avocado Take-out only. Call in your order to 541.429.7702 and we'll have it ready for pick up!

April Hours The Museum Store and Kinship Café are open Tuesday-Saturday weekly. On FREE First Friday, April 2, you can treat yourself to Indian Tacos ($10) or Frybread and Huckleberry jam ($6). Kinship Café is open 11am-2pm for take-out. The Museum Store is open 10am-5pm.

Our permanent exhibits remain closed. Please note, COVID-19 protocols are in place with masks and social distancing required.

Museum Store Open Tues-Sat, 10am-5pm

Kinship Café Open Tues-Sat, 11am-2pm | Exhibits are closed Pendleton, OR | www.tamastslikt.org | 541.429.7700

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April 2021

Confederated Umatilla Journal

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Playtime, outside

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Gabriel Chavez, 5, rides a tricycle around the playground Lil’ Turtle Retreat on the Umatilla Indian Reservation. The facility serves about two dozen children ranging in age from newborn to 12 years old.

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Two-year-old Nicholi Mayfield, left, and Lael Moses, 1.5 years, on the swings.

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Waylon Speedis turns the corner on his toy train at Lil’ Turtle Retreat.

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STORE HOURS Monday – Saturday 7am – 6pm | Sunday 9am – 5pm STORE HOURS

46493 Mission Rd. Pendleton, OR–97801 GAGA– 03.21 WH032113 Monday – Saturday 7am 6pm• |541-276-9082 Sunday 9am 5pm

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46493 Mission Rd. Pendleton, OR 97801 • 541-276-9082

Confederated Umatilla Journal

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April 2021

CUJ News Board of Trustees appoints Rabb Interim Executive Director By the CUJ

MISSION – The Board of Trustees of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR) has named Paul Rabb as the CTUIR’s Interim Executive Director. The decision came in the wake of Chuck Sams’ resignation following his appointment to the Northwest Power and Conservation Council.

Both the resignation of Mr. Sams and the appointment of Mr. Rabb became effective at 4 p.m. on Friday, March 12.

Rabb sent an email to CTUIR employees, stating it is a privilege to take on the role in the interim.

“As most of you know, Chuck Paul Rabb has left some very large shoes to fill, but I feel confident in what we can do together to keep this organization on a positive path forward,” he said. “The last 12 months has been very difficult is so many ways, but as we approach getting the community and workforce getting back to some sort of ‘normal,’ we must continue to work hard. Please know, I am going to be fully dedicated to this position, organization and community. I look forward to the next few months and keeping the positive momentum going.”

‘Chuck left some very large shoes to fill, but I feel confident in what we can do together to keep this organization on a positive path forward.’

-Paul Rabb Interim Executive Director Board of Trustees Chair Kat Brigham thanked Sams for his service as interim executive director.

“I can’t thank Chuck enough for his service to the Tribe. We are sad to see him go, but happy that he has received such a prestigious appointment from Governor Brown,” said Chair Brigham. “We know that he will work for the benefit of the entire region.

We wish him nothing but the best.”

Sams served in the role of Interim Executive Director since the resignation of Ted Wright in November 2020. During that time, Mr. Sams headed the ongoing response to the COVID-19 pandemic and

the CTUIR rollout of the vaccine distribution. He has served in a number of executive positions in both the non-profit and for-profit sectors regionally and nationally over the past 25 years including time as an environmental health and safety officer/planner, Communications Director and Deputy Executive Director for CTUIR. Mr. Sams holds a Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration from Concordia University and a Master of Legal Studies from the University of Oklahoma School of Law. Rabb has served as CTUIR Finance Director since 2015 and has been employed by the Tribe for 25 years. He served as Commander for the CTUIR Incident Command Team during the February 2020 flood and previously served as Housing Director.

Mr. Rabb’s tenure as Finance Director has coincided with a period of marked economic growth by the CTUIR. Rabb holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Eastern Oregon University.

“Paul has the knowledge and expertise to step right into the role of Interim Executive Director and those are valuable attributes for the continuity that the Board of Trustees wants to maintain right now,” said Brigham.

The nationwide search for a permanent Executive Director is ongoing and the Board of Trustees has geared the timeline for selection towards the summer of 2021.

The CTUIR Homeownership Program (FORMERLY THE CTUIR HOUSING DEPARTMENT)

is excited to announce that we are joining Business Development Services and Lending Services (previously the CTUIR Credit Loan Program) to help you manage your finances, buy a home, open a business, and achieve your personal financial goals.

All three programs will be under the umbrella of Nixyaawii Community Financial Services (NCFS). Soon we will have a new office at Coyote Business Park making it even easier to use all of our services. In the meantime, you can still find us at our current locations. Watch for future announcements! We look forward to continuing to serve you!

www.nixyaawii-cdfi.org Owned and operated by the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation.

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April 2021

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CUJ Briefs Bill to allow Native students to wear cultural items PORTLAND - Oregon House Bill 2052, which requires school districts to allow students to wear Native American items of cultural significance to public school events, was passed by the House and referred to the Senate Education Committee.

The bill was filed by Gov. Kate Brown on behalf of the Oregon Department of Education and was carried onto the House floor by State Rep. Tawna Sanchez, who is of Shoshone-Bannock, Ute and Carrizo descent.

“A bill like this is important for showing support for diversity,” said Modesta Minthorn, Education Director of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR).

“If we don’t allow students to show pride in who they are then we are stunting their growth.”

The initiative to pursue a legal avenue that would allow Native American students to wear culturally significant items to public school events stems from discussions amongst the nine tribes of Oregon during a Government to Government Education Cluster

Meeting, which take place once per quarter. Minthorn, the CTUIR representative at the meetings, shared how the CTUIR currently have in place similar Memorandums of Understanding (MOU) with the local school districts, including Pendleton High School and Athena-Weston School.

“Our MOUs allow students to wear traditional regalia during graduation. Our local school districts have been really supportive of that,” said Minthorn. “This bill is a long time coming. It is difficult to believe that wearing traditional regalia has ever been an issue.

Some of what the bill states is as follows: • A school district may not prohibit a student from wearing Native American items of cultural significance at a public school event.

• Nothing in this section prevents a school district from prohibiting an item or object that (a) is likely to cause a substantial disruption of, or material interference with, a public school event; or (b) replaces a cap or gown customarily worn at a graduation ceremony.

To read more about Oregon House Bill 2052, visit https://olis.leg.state. or.us.

bluecc.edu/DualCredit

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Confederated Umatilla Journal

April 2021

We are ready to care for you and your family.

As our communities begin to reopen, it’s a great time to give your health some extra attention. We’re here to support you whenever you’re ready.

541-276-5121

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April 2021

Confederated Umatilla Journal

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Sports & More The monthly newspaper of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation ~ Pendleton, Oregon

Section

B

April 2021

GOING TO

NEW HEIGHTS

TRU ALLEN Northwest Nazarene

HOW THE ALLEN BROTHERS HAVE MADE THEIR OWN LEGACY ON THE COURT

they grew up on the Nez Perce Reservation, they said that support from both communities was felt while growing up.

“It’s a blessing,” Tru said. “It was amazing how much love and support I get. Sometimes I get random messages from people in Montana and South Dakota from tribal members saying ‘hey I saw you play I like your game.’ It’s really exciting.”

By Brandon Hansen for the CUJ

While four years of age and several times zones apart, brothers Tru and Trevon Allen, the two members of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation have a bond that is hard to break.

Growing up in Lapwai, Idaho, the two went to Clarkston High School in Washington and each made their mark in the state basketball scene.

Trevon led Clarkston to back-to-back 2A State Championships and then was a star basketball player for the Idaho Vandals in the Big Sky Conference.

Tru was named the 2A Player of the year and 1st-Team All-Stater for Clarkston. He led his team to an upset of the No. 1 ranked 2A team in the state and reached the state championship game. Now he is playing at Northwest Nazarene, playing NCAA Division II basketball.

With the age difference, Trevon spent his first year as a professional basketball player in Poland while Tru played his first year as a collegiate athlete in Idaho.

“Even though he was overseas, we Facetime all the time,” Tru explained. “He has given me a lot of advice on what to do at this level and I’m watching how he does in his games and studying aspects of how he is playing. He is giving me advice on what to do to get better.”

Meanwhile Trevon said he has been staying up until 2,3,4 a.m. in the morning in Poland to watch his brother play.

“I learned just as much from his game,” Trevon said. “I look at what he does, and we reach out and talk about all types of things and life and we try and help each other.”

Trevon and Tru’s mother Sonya is a CTUIR member as is their grandmother, Rose Samuels. While

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TREVON ALLEN Starogard Gdanski

Tru Allen, above, played his first year at Northwest Nazarene and made the NCAA Div. II Tournament, while Trevon Allen, below, had an MVP-like season while playing professional basketball in Poland after a storied career at the University of Idaho.

Courtesy photos / NNU & Trevon Allen

‘Being from the Umatilla Tribe and growing up on the Nez Perce Reservation, it’s exciting to see the energy and support.’

-Tru Allen

Trevon, playing at the same school that his father Alan Allen played football was a standout for the Idaho Vandals in the Big Sky Conference. In a league where the bottom team can beat the top team on any given night, one geared for guards, speed and unconventional big men, Trevon stood out. He finished second in conference scoring and fifteenth in the nation for NCAA Division I, averaging 21.6 points per game and scoring in double digits for 28 games. His excellent play opened up the door to play overseas where the 6’2” point guard found a position on the Polpharma Starogard Gdanski professional team in Poland.

“I spent my whole life having family members and people I recognize in the stands,” Trevon said.

Brothers on page 2B

Confederated Umatilla Journal April 2021

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BURGERS

BIRDIES MORE OFTEN

Lindsey Pasena-Littlesky, Pendleton High School’s All-Conference goalie, made a big save during a home soccer match against Hermiston High School on March 16. The Bucks would fall, however, 2-0.

CUJ Photo/Dallas Dick

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April 2021

Brothers

Continued from page 1B

“To go from that to playing overseas with nobody in the stands because of COVID-19 really caused me to reflect back on myself and build the passion to play the game.”

In his rookie season, Trevon averaged 19.4 points per game, while hauling in 5.2 rebounds and dishing out 2.8 assists.

Meanwhile, Tru was on a Northwest Nazarene team that qualified for the NCAA Division II tournament, downing No. 4-seeded Point Loma in the first round, then upsetting the No. 1-ranked team in the nation, Colorado Mesa University, with a 74-54 victory to reach the Sweet Sixteen.

“Just getting to be on the NCAA Tournament court felt like another level, but our coach said ‘just play,’” Tru said. “Personally, I try and carry myself with a lot of confidence, so when I hear ‘No. 1 team’ I don’t look into that because once you start playing, it doesn’t matter.”

But like Trevon, Tru also had to play in front of no fans because of COVID-19, meaning there wasn’t that presence of community and support in the stands.

“Geez, I don’t think my parents have missed a game of ours other than COVID-19,” Tru explained. “They would split up on the weekend when we were playing for different teams.”

Trevon said while he was playing for Idaho, he would be leaving 10-20

Confederated Umatilla Journal

tickets every game at Will Call for friends and family.

“That was always a motivating factor, they had come to watch and support me so I had to put on a show for them and compete to my highest level,” Trevon said.

Both players said they feel like they are representing the tribal communities they came from.

“When I am playing overseas, people say they don’t know where Idaho was, and then when I say I am from a Native American reservation, that really sparks their interest because they have not met many Native Americans in their experiences,” Trevon said. “I carry a lot of weight on my shoulders in representing where I came from. One of my main goals is to gain knowledge and show that this can be done by someone from a small town or reservation. I want to prepare future generations of kids and show them what they need to do to chase their dreams.”

“Being from the Umatilla Tribe and growing up on the Nez Perce reservation, it’s exciting to see the energy and support,” Tru said. “There is just a lot of support and love there. “ Both players will continue to hone in their craft, exchange their experiences and advice, and work hard to play at the highest level that they possibly can. Both had to go through a lot this season being away from family and not having fans to play for, but a strong work ethic instilled by their parents and a drive to represent their community has served them well in two different settings on the globe.

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CUJ Sports

‘AS ADVERTISED’

Pendleton/Nixyaawii’s Tyasin Burns returns a kick-off in the Pendleton/Nixyaawii 26-6 victory over Hood River on March 20.

CUJ Photo/Wil Phinney

Tyasin Burns is a dynamic threat for Pendleton/Nixyaawii football in 2021

By Cary Rosenbaum of the CUJ

PENDLETON - There was some question to whether or not Tyasin Burns’ standout track record in 8-man football could hold up at the 5A level.

Days into Pendleton/Nixyaawii’s inaugural co-op season, however, the CTUIR member -- who scorched defenses last season by amassing more than 3,200 yards rushing and receiving and 23 touchdowns for Pilot Rock/Nixyaawii Community School -- put those thoughts to rest.

“I tell you what, that kid has come as advertised,” Coach Erik Davis said. “He was the very, very top end kid at the 8-man level for Pilot Rock. ... He’s a hard worker, unbelievable talent, maybe even better as a safety on defense. He’s just got a work ethic you’d wish upon anybody.”

Burns is part of a trio of NCS athletes to make varsity, including his brother Dylan Abrahamson, a sophomore, and William Sigo V, a senior.

“Those kids have come in and bought into the program that we have built and really kind of bought into the culture that made them part of the team,” Davis said. “The guys here really accepted those guys. They’re

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high character kids and they work hard. You’d never know which ones are from each program, because the culture in Pendleton is ‘One team,’ and they bought into that process.”

The co-op with Pendleton occurred after NCS’ co-op with Pilot Rock expired after last season.

“Pendleton’s such a small 5A school that we could absorb that enrollment and keep at 5A,” Davis said. “I went down and spoke at the (Oregon State Athletic Association) when they did some reclassifications of some of our leagues.”

Sensing NCS would be without a co-op team, Pendleton Athletic Director Mike Somnis jumped at the opportunity.

From that point, it’s been a season of not knowing what to expect, Davis said.

“There were a lot of kids tested at the varsity level,” he said. “Some kids needed to step up.”

The Bucks were undefeated through three games and averaged 30 points, until they hit a wall at Redmond High School, falling 28-0 on the road.

“The goal was 6-0,” Davis said,

From left, Pendleton/Nixyaawii football playersTyasin Burns, William Sigo V, and Dylan Abrahamson.

Burns plays both ways - running back on offense and safety on defense. Abrahamson, who is Burns’ brother, starts on defense for Pendleton.

CUJ Photo/Wil Phinney

noting that if they could have beat Redmond, he believed the team would be conference champions. “Every one of these kids confirmed they wanted a conference title.”

Overall, Davis hopes the impact the NCS athletes made on the co-op with Pendleton encourages more players to turn out next season.

“Hopefully, with the success we’re having, they see that if you’re good

Confederated Umatilla Journal

enough to play, you’ll play,” Davis said. “It has nothing to do with being from Nixyaawii or Pendleton. And we want them to feel like they’re part of something. ... That’s our goal to continue this relationship.”

Pendleton/NCS (3-1) hosts Putnam at 7 p.m. on Friday, April 2, at Round-Up Stadium. The Bucks then wrap up the season April 9 at Summit at 7 p.m.

April 2021

Weston-McEwen’s Aiden Wolf looks for an opening during a March 19 game against Riverside.

Nixyaawii Community School’s Sophia Bronson fights for position at the Riverside Cross-Country meet March 25 in Boardman.

BACK AND RUNNING CUJ Photo/Wil Phinney

Pendleton/Nixyaawii sophomore Dylan Abrahamson intercepts a pass in the second quarter of a win against Ridgeview March 12 at Round Up Stadium in Pendleton.

CUJ Photo/Dallas Dick

NCS’s Saint Schimmel maintains a lead against a Riverside runner at the Riverside Cross-Country meet March 25 in Boardman.

CUJ Photo/Dallas Dick

Peyton Sinclair breaks away for a big gain in the 33-6 victory over Riverside on March 19.

CUJ Photo/Dallas Dick

April 2021

Confederated Umatilla Journal

CUJ Photo/Wil Phinney

4B

CUJ Photos/Dallas Dick

WILDHORSE CELEBRATES 26 YEARS

The annual fireworks show for Wildhorse Resort & Casino’s anniversary provided a family fun, outdoor event for the community on March 6.

5B

Confederated Umatilla Journal

April 2021

CUJ Outdoors

ABOVE: An Eastern Oregon longeared owl eyes a cameraman near Spring Creek in March.

CUJ Photo/Tyler Stewart

Taken any good outdoor photos?

Send them our way for potential publishing.

CUJ@CTUIR.org

LEFT: Jeri Lynn Murr receives salmon from Jeremy Wolf, Vice Chair of the Board of Trustees for the Confederated Umatilla Indian Reservation, during the drive-by fish distribution held March 18 by the Fish and Wildlife Commission and Department of Natural Resources of the CTUIR. This was the second distribution of the year. Roughly 87 ceremonial and subsistence salmon were handed out to Tribal households.

CUJ Photo/Miranda Vega Rector

April 2021

Confederated Umatilla Journal

6B

Steelhead attempt to jump up the pipe while at a fish hatchery near Meacham. These frys have been in the pond for four weeks and are set to be released next month in the Umatilla River. They will potentially return in three to four years as adults.

CUJ Photo/Dallas Dick

YOUTHFUL ASSISTANCE: Teegan Herrera was assisting the CTUIR Fish Distribution March 18 in Mission.

CUJ Photo/Miranda Vega Rector

7B

Confederated Umatilla Journal

April 2021

LESSONS AT THE LODGE A photo story by Tyler Stewart

T

A

deer antler lies next to the rock pit and serves as a “catcher” to use in order to place the rocks in a secure position over the medicine to burn.

An orange glow emits from these rocks as they lay within the rock pit. These are no ordinary rocks. Each individual rock has been on a journey for thousands of years. Once the rocks crack or break, they are delivered back to where they were taken from so that they can continue the journey that they were originally on, holding songs, prayers, and memories within.

he sweat lodge sits directly upon ‘tiicham,’ or sacred land here on the CTUIR, I’m told. Its practice began thousands of years ago. It is as a way of healing, bathing, and prayer for area tribes. Several natural medicines, such as sage and bear root are burned within the sweatlodge to cure ailments and aid in the detoxification process, whether physically or spiritually. Temperatures within the sweat lodge can soar up to 150 degrees Fahrenheit. Songs in Washat, the religion practiced by many area tribes, are sung, some in remembrance of ancestors passed, in the form of prayers for healing and strength, and to give thanks to the Creator for the land, animals, water, food, and air that we breathe. The songs and prayers are then taken to Heaven and delivered by the eagle, as represented by an eagle feather that hangs from the ceiling inside of the sweat lodge. The sweat lodge is also referred to as the womb of mother earth as it is a safe place, a place in which one can grow both spiritually and mentally. It is a very integral part of the Tribes’ cultures and continues its healing powers to this day. Though I am not Indigenous, I am welcome to attend and heal, of which I am thankful.

T

he drum displays Tribal colors and is used, similar to the bells, to accompany songs within the sweat lodge. The pipe is used to smoke tobacco and symbolizes camaraderie within the sweat lodge. The mortar typically contains the medicines that are burnt in the rock pit inside of the sweat lodge.

Have an idea for a photo story exploring the CTUIR culture or lifestyle? Contact us at CUJ@CTUIR.org.

April 2021

Confederated Umatilla Journal

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Department of Child and Family Services Department of Children Family and Services (DCFS) 541-4297300 contact: Natasha Herrera

BE INSPIRED: Tribal Member Testimonies Building Our Life Skills, Training and Employment Readiness (BOLSTER) formerly known as Day Labor or Day Training. A Tribally-funded program for enrolled members of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation to enhance employment and life skills through a case managed process where participants are provided training and guidance while serving as part of a team. Successful participants will receive a training stipend during their participation in the Program.

David Wolf, BOLSTER Lead Supervisor – Public Works / Pros Picard “The BOLSTER Program has been a plus for many of our young people who are entering into our Tribal Workforce. It’s the beginning of learning to be accountable for time relating to getting to work on time and learning good work ethics. My hopes is the CTUIR will work towards sovereignty for employment succession for our Tribal Members. I’m honored to be a part of this program.”

David McKay III, BOLSTER Lead Supervisor – Housing / Tanner Michael “The BOLSTER Program gives me inspiration for the young generation to learn and to feel good about themselves, and good work ethics. This also assists with my supervision skills to listen to the needs of the community and to assist with my communication, to give guidance, provide expectations, and to ensure safety protocols to the BOLSTER participants.”

B9

Confederated Umatilla Journal

April 2021

CUJ News

Government-to-Government meeting with City of Pendleton focuses on flooding, events, housing, COVID-19, collection By the CUJ A government-to-government meeting with the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation and the City of Pendleton occurred March 17 via Zoom.

Among the topics discussed were flood preparation for spring, the Pendleton Round-Up, housing updates, a COVID-19 update and the Vert collection.

Regarding flooding, Pendleton City Manager Robb Corbett stated the city worked to recover from damage but also to prepare for the future. He said the City is staying on top of weather patterns.

“We anticipated moderate impacts but the helicopters overhead told a different story,” he said. “How can we better anticipate?”

BOT Chair Kat Brigham request an annual meeting in January to get out in front of flooding issues.

“We can do that,” said Pendleton Mayor John Turner.

Moving on to the annual Pendleton Round-Up in September, the BOT shared the event could look at how the Tribe has continued to operate Wildhorse Resort & Casino with temperature monitoring and symptom surveying.

Brigham said the event should have great coordination because many tribes from the region come to the event.

“We want to make sure the safety plan is good,” she said.

Turner stated the next big rodeo in Cheyenne will provide some learning lessons for the event, based on the potential aftermath. He added the City would be maintaining standards set by Gov. Kate Brown, depending on how they evolve over six months.

J.D. Tovey presented on housing for the Tribes, showcasing the Nixyaawii, Timine Way North and Lucky 7 projects

DID YOU KNOW? Until the early 1900s, the culture of the Cayuse, Umatilla and Walla Walla Indians was based on a yearly cycle of travel from hunting camps to fishing spots to celebration and trading camps and so on. The three tribes spent most of their time in the area which is now northeastern Oregon and southeastern Washington. They had lived in the Columbia River Region for more than 10,000 years. There were no buffalo in this area. The most plentiful foods were salmon, roots, berries, deer and elk. Each of these foods could be found in different places and each was available in different seasons. This meant that the Indian people had to move from place to place from season to season to their food and prepare it to be eaten and to be saved for the winter. They followed the same course from year to year in a large circle from the lowlands along the Columbia River to the highlands in the Blue Mountains.

From ctuir.org/brief-history-of-ctuir

Government Meeting on page 11B

April 2021

Confederated Umatilla Journal

10B

Government meeting Continued from page 10B

to provide housing in the area.

“Take a drive by,” Tovey said of the Lucky 7 mobile home park, which is being replaced after last year’s flood. “It looks great. We’ll have an open house when Phase II is complete -- hopefully, July.”

Brigham noted both governments have housing concerns.

“We have about 500 Tribal members who live in Pendleton,” she said, “so when we finish housing it may free up some housing inventory in the city.”

Down the road, Brigham added, “we can work together to develop additional housing options. We could be successful in finding a solution.”

Turner congratulated the Tribe on the work they had done, noting Pendleton is working with a company in Enterprise to build 80 affordable homes.

“The goal is to add 50 new housing

4-19-64 BDAY RA! RA! to Mission Atawishamush, From Montana

Since 1986 Happy 35th! We love you Tashie!

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units a year,” he said. “We added 77 last year. The goal is homes, but mostly those were apartments.”

Turner added the City is looking “at what it would take to incentivize larger developments coming in,” which would “probably cost the City some funds to offset those developments.”

“Adding housing is one of the city’s top goals,” he added. “I think we’ll have a great year in 2021.”

“Same for us,” Brigham said. “It’s been a priority for the BOT for decades.”

On COVID-19, Brigham explained how the Tribe set up an Incident Command to focus on community health and the economy.

“We were one of the first tribes impacted,” she said. “We’ve learned from it. As of today, we only have one positive case. .. We are proud because we are one of the few reservations that have only lost one tribal member.”

Turner was impressed.

“The vaccination plan you have, you should be commended on. It demonstrates what a good partner you are. Yesterday, one of our City Council members got her first vaccine because her husband works on the rez.”

Corbett noted Pendleton is advocating for a proportionate share of vaccines.

“We believe vaccines are our way out of this,” he said. “We believe there is a reluctance on the part of many to get the vaccine. That is a growing issue to reach herd immunity.”

BOT member Jill-Marie Gavin stated the online meeting was her first with the City of Pendleton. She commented on the COVID conversation.

“I know it’s County-driven in terms of risk levels, but we all need to work together,” she said. “It is very appreciated.”

Turner followed, “I am confident with our relationship with the Tribe. I think it’s positive and we want it to continue to be positive. Don’t hesitate to reach out. We want to be as transparent as possible.”

Dean Fouquette is looking for classmates who graduated from Pendleton High School in 1971.

Call Dean at (541)310-9084 or Lonnie Read at (541)310-1402 for more information about the 50th Class Reunion.

Since 1986 Happy 35th! We love you Tashie!

Atawishamush, From Montana to Mission

Confederated Umatilla Journal

April 2021

CTUIR LANGUAGE LESSON

CTUIR Express Phone Directory CTUIR Switchboard 541-276-3165 Tribal Court 541-276-2046

Human Resources 541-429-7180

Department of Children and Family Services 541-429-7300

Science & Engineering/ Air Quality Burnline 541-429-7080

Enrollment Office 541-429-7035

Senior Center 541-276-0296

Finance Office 541-429-7150

TERF 541-276-4040

Finance – Credit Program 541-429-7155

Confederated Umatilla Journal 541-429-7399

Edition: Xawit̓álxawit̓al (Imatalamłaamí Sɨ́nwit), qeqíit̓al (weyiiletpuutímt)

Imatalamłaamí Sɨ́nwit

weyiiletpuutímt

English

During feasts, the First Foods are counted out in the following order: 1.

Waykáanaš

cúuy̓em

Fish (Salmon)

2.

Ɨwínat

núkt

Meat (Deer, Elk)

3.

X̣nít

qíˀnit

Roots (things that are dug)

4.

Tmaanít

timáanit

Berries (things that are picked)

5.

Čúuš

kúuš

Water

Pyax̣í

łit̓áan

X̣áwš

qáawš

Desert Parsley, Cous

Lúukš

qeqíit

Indian Potato

Xawit̓álxawit̓al

qeqíit̓al

(Means “little ripening”,

(Refers to the roots that

referring to plant growth)

grow at this time of year)

Bitterroot

(Lewisia Rediviva) (Lomatium cous)

(Lomatium canbyi)

April

EMPLOYEES OF THE MONTH!

Front Line Dymond Bartley Wild Roast Barista Dymond is sincere in her customer service, helpful and always has a smile on her face. She takes the time and pride to organize her paper work for her finance drops which helps us in finance.

Support Robin Alexander HR Benefit Specialist Robin has dealt with a lot of employees benefit needs during the last several months. Starting with all the COVID issues, then running into the Open Enrollment.

She did an excellent job of the virtual video for the open enrollment since it was not able to be done in person.

Since benefits are an important part of our employee’s needs, she deals with employees on an emotional level, which she handles extremely well.

Supervisor Ryan Dahl BCGC Pro Shop Golf Pro When WRC took over operations at the Golf Course at Birch Creek, Ryan took on the responsibility of overseeing the daily operation of the golf department at Birch Creek as the Head Golf Professional. Ryan and his staff made the old Pendleton Country Club members as well as other public players feel very comfortable with the new management and conveyed our goal of improving the playing conditions and the customer service.

Casino • Hotel • Golf • Cineplex • RV • Museum • Dining • Travel Plaza 800.654.9453 \\ Pendleton, OR \\ I-84, Exit 216 \\ wildhorseresort.com

April 2021

Confederated Umatilla Journal

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‘Moccasin Telegraph’ finds new life

By Brian Bull of Underscore

(Editor’s note: This story was published March 21, 2021) While the U.S. as a whole is just finding its stride administering the COVID-19 vaccine to its citizens, many Native American tribes – including the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians – are on a mean streak.

According to Cherity Bloom-Miller, the tribe’s clinical services director, CTSI has vaccinated roughly one-quarter of the 5,547 enrolled members, and about one-third of those who live in Oregon.

As of March 5, the tribal government had given the Moderna vaccine to 3,000 people 18 and over, members and otherwise.

Dee Pigsley, chairwoman of the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians, says she was concerned the initial vaccine rollout was moving too slowly. But by late January, they had enough Moderna vaccine allocated from the state for 300 people.

“So we’ve been setting up appointments for tribal members,” Pigsley continues, noting that the tribe was due to get another 100 doses the following week. “We’ve vaccinated the clinic staff, our essential staff, elders. So we’re working down that priority list.”

The CTSI is now looking to inoculate casino workers over the next three weeks. The Chinook Winds Casino Resort has just reopened, boding well for one of the tribe’s biggest sources of revenue.

The Oregon Health Authority says that as of March 9, 14,077 people identifying as American Indian or Alaska Native have been vaccinated against COVID-19, 2 percent of the 750,486 people vaccinated so far. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 1.8 percent of Oregon’s 4 million residents identify as American Indian or Alaska Native.

A long history of mistreatment by the U.S. government, from chronic underfunding of the Indian Health Service to Native women being sterilized without their knowledge or consent, have understandably made tribal communities wary. Yet an Urban Indian Health Institute survey shows 75 percent of American Indians and Alaska Natives expressed a desire to get the COVID-19 vaccine (but with nearly 40 percent reporting having trouble getting to their clinics for the shot).

Tribal governments in Oregon have had success getting vaccines into arms through social media apps including Facebook and Nextdoor and through community word-of-mouth (which elders half-jokingly call the moccasin telegraph, more used to inform friends about powwows than about vaccine clinics, until recently.)

“In Oregon and the broader Northwest, it’s been very good for tribes,” says Bryan Mercier, Northwest regional director of the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

He says tribes have strong social networks and have also leveraged existing resources such as Indian Health Service clinics to promote positive messaging

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about the COVID-19 vaccines.

“So what I’ve seen regionally, not just in Oregon, are tribes surpassing their state colleagues because of those infrastructures and networks,” Mercier says.

He recounted an example he shared at a recent Portland Indian Leaders Roundtable meeting in early February.

“The Confederated Tribes of Umatilla Reservation in Mission had done some-

thing like 700 shots in arms. And the neighboring county had only done less than ten at that time.”

The vaccines are provided to tribes through either the State of Oregon or the federal Indian Health Service. Once the vaccines are allocated, tribal officials can determine for themselves which groups will be prioritized outside what the state government decides. Mercier

says that after tribes have vaccinated the majority of their immediate members, they’ve opened up clinics to other Native Americans willing to travel. The Coquille Indian Tribe, Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde, and Cowlitz Indian Tribe have done just that in recent weeks. The Coquille are also vaccinating relatives who share a home with an inoculated Moccasin Telegraph on page 16B

ONLINE, BUT NOT ON YOUR OWN You know what it means to be strengthened by a supportive community. It can make all the difference in reaching your goals.

Oregon State University Ecampus is committed to providing you a pathway to earn your degree.

• Top-ranked degrees online • Dedicated support and scholarships • Cultural engagement ecampus.oregonstate.edu/native

ONLINE Confederated Umatilla Journal

April 2021

Pictured above, from left to right, is Crystal Reynolds, Josh Carney, Dekin Carney, Samantha CraigAllen, Sandy Craig, and Sheldon Allen.

Courtesy

Handmade by us, Home baked by you

CTUIR descendant to play lead role in film

It’s Pizza Perfection - Love at 425 degrees

April Special

Large Pepperoni $9 541-276-7272 613 Sw Emigrant

Open Daily 10 a.m.- 9 p.m.

Closed Easter Sunday

We gladly accept EBT.

Samantha Craig-Allen, a descendent of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, will be starring in the film, “Waking Up in Idaho.”

“I was really surprised,” said Craig-Allen. “I thought, ‘Really, they want me as a lead?’”

Craig-Allen is the daughter of Sandra Craig from the Umatilla Indian Reservation and Sheldon Allen, of the Nez Perce Tribe. She will be playing the character Anna alongside co-star

“

Dekin Carney who will act as Boyd.

The plot centers around two foster children who spend a long weekend with their new moms.

“It’s really a story of four very different people coming together over a long weekend of hiking and other activities,” stated director Johnny Lewis.

Filming will begin in Sept. 2021.

For a release date or more information, visit www.wakingupinidaho. film.

The court depends on DCFS caseworkers and supervisors to find a safe harbor for our children who are desperately in need of our help and these folks have never failed me. I cannot imagine making these decisions without the help of such compassionate, caring human beings.

-Honorable Judge Gallaher

”

Appreciate Social Workers April 2021

Confederated Umatilla Journal

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Department of Child and Family Services

Tribal Member Testimonies: Job Schimmel

CTUIR DCFS Workforce Development has been great in many ways. During this pandemic Workforce Development has provided me training opportunities, as a CTUIR tribal member it opened my eyes to the possible job opportunities within the CTUIR services that are aligned with my educational experience and interests. The work experience would also help open doors off the reservation, if a person were to choose to go that route.

I am currently working in the CTUIR Finance Department. Thanks to the Workforce Training I received, I was able to gain experience in Finance and Accounting and continue to pursue this line of work. I want to use this work experience and continue my education, hopefully working towards a full-time position.

Before connecting with the CTUIR Workforce Development, I may never have stepped foot in a place that handled so many numbers and had so many processes like the tribal Finance Department. Math was not my interest. But having been in this department for a few months it has shown me a new perspective for this role and I am very glad to be a part of it. I really enjoy working with the Finance Department, they do a great job and they are good people to learn from. In five years, I could see myself working in Finance.

I would encourage you to keep trying, you will find something you will enjoy. If it’s a job, a program, a scholarship or whatever it is you are considering, keep applying for them. The CTUIR has many awesome work opportunities for its tribal members, and it is important that Tribal members apply. If you are motivated and looking for a position within the tribe or outside the tribe, Workforce will help you get the experience and training you need. Contact the Workforce Development team and talk to them about your career goals.

EASTERN OREGON CENTER FOR

INDEPENDENT LIVING A Global Disability Resource and Advocacy Center EOCIL is a proud supporter of the CTUIR community and other communities and programs that promote and value inclusion, equality and opportunities for people with disabilities. EOCIL is a global disability resource and advocacy center that provides an array of services for people with disabilities.

EOCIL is operated by people with disabilities.

Services Available:

- Informational and Referral - Independent Living Skills Training (budgeting and financial management, cooking, application assistance, etc.)

- Peer Counseling - Individual Advocacy - Life Transitions (school to employment, home to home, corrections to community, etc.)

- LGBTQ and two spirit resources

Locations:

April Birthdays

April Birthdays:

2nd: Jace Morris 3rd: Jakoby Van Pelt 5th: KC Picard 6th: Quanah Picard and Karen Askins 8th: Chenoah Begay and Abner Quaempts 10th: Jayden Van Pelt 11th: Bambi Rodriguez 12th: Louie Quaempts, Lisa Marsh and Allis Simmons

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15th: Jordyn Brigham 16th: Michelle Shippentower and Isabella Gutierrez - Happy 1st!

18th: Iosefa Brigham 20th: Ezra Squiemphen 21st: Peighton Campbell - Happy 21st!

22nd: Michael Eickstaedt 23rd: Kelsey Burns 24th: Robin McKay, Isaac Kash Kash and Ella Stewart 26th: Dennis Quaempts, Jr. and Marcellus Scott 27th: Caitlyn Gillpatrick 28th: Raymond Harrison and Kathryn Morrison

April Anniversary:

21st: Sherry Barrett Anderson & Nate Anderson

- Support Groups - Youth Mentoring Project - Representative Payee Project - Emergency Financial Assistance - Accessibility Assistance - HIV/AIDS Independent Living Project - And many other services

EOCIL has three locations: 322 SW 3rd St., Pendleton, Ore. webpage: www.eocil.org Email: eocil@eocil.org 541-276-1037 711 Relay Toll free: 1-877-711-1037 1021 SW 5th Avenue, Ontario, Ore. 541-889-3119 Voice 711 Relay Toll free 1-844-489-3119

The Dalles Office 400 East Scenic Drive Building 2, Third Floor, Suite 2 The Dalles, Oregon 541-370-2810 Toll free: 1-844-370-2810 Providing services in Harney, Malheur, Baker, Union, Grant, Wallowa, Umatilla, Morrow, Wheeler and Gilliam, Wasco, Sherman and Hood River counties.

EOCIL is a supporter of:

aocil.org • endhivoregon.org • adrcoforegon.org

Confederated Umatilla Journal

April 2021

Department of Child and Family Services Tribal Member Success Stories: Vaughn Herrera Herrera, who participated in the Workforce Development Program, now works as a BIA Fire Management Officer after being hired initially as an entry level wildland firefighter.

Through the DCFS Workforce Development Program in 2019 the coordinator, Tania Wildbill called one afternoon and offered him a training opportunity on his way to Wallowa Lake. In the phone call she described a job with fire/fuels at the time Vaughn wasn’t familiar at all with these terms. He then agreed to meet with Tania and discuss what training opportunity was available. The following Monday Vaughn and Tania met at BIA Campus and that’s where the interview took place with FMO, Jeff Casey.

Through workforce development program she had him working 29.5 hours a week and to not exceed the hours. Jeff Casey talked to HR on behalf of Vaughn’s work skills and ethics and it had been decided that Vaughn could volunteer for 2 weeks. Continued to work until his Workforce Development opportunity ended and at that time Jeff Casey offered him a position as (AD) Administratively Determined at the end of July, beginning of August of 2019.

During this time he was able to maintain his position by utilizing his online trainings and trainings offered at BIA. At that time it was decided that he would benefit from training and learning to become a qualified entry firefighter within the BIA program. It was decided that it was Vaughn’s responsibility to ensure that he did the online trainings independently, checking in every morning at 07:30 with his FMO and then utilizing Governance Center or Cay-Uma-Wa Education Center computer lab.

Vaughn was able to use Workforce Development program and was able to purchase a pair of certified Firefighting boots from D&B so he could start his training.

Q&A with Vaughn:

Q: What impact or benefit has Workforce Development benefitted you as a tribal member and young man on the CTUIR reservation?

A: Benefitted and impacted myself greatly because I’ve found my career, fell in love with the job and what the job does.

Q: Where are you at now with your career plan?

A: In the 3rd year of my career and still positioned at an entry level firefighter, training every day to become an advanced firefighter. This entails having a morning and evening routine of physical fitness even during the off season.

Q: Where you do see yourself in 5 years?

A: Wanting to join a hot shot crew and come back to my Reservation and utilize my training and experiences to pass down and share the knowledge with the younger generation that’s interested in fighting fire. (Eventually with his commitment he would like to become full-time with BIA, Vaughn shares).

Q: What words of wisdom do you want to share with other individuals seeking career paths and utilizing programs available?

A: Stepping out of your comfort zone, believe in yourself and any training could be the stepping stone to your career path.

Firefighting is one of the most dangerous jobs and at the end of the day Vaughn gives thanks to Creator.

April 2021

Confederated Umatilla Journal

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Moccasin Telegraph Continued from page 13B

Indigenous person, such as spouses.

In Cities, a Different Story This might help in an area where Oregon has been less successful: getting vaccines to Native people who live in urban areas. This includes urban tribal members like 54-year-old Vikki Mata. Even before the heavy winter storms canceled many vaccine clinics and testing stations around Portland, Mata, a member of the Tlingit people, was struggling to find information about the shots.

“I’ve been doing a lot of research on what options are available to American Indians and Alaska Natives living in the greater metropolitan area,” Mata said. But she was unable to find clinics in Portland.

In contrast, she was hearing about vaccines available at tribal health centers in other parts of the state. Eventually, through social media apps including Facebook and Nextdoor, and by asking around, she learned that the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde were holding vaccination clinics across the state, including in Eugene and in Salem at the Chemawa Indian Health Center.

“I learned about other clinics because a friend saw my post on Facebook and messaged me,” adds Mata. “He is also American Indian. He’d driven out to Pendleton to get his. One of his motivations was that he’d lost his mother to COVID-19.”

Mata says she’s still not yet vaccinated, but after recuperating from shoulder surgery, she’s hoping to get a shot this month.

One of the star players in Oregon’s vaccine drive is the Coquille Indian Tribe. Based in Coos Bay, the tribe has invested its casino revenues and grant money in a number of ventures well beyond its traditional territory. In January, the Coquille began operating an outpatient health clinic in Eugene, more than a hundred miles to the north. With a $900,000 Indian Community Development Block grant from HUD, a basement space has been transformed into a facility that serves an area where an estimated 6,000 Native Americans live.

Kelle Little, health and human services administrator for the Coquille, says the tribe has expanded its reach to clinics in Roseburg, Medford, and the Portland area. As of March 5, she estimates they’ve vaccinated more than 1,500 people, which exceeds tribal enrollment. This includes Coquille tribal members and employees, other Native Americans who’ve traveled to the Coquille’s clinics, and relatives who live with inoculated members such as spouses.

Little says the Coquille had vaccinated approximately 80% of its tribal elders and spouses 55 years of age or older who live in their primary service area and 50% of those living in Oregon.

Yet another tribe getting recognition is the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation. Matt Johnson, interim deputy executive director for the tribe, says that as of early March, he believes 694 out of 3,100 tribal members have been needled in the arm.

“We have also vaccinated 443 non-CTUIR member Indians through Yellowhawk (Tribal Health Center),” he adds. In addition, the tribe offered a mass vaccination clinic for non-Indians living on the reservation, which resulted in 840 people getting their first of two shots.

“When all is said and done, after this last group from the mass vaccination receives their booster shot in a couple of weeks, the tribe will have fully vaccinated over 2,100 individuals who are either tribal members, CTUIR non-Indian staff, non-CTUIR member Indians, or non-Indian residents of the reservation and surrounding community,” Johnson says.

Fueling a lot of this is a need to restore community and a sense of normalcy. When Dee Pigsley’s sister, Donna Woods, died before Thanksgiving last year, it wasn’t from COVID-19; a brain aneurysm claimed Pigsley’s elder sister.

But the novel coronavirus still cast its omnipresent shadow over Woods’ funeral, as mourners paid respects.

“We belong to the Catholic Church in Keizer,” explains Pigsley. “At the time it was 50 people inside the church, 50 in a different part of the church. And our family, when we

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Clinical Services Director Cherity Bloom-Miller provides information to Troy Kessinger before she gives him his COVID-19 booster vaccine at a temporary site organized by the Siletz Community Health Clinic for tribal members and their families in Salem.

Alex Milan Tracy/Underscore News

have a service, it’s usually a couple hundred people.

“And you have to tell people they can’t come, because that’s the way it is,” sighs Pigsley. “It’s been difficult.”

Responsibility to Vaccinate

Dr. Thomas Weiser, medical epidemiologist for the Portland Area Indian Health Service, said the federal government has a duty, based on treaties signed with Native American tribes, to ensure rapid vaccinations. IHS has been working on COVID-19 response with 23 of 43 Pacific Northwest tribes across Oregon, Washington, and Idaho since the pandemic hit a year ago.

“It’s really that federal trust responsibility that we have to make sure that tribes are provided with the resources that they need to care for their people, and that’s what we do,” Weiser says.

Another urgency has been protecting elders.

“We’ve been really worried, especially with really small tribes that maybe have fewer than a thousand members, if the critical culture bearers are not there to carry that culture forward, that so much could be lost,” he says.

“So I think that is driving a lot of the tribes to make sure they’re protecting each other, not just through vaccinations but through all the things we do to minimize the spread of COVID in communities.”

The concern about protecting elders has prompted criticism of the State of Oregon’s prioritization. Earlier this year, Governor Kate Brown’s prioritization put teachers ahead of elders, which for traditionally multigenerational households, posed a risk.

“From everything I understand about how COVID works and spreads, there’s no way I’d send my kids back to school without my parents being (vaccinated) first,” says Se-ah-dom Edmo, executive director of MRG Foundation.

She says without a vaccine for youngsters currently, sending her children to interact with their classmates could mean bringing the coronavirus back home with disastrous consequences.

“It’s putting our elders at risk if we’re sending our children out willfully to be engaged with people outside of their bubble. For Native and tribal communities, it just didn’t make sense.”

Brown’s office did not respond to a request for comment.

The prioritization was announced in January, once state officials learned there was no federal reserve of doses.

Starting March 7, seniors aged 65 and older were eligible for vaccination.

Edmo does appreciate some of the partnerships she says have helped connect Native communities to vaccines. She says the Native Wellness Institute, Native American Youth and Family Center, and others have internally prioritized urban Natives, which included a direct phone call she

Confederated Umatilla Journal

received informing her of openings at a Portland-area vaccine clinic (a number of Portland-area organizations were asked to comment for this article, but either declined or did not respond).

Far From Any Services

Perhaps those having the hardest time accessing the vaccines are those living beyond the reservation and the city. In the Columbia River Basin are traditional village sites that members of the Yakama, Umatilla, Warm Springs, Nez Perce, and other tribes have shared for generations, largely for fishing. The lack of modern infrastructure limits communication and pandemic protocols considerably, as the federal government has yet to rebuild fully the original sites flooded by dam development back in the 1950s.

“The only running water are in the bathroom facilities, those with bathroom facilities,” says Jeremy FiveCrows, of the Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission. “Others are just pit toilets. People just pull in trailers, tents, tipis, vans, RVs. It’s such an easy situation for COVID to spread, because it’s not like people can be like, ‘Oh, I’ll just quarantine here.’ You still need to use the bathroom or take a shower, where everybody uses the same place.”

CRITFC applied for grants through the Oregon Community Foundation, and with One Community Health based in The Dalles and Hood River area, received a specialized medical van for testing and vaccination for the Native people living in the basin area.

“It’s a lot of effort to get if you’re 200-300 miles from your reservation,” says FiveCrows. He says their first venture was in January at the Celilo Village site. In less than a day, all 100 doses were accounted for, something he attributes to a “brute force” outreach campaign with partner The Next Door.

“They went from site to site, just knocked on doors or campers and told them, ‘If you’re in these age groups, you’re eligible. Can we sign you up?’” FiveCrows said. “It took a lot of effort to get the success that they did.”

He says there are already two other mobile clinics planned for the village sites, and he credits the higher interest among Native Americans in getting the needle in the arm for that success.

“You also wonder how much of that is from the cultural memory of how different pandemics swept through the tribal populations and decimated us,” FiveCrows said. “So how much of that played into trying to fight that, knowing we probably have grandparents or parents that may have died from other pandemics?”

April 2021

CUJ Briefs Vega Rector rejoins CUJ as reporter

Briana Spencer Position 7

Preston Eagleheart Position 4

Carrie Sampson Samuels Zone 3 Position

Pendleton School Board Pendleton School Board Blue Mountain CC Board

Three CTUIR members on May ballot PENDLETON – Three enrolled members of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR) are on the ballot in three different races in Pendleton.

Carrie Sampson Samuels is running for the Zone 3 position on the Blue Mountain Community College Board of Education. She has one opponent.

Sampson-Samuels is a Project Director for the Northwest Portland Area Indian Health Board Health Aide Program.

She is a former BMCC student who

has a bachelor’s degree from PSU and a graduate certificate in Healthcare Management from OHSU. Preston Eagleheart is running for the Pendleton School Board - Position 4 and has two opponents. He is Managing Director of Cayuse Government Services. He received his bachelor’s degree from Eastern Washington University and Masters from Gonzaga University.

Briana Spencer is running for Position 7 on the Pendleton School Board

against one opponent. She is a Nixyaawii Chamber of Commerce Board Member, has served on CTUIR Education and Training Committee and was recently elected to the Nixyaawii Community School Board. She is a graduate of Pendleton High School.

The deadline to register to vote is April 27. Ballots will be mailed out April 28 and must be returned by 8:00 p.m. on Election Day, May 18, 2021.

A ballot drop box is located in front of the Nixyaawii Governance Center.

MISSION – Three years removed from her last stint with the Confederated Umatilla Journal, Miranda Vega Rector has returned as a temporary reporter through mid-July.

A member of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians, Vega Rector is a former Native American Journalist Association award winner who took a hiatus from journalism following the birth Miranda of her daughter.

Vega Rector “We’re very excited to get Miranda back on the team,” Editor Cary Rosenbaum said.

“She has the experience, perspective and passion we’re looking for. We hope she will continue to be a fixture for the CUJ in the future.”

Vega Rector, of Hermiston, said she is excited to rejoin the Tribal newspaper.

“It’s exciting to be back in Mission working for the Tribe, doing what I enjoy. It’s almost like I never left,” she said. “I can’t wait to start attending community events once the COVID restrictions lower.”

Hopes rise for US climate shift with Deb Haaland at interior helm

By Dani Anguiano of The Guardian

After four years under an administration that denied the climate crisis, opened public lands to oil and gas drilling and stripped protections from national monuments, the US interior department will look radically different with Deb Haaland at its helm.

Haaland, the first Native American cabinet secretary in US history and a member of the Laguna Pueblo, was sworn in to her post last week and has vowed to be a “fierce advocate” for public lands. Wildlife, parks and climate advocacy groups have hailed her confirmation as a major win for public lands and say that under Haaland’s leadership the interior department will renew its focus on fighting the climate emergency.

“She was one of the first co-sponsors of the Green New Deal and really broadly has a bold agenda for climate justice,” said Lily Gardner, a national spokesperson for the Sunrise Movement. “This is a huge and historic moment.”

Haaland is charged with managing natural resources and federal lands that comprise one-fifth of the United States and are responsible for a quarter of the country’s annual carbon emissions.

“Whoever becomes secretary has an opportunity to combat climate change, to take this 25% carbon that our public lands are emitting right now and eliminate

April 2021

that,” Haaland said in an interview with HuffPost before her confirmation.

As a US representative, Haaland backed the Green New Deal and sponsored a bill that aimed to protect 30% of US Deb Haaland lands and oceans by 2030, a commitment Biden later made by executive order. In an opening statement at her Senate confirmation hearing, Haaland said she would be an advocate for public lands, harness those lands’ “clean energy potential” to create new jobs, and ensure interior department decisions are based on science.

Bringing science back to the forefront is a crucial first step, said Kristen Brengel with the National Parks Conservation Association, pointing to the National Parks Service, an agency within the interior department.

National parks are warming twice as fast as the rest of the country, said Brengel, the NPCA’s vice-president of government affairs. “We’re seeing the effects, whether it’s invasive species, wildfires, sea level rise or wildlife being pushed out of its usual habitat.” These spaces must be protected, Brengel said, and there are encouraging

signs that doing so is a priority for the new administration.

The Biden administration has pledged to establish a Civilian Climate Corps to work on “conserving and restoring public lands and waters and addressing climate change” and to accelerate “responsible” development of renewable energy on public lands. The corps established by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt in the 1930s, by way of comparison, put 3 million jobless Americans to work and helped create national park infrastructure.

In its first two months, the Biden administration has started to reverse some of Donald Trump’s most controversial decisions, directing the interior department to review the boundaries of the Grand Staircase-Escalante and Bears Ears national monuments – a step toward restoring their protections – and paused the sale of new oil and gas leases on public lands. Biden has also asked the interior department to review that program.

The department announced last week that, as part of the review, it will hold a forum on the oil and gas program, which will allow the public to provide input and include “labor and environmental justice organizations, natural resource advocates and Indigenous organizations”.

“I think the encouraging thing is they want to do something and they’re being

Confederated Umatilla Journal

very inclusive,” said David Willms, the senior director for western wildlife with the National Wildlife Federation.

The review of the oil and gas program and the development of renewable energy on public lands could help the administration reduce carbon emissions from public lands, Willms said, but that needs to be done responsibly to ensure that frontline energy communities and workers aren’t left behind. Haaland has pledged to work on behalf of these workers as well as ranchers and farmers and communities harmed by pollution.

“The devil is in the details,” Willms said of the administration and department’s climate agenda. “We don’t really know exactly what they want to propose yet, but we know they want to do something.”

The National Parks Conservation Association hopes to see the department move away from the last administration’s energy dominance agenda, enhance water protections, support more wildlife corridors and expand national park land. And Haaland is the right person for the job, Brengel said.

“There’s no better person in terms of looking for these opportunities than Secretary Haaland,” Brengel said. “We know she is dedicated … We think there is a hopeful future here for addressing climate change.”

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IN THE SPOTLIGHT

White Swan-based Black Lodge Singers celebrate another Grammy nomination

By Tammy Ayer of the Yakima Herald Republic

Erwin Scabby Robe remembers being in the audience at the Grammy Awards in 2001. An album by his family’s drum group, the Black Lodge Singers, was nominated and members attending were seated near the stage.

That was the first year they were on national television, thanks to sitting so close to the front. It was unexpected, and a little surreal. But just being there among some of their favorite fellow artists was great.

“It was really an honor to be down there sitting with everybody,” Erwin said. “It was kind of overwhelming.

It’s hard to explain the feeling — it was humbling.”

The Black Lodge Singers, a Native American drum group founded in 1980 by his parents, Kenny and Louise Scabby Robe of White Swan, has been nominated for another Grammy. The 63rd annual Grammy Awards were broadcast live March 14 on CBS. Trevor Noah hosted the event, which did not have an in-person audience because of the pandemic.

Grammys are presented in 83 categories. The Black Lodge Singers’ album, “My Relatives” (“Nikso’ Kowaiks”), is one of five nominated for Best Regional Roots Music Album. It’s a subgenre in the American Roots Music field, which includes Americana, bluegrass, blues, folk or regional roots.

This is the eighth time Black Lodge Singers has been nominated for a Grammy as a group, plus the year they were Grammy finalists for a collaboration with R. Carlos Nakai and William Eaton, “Ancestral Voices.” That was 1994.

The group has performed throughout the United States, Canada and overseas, has won several Native American Music Awards for its powwow music and is on its third generation of family members. Black Lodge Singers members have released more than two dozen albums, with more to come. Group members are well-known as song makers and for their contemporary interpretations of traditional music.

Black Lodge Singers has also released two albums for kids, which include favorites like “Old MacDonald Had a Farm” and “The Flintstones,” complete with wacky sound effects that kept members laughing during recording sessions.

They’re thankful to be together after so many years, and being nominated for a Grammy is always an honor.

“It feels good. We’re still out here,” Erwin said Monday morning during a live interview at Yakama Nation Radio in Toppenish.

Erwin and fellow group members Creighton Scabby Robe, his 28-year-old son; and Erwin’s brother Algin Scabby Robe joined Yakama Nation Radio broadcaster Roy Dick, aka The Morning Man, at the station. Dick interviewed a few members back in January, and wanted to kick off Grammys week with another interview. He also gave away a “My Relatives” CD every day.

“I wish you guys all the best,” Dick said.

The group originally included Kenny and Louise’s 12 sons. Fourteen family members participated in this latest Grammy-nominated CD. They dedicated it to people suffering with COVID-19 and those helping them. Erwin, Algin and Creighton appreciated Dick and KYNR hosting them Monday and thanked those who buy and enjoy their music.

“It’s truly a blessing. We’re really thankful for God almighty for giving us this music to share and provide to the people out there,” Algin said. “Through our music, we hope that it touches you and comforts you. Prayers to those in Indian County and non-Indian Country.”

The group, which travels extensively in normal times to perform and compete as host drum at powwows and round dances, formed because of powwows. When the brothers were young, Kenny said it was getting too much to go to go a powwow and just hang out, Erwin said.

They’d ask for money from their dad; he wanted them to make money at powwows, not spend his money. He

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The Black Lodge Singers during the Simnasho powwow in 2015.

YouTube

Screencapture

LEFT: Black Lodge Singers’ album “My Relatives” was nominated for a Grammy Award in 2021.

Courtesy Canyon Records

‘It’s truly a blessing. We’re really thankful for God almighty for giving us this music to share and provide to the people out there.’

-Algin Scabby Robe Member of Black Lodge Singers said they should either dance or learn to sing so they could compete.

“We learned to sing so we could go to the powwows,” Erwin said. “If it wasn’t for powwows ... we’d play bas-

Confederated Umatilla Journal

ketball, run around in the bushes and get in trouble.”

Competing and hosting takes time and dedication.

In their busiest years on the circuit, Black Lodge Singers members would be traveling 40 to 45 weeks out of 52, almost every weekend, Algin said. A couple years there was no family Christmas because they were on the road.

Along with competing, the group is in high demand as host drum.

One of Black Lodge Singers’ biggest accomplishments was winning the triple crown at the 2001 Schemitzun Feast of Green Corn and Dance, held by the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation at Foxwoods Resort Casino in Ledyard, Conn. Members competed again 53 other drum groups that year and won $110,000 in prize money, Algin said.

The group has been host drum eight times for that festival and competed six times, he added.

They’ve also performed at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival and collaborated with the Phoenix Symphony on American composer James DeMars’ “Two World” Concerto for flute and orchestra. That led to an invitation from the Republic of Macedonia to a music festival in the mid-1990s, Algin said.

“That was a really good time,” he said. “We got to meet a lot of interesting people there — the Bulgarian Women’s Choir, the Monks of Tibet. They were the coolest people we met while we were there. We hit it off with them right away.”

Group members recall those days of traveling with fondness, and look forward to doing that again. “I’m just hoping that things open up so we can travel and share more of our music,” Erwin said.

“Staying home for a year is getting to us,” Creighton added.

April 2021

CUJ Almanac Obituaries

Obituaries

many to count! He will be missed by many and remembered as a legend of his time. Matt was cremated and his remains are buried at Homely Cemetery.

Obituaries He will be greatly missed.

Mardel Henry

Matthew Kenton Conner April 23, 1960 – January 16, 2021 Matt Conner was born in Salem, OR to Gilbert “Cecil” Conner and Virginia Wilkenson Conner. He was one of four brothers and had eight sisters. He excelled at many sports and while attending Madras High School he went to Districts and State in Tennis; Playing doubles with Greg Cosgrove. He graduated from MHS in 1978. He went on to Western Oregon College in Monmouth.

He began a career in food & beverage service by traveling and learning the art of waiting tables while becoming the ultimate gentleman to his patrons. He worked at some of the most elegant resorts and casinos in the west. Finally settling at Kah-Nee-Ta, then ultimately Wildhorse Resort and Casinos, where he worked alongside beloved family and friends.

Matt had a sly wit and you had to be smart to get it. He always critiqued and recommended good shows, movies and wine. He was skilled at impressions and quotes from famous people and movies. Every year since birth, Matt and his siblings traveled to the Pendleton Round-Up to participate. They camped and performed in the Happy Canyon Night Pageant. He was very proud of his nieces becoming Happy Canyon princesses. Appollonia Saenz in 2016, Virginia Conner & Gabriella Lewis in 2018 and Sequoia Conner in 2019.

Matt was preceded in death by his parents Gilbert Cecil Conner and Virginia Wilkenson Conner, Maternal Grandparents Cyrus & Margaret Wilkinson, Paternal Grandparents Gilbert & Elsie Conner, Aunties Antoinette “Toni”, Leah and Etta Conner. Uncles Duane, Earl and Norman Conner, Brothers, John Macy Conner, James Cameron Conner and Sister Verna Dee Conner, Niece Elena T. Gonsalez and Nephew Elijah Suppah.

Surviving Matt are his sisters Cheryl Janice Conner and Kit Conner Gonsalez of Pendleton.

Jody Conner of Joseph, Elaine Miller of Madras, Carla Conner of Warm Springs, Carol Conner of Mission. Kristen Gayle Conner of Mission, numerous cousins, nephews and nieces, too

Steven Jeffrey Williams 07/06/1954 to 03/25/2021 Steven Jeffrey Williams was born July 6, 1954, to Donald Bruce Williams and Antoinette Conner Williams in Pendleton, Oregon. He was the 7th born of 9 children. His siblings included Sue Lovejoy, JT Williams, David Williams, and Lisa Williams. He was preceded in death by parents Donald B. Williams and Antoinette C Williams, sisters Deanna Williams and Sara Surface and brothers Bruce Anthony Williams and Donald Barry Williams.

He was Uncle to many nephews and nieces: Nancy Turner (deceased), Jesse Minthorn, Tayts Scott, and Donald Scott Nephew/Brother Tony Surface.

CJ Wheeler, Lexi Wheeler-Pate, Paul Wheeler and Neil Wheeler.

Loretta Williams, Crayton Williams, Tashina Williams.

Robin Minthorn, Eagle Williams and Ollocut Williams.

Cameron Shawl, Joel Mayoral, Luis Mayoral and Shanae Williams Steve enjoyed going to Washat services and visiting with friends and relatives. He attended Chemawa Indian School in Salem, OR. He received certification as a Mason. He was a traditional dancer, drummer, and singer. His work history included being a firefighter, fisherman, and construction worker. He enjoyed sharing his quick wit with all his nephews and nieces. He was a storyteller, did magic tricks, played harmonica, demonstrated his hacky sac and card playing skills. A dedicated Trailblazer and Chiefs fan. An early riser and always a step ahead in getting to the yard sales.

He was such a loving person. Easy to talk to and had so many stories to share. So many memories left of going to Uncle Steve’s place.

Pendleton Pioneer Chapel received three prestigious awards in 2009

The Oregon Funeral Directors Association Award of Funeral Service Excellence w The Best Of Eastern Oregon Award as voted by the readers of the East Oregonian w Pendleton Chamber of Commerce 2009 Business of the Year

Our experienced family provides caring, compassionate care including:

Burial Services ~ Military Services Cremation ~ Monuments

April 2021

Mardel Henry was born to Albert “Wildcat” and Nora Frances “Pinchie” Henry Aug. 8, 1947, in Lewiston. She passed away Tuesday, March 23, 2021, at age 73.

Mardel attended school in Lapwai and moved to San Jose, Calif., to live with her California family and attended Abraham Lincoln High School for two years in San Jose, Calif. She returned to Lapwai and graduated from Lapwai High School in 1967.

Mardel enjoyed taking care of her nieces and nephews. She was a godmother to Jennifer Rodriguez and enjoyed taking care of Annie Kane and many other children who were her pride and joy. Mardel enjoyed playing softball for the Nationettes, rafting and camping. She also enjoyed dancing and was known as a female “tough” boxer.

She enjoyed traveling with her brothers and sisters on the elder trips and playing bingo. She was known as our “Aunt Regulator” who kept her nieces and nephews in line.

Survivors include sisters Alice McCurdy, Lou Jean Benjamin, Frances “Rockie” Allen and Gail Patterson; and brothers Dale Henry, Melvin Henry and Alan Henry, all of Lapwai. She also had many nieces, nephews and family.

Preceding her in death were Albert Henry, Nora Frances Henry, Ronald Henry, Marvella Henry, Arnold “Muggs” Henry, Leroy Henry, Linda Lou Henry, Jennifer Rodriguez, Katherine Rickman and Raymond Rickman.

The family will have a private dressing at 2 p.m. today March 26th at Malcom’s Brower-Wann.

The funeral services and viewing will be at 10 a.m. Saturday March 27th for all to attend.

Burial will follow at Jonah Cemetery. A meal will be provided to take and go due to the pandemic restrictions and to ensure everyone’s safety.

Masks will be required.

Jobs

Job Announcement Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission

Position: Police Officer Full-Time, Regular.

Four vacancies, New! Location: Hood River or Boardman, OR Job Summary: Columbia River Inter-Tribal Enforcement (CRITFE) Police Officers are directly responsible for carrying out all enforcement and protective patrols by foot, vehicle, and boat on the main stem Columbia River (Oregon and Washington shores) and its environs and also patrol at the In-lieu and Treaty Fishing Access sites (TFAS). Patrols are dictated by CRITFC/ CRITFE policy, Tribal policy, contractual obligations of the Law Enforcement Department, and at the direction of patrol supervisors.

Job Requirements/Qualifications: DPSST certified or certifiable in the State of Oregon with knowledge and experience of general enforcement duties and techniques. Knowledge or ability to learn tribal fishing rights and tribal,

Confederated Umatilla Journal

Jobs federal, and state enforcement codes. Ability to maintain composure and professional behavioral standards in highly complex and stressful situations. Ability to become familiar with equipment and patrol techniques for effective enforcement in the main stem Columbia River area. Work well as a team member with other CRITFE officers and CRITFC staff, officers from other tribal enforcement agencies and non-Indian enforcement agencies. Possess self-initiative and ability to function with minimal direct supervision in conducting productive protective and enforcement patrols. Possess tact and good communications skills, both verbal and written.

Possess basic computer skills for report writing, CAD/MDT operations, and messaging. Maintain physical standards required of an enforcement officer for purposes of health, safety, agility, and professional appearance. Ability to work long hours and rotating shifts to provide coverage related to enforcement needs and to the seasonal aspects of fisheries enforcement. Residence must be within 30 minutes driving time from the CRITFE’s Hood River Enforcement Office or CRITFE’s Boardman Enforcement Office valid driver license, excellent driving record and no criminal history. Must be able to meet standards of CRITFC’s Motor Vehicle Operation Policy.

Starting salary range: $50,506 - $55,157 Closing date: April 30, 2021. Employment application and full job announcement located https:// www.critfc.org

Join the Cayuse Holdings team! We have dozens of jobs open each month. Work on the Reservation, remotely from your home, across the US or overseas. See the complete list of job openings at www.cayuseholdings.com.

Our current opportunities include: Computer User Support Specialist, Desktop Technician, Executive Assistant, Helpdesk Agent, PMO Manager, Retail Support Service Helpdesk Agent, Watch Analyst, and Business Development Director.

Confederated Tribes of The Umatilla Indian Reservation Job Openings: •Public Transit Bus Driver •Tribal Set-Aside Project Coordinator •Administrative Assistant, part time •Utilities Operator I •Office of Child Support Enforcement Financial Specialist •Secretary II •Surveillance Operator •Water Code Administrator/ Water Resources Specialist II •Advanced Wildland Firefighter •Entry-Level Wildland Firefighter/ Firefighter type 2 •Artificial Production Supervisor •Range Technician •CTUIR Bolster Lead Worker Almanac on page 17B

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CUJ Almanac Public Notice

Weather

Continued from page 16B •Male Re-education/Intervention Facilitator •Early Educator •Indian Education Coordinator •Tribal Attorney •Conservation Tech •Education Specialist/ Wraparound Services Coordinator •Administrative Office Manager •Police Officer •Executive Director •Archaeologist I/II •Deputy Prosecutor

Public Notice PUBLIC HEARING NOTICE NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the Land Protection Planning Commission of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR) will hold the following public hearing.

Planned Unit Development File #PUD-21001 – Applicant, BIA Superintendent Michael Jackson, P.O. Box 520 Pendleton, OR 97801 on behalf of the estate of Lucy Minthorn, seeks approval from the Land Protection Planning Commission for a Planned Unit Development of Allotment C65 to resolve the estate. The application proposes to create three one-acre lots, two of which have existing homesites located at 46519 and 46547 Redhawk Road. The subject property is in SE quarter of Section 16 Township 1N Range 33 E. The property is zoned Ag-2, Farm Pasture. Planned Unit Developments are subject to the CTUIR Land Development Code Chapters 7 and 13.

The hearing will be held on Tuesday, April 13, 2021 at 9:00 a.m. Due to COVID-19 precautions this hearing will be held via Microsoft Teams. If you would like to participate in the hearing or provide testimony, please call 321-754-9526 at 9:00 a.m. The conference ID is 358 280 558#.

Materials relating to this Planned Unit Development request and additional information for joining the meeting are available for review at the Tribal Planning Office or online at https:// ctuir.org/events/lppc-meeting-public-hearing-pud-21-001/.

The public is entitled and encouraged to participate in the hearing and to submit oral or written testimony regarding the request. Written comments must be received by 4:00 pm April 12, 2021 at the Tribal Planning Office or via email

to hollyanderson@ctuir.org. To obtain further information contact the Tribal Planning Office at, 46411 Tímine, Pendleton, Oregon, 97801 or call (541) 429-7517.

Weather CTUIR Weather Report March 2021 Weather information summarize data taken at the Pendleton Weather Station Lat 45 40 N and Lon -118 51 W from March 1 to March 31.

Temperature is reported in degrees Fahrenheit and time in Pacific Standard Time.

The average daily temperature was 57.8 degrees with a high of 73 degrees on March 28 and a low of 28 degrees on March 10. With a departure from normal of 0.9 degrees Total precipitation to date in March was 0.30 with greatest 24hr average 0.11” on March 21+22. 6 days out of the month had precipitation level greater than .01 inches with 0 days greater than 0.10 inches and with 0 day greater than 0.50”. There was a departure of -.91” from average for the month of March.

The average wind speed was 9.2 mph with a sustained max speed of 53.0 mph from the West on March 28. A peak speed of 73 mph occurred from the West on March 29.The dominant wind direction was from the West.

There were 0 Thunder storms, 6 days out of 31 in which some rain fell, 0 Haze events/days, 0 Fog/Mist. Air Quality Index values remained Green/Healthy. Heavy winds and sunshine made up most of the daily weather in March.

CTUIR Government Board of Trustees

General Council

Chair Kathryn Brigham

Chair Lindsey X. Watchman

Vice Chair Jeremy Wolf

Vice Chair Michael Ray Johnson

Treasurer Sandra Sampson Secretary Sally Kosey

Secretary Shawna Gavin Interpreter Thomas Morning Owl

At-large BOT Members: Jill-Marie Gavin General Council contact Info Office: 541-429-7378 Armand Minthorn Email: GeneralCouncil@ctuir.org Boots Pond Meeting updates and information on: www.ctuir.org/government/general-council Corinne Sams Interim Executive Director: Paul Rabb

BOT Minutes March 1, 2021 BOT PRESENT: Kat Brigham, BOT Chair; Jeremy Wolf, Vice-Chair; Sandra Sampson, Treasurer; Sally Kosey Secretary; Armand Minthorn, Member; Boots Pond, Member; Jill-Marie Gavin, Member; Corinne Sams, Member and Lindsey Watchman, General Council Chairman.

Armand Minthorn on emergency leave. Full Almanac on page 18B

Stone setting 8:00 a.m. at Tutuilla Cemetery Memorial services at 9:00 a.m. at the Longhouse followed by lunch Small giveaway for Matthew W. Minthorn Lorene Videl Minthorn Spencer (Ipna-tsolatalkt)

Name Giving in the afternoon for:

Dirk Scot Spencer

Archie Broncheau Jr.

(Likeesta)

Tyanna Van Pelt Blaze Broncheau Skylei Broncheau Dante Spencer

To submit an obituary, public notice or job announcement, email us at CUJ@CTUIR.org

*Please remember to wear your mask*

B21

Confederated Umatilla Journal

April 2021

CUJ Almanac BOT Minutes Continued from page 17B quorum present.

Old Business: None.

New Business: Resolution 21-021: Topic: NCAI Tribal Membership and Delegation.

RESOLVED, that the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, which is the official governing body of the above named Tribes, hereby authorizes N. Kathryn Brigham who is the official principal tribal official, to take the necessary action to place the Tribes in Membership with NCAI; AND BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that tribal funds in the amount of $1,300, based on the Tribal Membership dues schedule of the National Congress of American Indian (NCAI) By-Laws, Article III – Members, Section C 2 are authorized to be paid for such Tribal Membership in NCAI; AND BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that based on the tribal citizenry of 3,148 persons, the Tribe shall have 130 votes, in accordance with Article II– Members, Section B 1d; AND BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, that pursuant to Article III– Members, Section B 1(b) of the NCAI Constitution and ByLaws, the Confederated Tribe of the Umatilla Indian Reservation designates the following persons as Delegate and Alternate Delegates, and instructs them to become Individual Members in Good Standing in National Congress of American Indians in order to fulfill their responsibilities as Official Delegates to the National Congress of American Indians Annual Session, Mid-Year Session and Executive Council Sessions.

Delegate: N. Kathryn Brigham Title: Board of Trustees Chair Term Alternate: Jeremy Wolf Title: Board of Trustees Vice-Chairman Alternate: Sandra Sampson Title: Board of Trustees Treasurer Alternate: Sally Kosey Title: Board of Trustees Secretary Alternate: Armand Minthorn Title: Board of Trustees Member at Large Alternate: Jill-Marie Gavin Title: Board of Trustees Member at Large Alternate: Corinne Sams Title: Board of Trustees Member at Large Alternate: Boots Pond Title: Board of Trustees Member at Large Alternate: Lindsey Watchman Title: General Council Chairman Ex-Officio Term Expiration Date: December 1, 2021 for Delegate and or Alternate OFFICIAL TRIBAL ADDRESS AND TELEPHONE NUMBER: Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, 46411 Timíne Way, Pendleton, Oregon 97801, (541) 276-3165 and Facsimile (541) 276-3095. MOTION: Jeremy Wolf moves to adopt Resolution 21-021 as amended.

Sandra Sampson seconds. Discussion. Question.

Motion carries 7-0-0.

Other Board Action: None.

BOT Travel report: (5). Jeremy Wolf 3 reports: 1. Jeremy Wolf, 2/22 Video Conference re: CRT Seminar Group, Mighty Columbia Forum.

2. Jeremy Wolf, 2/24 Webinar re: BC Columbia River Treaty Virtual Townhall.

3. Jeremy Wolf gave verbal report. Working on written report to submit later.

Kat Brigham 2 reports: 1. Kat Brigham, 2/16 Zoom re: Nez Perce Chair hosted meeting re: Simpson Proposal.

2. Kat Brigham, 2/19 Zoom re: Salmon People Gathering from 9 AM to 1 PM. BOT Leave and Travel Request: Jeremy Wolf, polled to attend Columbia Basin Collaborative Video Conference on 2/24 from 8:30 AM to noon.

Jeremy Wolf, polled travel for 2/26 to Cascade Locks from 1 to 8 PM to retrieve fish for tribal distribution on 2/28.

Jill-Marie Gavin, personal leave on 2/26 from noon to 4 PM. Kat Brigham 3 requests: 1. Zoom meeting on 5/25 from 9 to 9:45 AM as speaker at May Columbia River Basin Restoration Working Group. 2. Weekly Zoom meeting re: Simpson Proposal on Fri. from

April 2021

BOT Minutes

BOT Minutes

BOT Minutes

1 to 4 PM. 3. Zoom meeting on 3/8 from 2-4 PM re: BPA/WW Corp & CTUIR Nursery Bridge and WW Basin.

Sally Kosey, 3/2 from 9 AM to noon re: AI/AN Advisory Committee meeting.

Sandra Sampson 3 requests: 1. Virtual Zoom on 3/2 from 5:30 to 7:30 PM re: WWWPM meeting. 2. Virtual Zoom on 3/4 from 1 to 4 PM re: CR-PAG meeting. 3. Zoom on 3/1 from 10 to 11 AM re: NAFOA Policy on Tribal Relief Fund Formula.

Casino will reimburse half; AND BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Board of Trustees hereby appoints Woodrow Star, Gaming Commission Member of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation as our representative to NIGA, and appoints the following as alternate representatives to NIGA. N. Kathryn Brigham, Chair of the Board of Trustees; Jeremy Wolf, Vice-Chairman; Sandra Sampson, Treasurer; Sally Kosey, Secretary; Armand Minthorn, Member at Large; Corinne Sams, Member at Large; Jill-Marie Gavin, Member at Large Boots Pond, Member at Large and Lindsey X. Watchman, General Council Chairman Ex-Officio; NOW, THEREFORE BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, that these appointment will remain in effect through 2021 and/or until our Board of Trustees will reappoint or replace our representatives. MOTION: Armand Minthorn moves to adopt Resolution 21025. Sally Kosey seconds. Discussion. Question.

Motion carries 7-0-0.

Other Board Action: Wellbriety Funds Plan Motion. MOTION: Jill-Marie Gavin moves to approve release of 2021 Wellbriety Funds in the amount of $105,000 to Yellowhawk Tribal Health Center on March 8, 2021 following presentation of the Wellbriety budget and plans for 2021 by Yellowhawk Tribal Health Center at the work session held March 4, 2021. Lindsey Watch seconds. Discussion.

Question. Motion carries 7-0-0.

BOT Travel report: 1.) Jeremy Wolf, video conference from 2/24-26 to attend Special and regular CRITFC meetings.

2.) Sally Kosey, Zoom on 3/2 for AI/AN Advisory Committee meeting.

3.) Sandra Sampson, four reports: 1. 3/4, Zoom meeting re: Columbia River Policy Advisory Group meeting. 2. 3/1, Zoom meeting re: Congress Tribal Leaders on Tribal Relief Funds. 3. 3/3, Zoom meeting re: COVID-19 White House update. 4. 3/2, Zoom meeting re: W3MP meeting.

BOT Leave and Travel Request: Boots Pond, 3/23 online for 10th Tribal Land Staff National Conference.

Corinne Sams, two requests: 1. Polled 3/8 for virtual speaking engagement for International Women’s Day Honoring our Matriarchs. 2. Polled 3/5 personal leave from noon to 4 pm.

Jeremy Wolf, three request: 1. Video conference on 3/10 from 9 AM to 4 PM re: State of the Basin.

2. Zoom on 3/5, 3/12 and 3/19 at 9 AM re: preliminary planning for Simpson proposal.

3. Video conference 3/10 re: CRITFC/SPOD meeting.

Jill-Marie Gavin, two requests: 1. Personal Leave and Birthday Leave week of 3/22 to 3/26.

2. Personal Leave 3/10 from 7:30 AM to noon.

Sandra Sampson, polled 3/3 for virtual meeting re: White House COVID Response Team update.

al Women’s Day Matriarch and presented with gifts.

Jeremy Wolf, three reports: 1. 3/5 video conference re: preliminary planning of Simpson proposal.

2. 3/5 webinar re: Seminar Group – Mighty Columbia presentation.

3. 3/12 video conference re: Simpson proposal tribal planning meeting.

Sandra Sampson, 3/10 virtual zoom re: White House COVID-19 update.

BOT Leave and Travel Request: (15). Boots Pond, two requests: 1. Personal leave all day on 3/19.

2. Personal leave all day on 3/20.

Corinne Sams, three requests: 1. Polled personal leave from 1 to 4 PM on 3/10.

2. Polled personal leave for 3/19.

3. Personal leave all day for both 3/25-26.

Jeremy Wolf, polled personal leave from 2 to 4 PM on 3/12.

Jill-Marie Gavin, polled for personal leave for 3/11 from 2:45 to 4:00 PM. Lindsey Watchman, polled personal leave all day 3/19.

Sandra Sampson, 7 leave requests: 1. Personal leave all day on 4/9.

2. Personal leave all day on 3/26.

3. Polled for zoom meeting re: White House Tribal COVID-19 update.

4. Virtual on 3/17 from 9:30 to 11 AM re: IHS Tribal Consultation 6 Billion American Rescue Plan.

5. Zoom meeting on 3/25 from 11 AM to 2 PM re: HHS Region 10 Consultation.

6. Zoom meeting for 4/6-7.

March 8, 2021 BOT PRESENT: Kat Brigham, BOT Chair; Jeremy Wolf, Vice-Chair; Sandra Sampson, Treasurer; Sally Kosey, Secretary; Armand Minthorn, Member; Boots Pond, Member; Jill-Marie Gavin, Member; Corinne Sams (will leave at 9:15 for approved travel), Member and Lindsey Watchman, General Council Chairman. Full quorum present.

Old Business: None.

New Business: Resolution 21-022: Topic: ADS PDX130 Umatilla Project Confidential Mitigation Agreement. RESOLVED, that the Board of Trustees hereby approves the attached Confidential Mitigation Agreement between the Confederated Tribes and Amazon Data Services, Inc. and authorizes its Chair to execute it on behalf of the Confederated Tribes and to take such further action and execute other documents, if any, that are necessary to carry out the purposes of the Confidential Mitigation Agreement and this Resolution; MOTION: Armand Minthorn moves to adopt Resolution 21-022.

Corinne Sams seconds. Discussion. Question.

Motion carries 8-0-0.

Resolution 21-023: Topic: Oregon COVID-19 Response Grant Agreement RESOLVED, that the Board of Trustees hereby approves the Grant Agreement between the State of Oregon acting by and through its Department of Administrative Services and the Confederated Tribes attached to this Resolution as Exhibit 1C for a grant to address needs arising from the COVID-19 pandemic and associated economic hardships; AND BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Board of Trustees hereby authorizes its Chair to execute the attached Grant Agreement or a document containing substantially similar terms and to take such further actions, including the execution of documents, that may be necessary to carry out the purposes of this Resolution; AND BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, that any use of the funds under the Grant Agreement shall be subject to appropriation by the Board of Trustees; MOTION: Armand Minthorn moves to adopt Resolution 21-023. Jill-Marie Gavin seconds. Discussion. Question. Motion carries 7 for (Armand Minthorn, Jill-Marie Gavin, Jeremy Wolf, Sally Kosey, Lindsey Watchman, Boots Pond and Corinne Sams) - 0 against - 1 abstaining (Sandra Sampson).

Resolution 21-024: Topic: Tribal Horse Arena.

RESOLVED, that the Board of Trustees hereby approves the repair, use and funding of the Tribal Horse Arena, as identified in Exhibit A, and approves the Public Works proposed budget to make these repairs and maintain the arena as identified in Exhibit B, directs the Office of Legal Counsel to assist Public Works in the development of necessary legal documents to implement the project, and authorizes the Chair of the Board of Trustees and Executive Director to execute any documents necessary to implement the Tribal Horse Arena project; MOTION: Armand Minthorn moves to adopt Resolution 21-023. Jill-Marie Gavin seconds. Discussion.

Question. Motion carries 6 for - (Armand Minthorn, Jill-Marie Gavin, Jeremy Wolf, Sally Kosey, Lindsey Watchman and Boots Pond - 0 against - 1 abstaining (Sandra Sampson). [Corinne Sams left at 9:15 AM] Resolution 21-025: Topic: NIGA Tribal Membership. RESOLVED, that the Board of Trustees, authorizes the payment of dues for National Indian Gaming Association (NIGA) of $15,000 from the Board of Trustees budget and Wildhorse Resort and

March 22, 2021 BOT PRESENT: Kat Brigham, BOT Chair; Jeremy Wolf, Vice-Chair; Sandra Sampson, Treasurer; Sally Kosey, Secretary; Armand Minthorn, Member and Corinne Sams, Member and Lindsey Watchman, General Council Chairman. Boots Pond and Jill-Marie Gavin on personal leave.

Old Business: Poll 21-006 Topic: Letter to Governor Brown re: concern re: gambling in Oregon.

MOTION: Corinne Sams moves to ratify letter to Governor regarding gambling in Oregon. Jeremy Wolf seconds. Discussion. Question. Motion carries 6-0-0.

New Business: Proposed Resolutions: Next resolution number is 21-067: Resolution: Removed from agenda by motion.

Letter regarding CARES Act Tribal Funding Distributions. MOTION: Jeremy Wolf moves to Almanac on page 19B

March 15, 2021 BOT PRESENT: Kat Brigham, BOT Chair; Jeremy Wolf, Vice-Chair; Sandra Sampson, Treasurer; Sally Kosey, Secretary; Armand Minthorn, Member; Boots Pond, Member; Jill-Marie Gavin, Member; Corinne Sams, Member and Lindsey Watchman, General Council Chairman. Full quorum present.

Old Business: None New Business: Resolution 21-026: Topic: City of Kennewick MOU, RESOLVED, that the Board of Trustees approves the “Memorandum of Understanding for Partnership between the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation and the City of Kennewick,” attached as Exhibit 1; AND BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, that the Board of Trustees authorizes its Chair to sign all necessary documents to enter into this agreement; MOTION: Armand Minthorn moves to adopt Resolution 21-026. Jill-Marie Gavin seconds.Discussion. Question. Motion carries 8-0-0. Other Board Actions: None BOT Travel report: (6) Corinne Sams, two reports: 1. 2/19, Zoom re: Salmon Gathering and was given gifts for presentation 2. 3/8, Zoom re: speaker on panel for Internation-

Confederated Umatilla Journal

B22

CUJ Almanac BOT Minutes Continued from page 18B approve letter and send electronically to Dept. of Treasury Secretary. Armand Minthorn seconds. Discussion. Question. Motion carries 6-0-0.

BOT Travel Reports: Corinne Sams, 3/17 Zoom re: CRITFC LEC meeting.

Corinne Sams, 3/18 Zoom re: provide testimony on SB731.

Jeremy Wolf, 3/19 video conference re: CRITFC/ SPOD meeting. – Rescheduled to 3/24 from 10:30 AM to noon.

Jeremy Wolf, 4/1 video conferencing all day re: IBMP mtg.

Sandra Sampson, 3/18 poll for personal leave from 11:30 AM to 12:30 PM. BOT Leave and Travel Requests: Armand Minthorn, poll for personal leave on 5/20, 21 and 24.

Boots Pond, 3/18 poll for personal leave from 1 to 2 PM. Corinne Sams, 3/18 poll for zoom mtg. from 10 to 11 AM re: give testimony on SB 731.

Corinne Sams, 3/17 poll for zoom mtg. from 10 AM to 1 PM re: CRITFC/LEC. Jeremy Wolf, 3/24 poll for video conferencing from noon to 3 PM re: CRITFC/SPOD. Jeremy Wolf, 4/1 video conferencing all day re: IBMP mtg.

Sandra Sampson, 3/18 poll for personal leave from 11:30 AM to 12:30 PM.

March 29, 2021 BOT PRESENT: BOT Present: Kat Brigham, BOT Chair; Sandra Sampson, Treasurer; Sally Kosey, Secretary; Boots Pond, Member; Jill-Marie Gavin, Member; Corinne Sams, Member and Lindsey Watchman, General Council Chairman.

Jeremy Wolf on personal leave. Armand Minthorn on personal leave. Quorum present.

Old Business: None: New Business: Resolution 21-027: Topic: Attorney Services CERCLA Hanford and Portland Harbor. RESOLVED, the Board approves the use of funds outlined in Exhibit 1C from the litigation reserve fund through 2023; AND BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, the Board of Trustees hereby approves and authorizes the Interim Executive Director execute the contract attorney services with Diana Bob, Native Law, PLLC with the budget contained in confidential Exhibit 1C, the contract for Hanford attorney services in confidential Exhibit 2C; and the contract for Portland Harbor attorney services in confidential Exhibit 3C; AND BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, the Office of Legal Counsel will administer the approved contracts and shall include the progress of the Native Law’s attorney services in the routine staff reports to the Board of Trustees; MOTION: Boots Pond moves to adopt Resolution 21-027. Jill-Marie Gavin seconds. Discussion.

Question. Motion carries 6-0-0.

Resolution 21-028 Topic: EOU Scholarship Matching Funds. RESOLVED, that the Board authorizes the use of Contingency Funds in the amount of $50,000 to be used to match a private donation of $50,000 to Eastern Oregon University (EOU) to create a scholarship for tribal members attending EOU; AND BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, that the Board authorizes the Interim Executive Director to sign the CTUIR Endowed Scholarship Agreement with the Eastern Oregon University Foundation (attached as Exhibit 1) MOTION: Lindsey Watchman moves to adopt Resolution 21-028. Sally Kosey seconds.

Discussion. Question. Motion carries 6-0-0.

Resolution 21-029: Topic: Strategic Energy Plan RFP. RESOLVED, that the Board of Trustees Authorizes the Executive Director’s Office to execute the entirety of the contract for the development of the Energy Plan through the Strategic Energy Plan Proposal, exhibit 1, and authorizes the use of an additional $72,530.00 for the total combined ceiling award of $152,530 to the Contractor (AECOM); MOTION: Jill-Marie Gavin moves to adopt Reso-

B23

BOT Minutes lution 21-029. Corinne Sams seconds. Discussion.

Question. Motion carries 5 for (Jill-Marie Gavin, Corinne Sams, Sally Kosey, Lindsey Watchman and Boots Pond) - 0 against – 1 abstaining (Sandra Sampson).

Resolution 21-030: Topic: COVID-19 Public Health Emergency Extension to May 31, 2021.

RESOLVED, the Board of Trustees hereby extends through May 31, 2021 the CTUIR COVID-19 Public Health Emergency declared by Resolutions 20-019 and 20-050; AND BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, the Board will consider the status of the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency on or before May 24, 2021, as recommended by the Incident Command team; MOTION: Sally Kosey moves to adopt Resolution 21-030. Boots Pond seconds. Discussion.

Question. Motion carries 4 for - (Sally Kosey, Boots Pond, Sandra Sampson and Corinne Sams) – 1 against (Lindsey Watchman) – 1 abstaining (Jill-Marie Gavin).

Other Board Action Items: Commission/Committee Update by Sally Kosey, BOT Secretary.

Cultural Resources Committee, two vacancies, 2 applications from Isaiah Welch and Jolie Wendt.

MOTION: Boots Pond moves to appoint Isaiah Welch and Jolie Wendt by acclimation to the Cultural Resources Committee for 2 year terms ending April 1, 2023. Corinne Sams seconds. Discussion.

Question. Motion carries 5 for - (Boots Pond, Corinne Sams, Sandra Sampson, Sally Kosey and Lindsey Watchman) - 0 against -1 abstaining (Jill-Marie Gavin).

Science & Technology Committee, one vacancy, one application from Donald Williams.

MOTION: Jill-Marie Gavin moves to appoint Donald Williams by acclimation to the Science & Technology Committee for 2 year term ending April 1, 2023. Lindsey Watchman seconds.

Discussion. Question. Motion carries 6-0-0.

TERO Commission, one vacancy, one application from Alan Crawford.

MOTION: Sandra Sampson moves to reappoint Alan Crawford by acclimation to the TERO Commission for 2 year term ending April 1, 2023. Lindsey Watchman seconds. Discussion. Question. Motion carries 6-0-0.

Water Commission, one vacancy, one application from John Barkley.

MOTION: Corinne Sams moves to reappoint John Barkley to TERO Commission for 2 year term ending April 1, 2023. Sally Kosey seconds.

Discussion. Question. Motion carries 5-0-0.

[Corinne Sams not present] Terms expiring: Lawanda Bronson, TERO Commission term ending May 6, 2021.

Will continue to advertise for; 1-Housing Commission.

1-Credit Board, 3 year term, meetings 2nd & 4th Tues. at noon.

3-CTUIR Culture Coalition, 2 year term, meets as needed.

1-Farm Committee, 3 year term, meets 2nd & 4th Tues. at 2:30 PM. 1 Housing Commission 3 year term, meets, 1st and 3rd Tuesday at 1:00 pm at URHA 1-Land Protection Planning Commission/ alternate, 3 year term, meets 2nd & 4th Tues at 9 AM. All applications due Tues. April 20 by 4 PM. A BOT work session scheduled for Fri. April 23 at 8:30 AM to review applications and appointments made on Mon. April 26.

End of update.

BOT Travel Reports. Deferred.

BOT Leave and Travel Requests.

Jeremy Wolf submitted a poll but did not take due to funeral leave.

MOTION: Sally Kosey moves to approve leave request. Jill-Marie Gavin seconds. Discussion. Question. Motion carries 6-0-0.

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