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Assistant Caden Leno, right (Photo by Michelle Alaimo) By Danielle Harrison Smoke Signals editor The annual Tribal Employment Rights Office Appreciation Lunch was held Saturday, Nov. 2, at Spirit Mountain Casino to honor and highlight employees and projects in 2024. TERO Director Harris Reibach served as master of ceremonies, introducing speakers, presenting awards and announcing raffle winners while more than 200 attendees enjoyed lunch and desserts. “We’re here to celebrate all of the good …

Health & Education Grand Ronde Education Summit draws nearly 200 educators 08.13.2025 Danielle Harrison & Katherine Warren-Steffensmier Education Tribal member Gracie Mercier, left, talks about her experience attending Willamina High School during the 2025 Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde Education Summit at Spirit Mountain Casino’s Event Center Wednesday, Aug. 6. On the right is Tribal member Mikayla Mercier who also shared her experience during a “Student Voices: Native Youth Speak …

Employment Rights Office Appreciation Lunch was held Saturday, Nov. 15, at Spirit Mountain Casino’s Event Center to honor and highlight employees and projects in 2025, and to honor the worker of the year. TERO Director Harris Reibach served as master of ceremonies, introducing speakers, presenting awards and announcing raffle winners while approximately 200 attendees enjoyed lunch and desserts. Before lunch began, Reibach read aloud a tribute letter to the family of past TERO worker and Warm Springs …

Employment Rights Office Appreciation Lunch was held Saturday, Nov. 15, at Spirit Mountain Casino’s Event Center to honor and highlight employees and projects in 2025, and to honor the worker of the year. TERO Director Harris Reibach served as master of ceremonies, introducing speakers, presenting awards and announcing raffle winners while approximately 200 attendees enjoyed lunch and desserts. Before lunch began, Reibach read aloud a tribute letter to the family of past TERO worker and Warm Springs …

participants continue to buy land in the area as it becomes available. Already, management of the area has translated into 4,000 student visits and 40,000 visits altogether annually. Tribal Attorney Rob Greene praised the day's event as "the continuation of an important developing relationship" with the Tribe's partners. The Cultural Resources Department drafted the history, made gifts for the participants and organized the proceedings, said Lewis. He gave credit to Khani Schultz, Julie Brown …

at the Tribal Powwow Grounds on June 27-30. This is the first year for this traditional bow-building class in Grand Ronde, run by Jack and Brenda Holthaus, who have brought similar classes to Tribal peoples across the country. At the time of the presentation, Jack was on the Pine Ridge Reservation with the program and was headed next for the Cheyanne Reservation, both in South Dakota. The funds are used to buy bow wood staves and arrows, and to pay teachers, said Brenda, who accepted the check …

open to telling this to the community. They've really got a community buy-in for the project, and in my eye, hey, that's the key to success. Culturally, this is a very important part of our ceded lands." "The region is the homelands of the northern Shasta and the Takelma," said Tribal Cultural Resources Department Manager David Lewis. "The line between the two Tribes is not well known and it is thought that Ashland is the northern extremity for the Shastas. They would have camped and lived …

." "We have song recordings from the 1800s," Mercier added, "but we don't sing them because they belong to others." One needs permission to sing songs written by others, he said. One could buy them, not for money, but by laying gifts at the feet of the families of those who wrote them. Acceptable gifts include traditional foods and crafts. Mercier also talked about smudging, burning sage, as a way of cleansing an atmosphere for "people who have a heavy heart." Some sage, also called mugwort, grows …

the community to buy 80,000 books for "high needs" libraries, she said. April Campbell, a Grand Ronde Tribal member who was Education Department manager for the Tribe and is now Indian Education Specialist for the state Department of Education, sees value in bringing together "key strategic partners" with outreach efforts. Bobby Mercier, Brian Krehbiel, Ali Holsclaw and Kimberly Roybal drummed and sang to start the program. Umpqua Bank brought in an ice cream truck, giving out what we all scream …

and preparing food. Youth Prevention Program Coordinator Cristina Lara, Youth Programs Assistant Shannon Stanton and Teen Pregnancy Prevention Coordinator Valeria Atanacio were at camp on Friday helping to ensure Canoe Family members were comfortable and nourished for the journey ahead. “We start preparing a month ahead of time for the food,” Stanton said. “We figure out the ingredients, plan the menu and figure out how much to buy. … I love to cook and do things for people.” The Tribe took two canoes …