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pandemic, combat the crisis of missing and murdered indigenous peoples and address the country’s dark history with the Federal Indian Boarding School Initiative. “We did take the opportunity to talk about, in the bureau budget, the things that are lacking for our Tribe,” Kennedy said during the Tuesday, Oct. 26, Legislative Action Committee meeting. “I want to believe that they feel on open ears. The things that I talked about were public safety, fire management and establishing a line item …

. He uses knives and chisels to form the old-growth wood, which is between 800 to 1,300 years old. Mercier has been carving for approximately 18 years and first learned his craft from former Tribal Cultural Education Coordinator Tony Johnson and carver Adam McIsaac, who offered classes through the Tribe’s Cultural Resources Department. “I really got into carving after that,” he says. To see or purchase Mercier’s creations, visit www.etsy.com/shop/BEARTRACKSNDN. The RTA Awards is a competition …

don't know that I was paying attention to everything." Sometime around the summer of 1985, Tresa recalls, she lived down the street from the Depot. "The director of the Portland area Indian Health Service and staff were coming to do a site visit with a couple of staff members. Cheryle (Kennedy), Bonnie (Mercier) and I planned a lunch for our guests. I was 20 and the only thing I had ever cooked was Ramen and grilled cheese, so I had no idea how to make anything, but there wasn't funding …

the piece last year, he lived in Medford and was able to visit Table Rocks frequently during the writing process. “It was written over a period of about a month,” he says. “I would go up to Table Rocks and ask if I was doing this OK. I think a big part of my thought process during it was oral history. (Rewriting) it brought me back to how it felt seeing Table Rocks every day. Down there I learned that the red-tailed hawk mascot of Southern Oregon University was inspired by a Takelma story of how …

member Fabian Quenelle, who, along with his brothers, grew up helping his mom prepare and sell fry bread at Tribal events. “I’ve been in a food stand since I could walk,” he said. “My mom used to do fry bread at the park’s powwow. I started getting back to it five or six years ago.” Now he and his wife, Ree Amber Quenelle, are hoping to make their food truck, Commod Bod, a full-time endeavor. Quenelle said he’s always loved food and cooking. “My mom and my dad … both used to cook all the time …

of forestry work, Nepstad decided that being with his young family is a priority. Nepstad grew up as one of five children in a small town near La Crosse, Wisc., on the Mississippi River. He played football and ran track for Melrose-Mindoro High School. “I grew up hunting and fishing before and after school,” says Nepstad. Nepstad moved to Nevada in 1984 to work for the Bureau of Land Management. He ran the fire retardant facilities at an air tanker base for the bureau’s firefighting planes …

something new. We’ve had Greg’s classes before and open houses, but thought this might be a fun way to get people in the area to come to the office.” Greg Archuleta thought of the idea of a family history activity after attending a workshop at Clackamas Community College last spring. “I focused on the history of my family at Willamette Falls and created a video,” he said. “The idea behind it is that we all have these connections. I want people to become more knowledgeable about the Tribe’s history …

field of paleobiology. Paleobiology is a combination of disciplines, using fossils to study the biological and environmental history of a region. McKenzie hadn’t loved school, she said, and gravitated toward classes with more of a social focus. After graduating high school, she traveled around the United States for two years, working odd jobs. “After about two years I realized I was both self-sufficient and happy,” she said in her speech. “I was working in jobs that were constantly changing …

) By Danielle Harrison Smoke Signals editor When asked what her favorite memory is after working 22 years for the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde, Kathy Cole doesn’t hesitate. “Just the relationships that I’ve built with everyone throughout the years,” she said. “Some of the kids I taught in preschool, kindergarten and high school…just watching them grow up and come back to the Tribe…to continue to have that relationship with them. It’s been really rewarding and fulfilling. Even the kids that don’t come …

the weekend. They were Buckshot, Sho-na-ay, West Coast Boys, Northern Black Horse, Four Directions, Horse Creek, Yellow Stone, Big Eagle, 007, Turquoise Pride, Star Horse, a-nee-na-zee, Red Road Nation, All Nations, Battle Axe, War Pony and Yakama Boys. Host Young Bear came from North Dakota to play this year. Kennedy, a longtime Tribal Council member, gave the invocation on Friday night. "The drum is the heartbeat of our people," she said. Share On Facebook Share On Twitter Share Article Link …