Letters to the Editor -- April 1, 2013

Dear Mr. Chairman and Tribal Council members:

Thank you for all you do to manage our Tribal affairs and the fine work done to help the members of our Tribe have a better and more enjoyable life.

Since the humble beginnings after Restoration to our current state of affairs, we have all been blessed in so many ways. I am proud to say that possibly some seeds planted in the mid-1980s during our Tribal Council travels and meetings with state divisions, such as Fish and Wildlife, other Tribal government representatives and county and city managers have come to fruition and been a part of our Tribe's recovery.

I have been following our Tribe's journey through this with the help of our online video link and archives. At this time I do not envy you the turn of events that seem to be causing quite a bit of turmoil at recent meetings. I suspect that things may get a little more complicated before it all plays out. I pray that all of the council will have the strength and fortitude to see this through and once again be able to get on with the everyday business of our Tribe without all the distractions.

Being a member of the Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde Community of Indians has been a wonderful part of my life. I was a young adult when my grandmother, Cecil Rose Russell Porter, told all of us that she was a Native American, descended from the Norwest family. Her grandmother was Frank Norwest's sister.

The journey of my life certainly has been blessed in so many ways because of her heritage. I was honored to have been one of the early council members serving with Eula Petite, Merle Leno, Russ Leno, Dorothy Green, Mark Mercier, Candy George and Katherine and Frank Harrison. I was a longtime member of the Veteran's Honor Guard, served on the Veteran's Special Events Committee, served on the Veteran's Memorial Committee and appointed to the Ethics Ordinance Committee.

I would like to say that even if it turned out that, due to issues working their way through proper channels at this time, my family members and I might lose our Tribal affiliation, I am very grateful for all my Tribe has done for me, my family and relatives. Yes, I would still be a Native American, descended from the Norwest family. Sure, my life would change in ways I can't even imagine at this time. I would lose my roll number and no longer have a card in my pocket showing my membership to our Tribe, but still be proud that my ancestors were Native people. I would still be able to come to Grand Ronde for visits and feel proud to have once been a part, no matter how small, of the Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde Community of Indians.

Thank you for listening to my thoughts and best of luck in all your future work. May God bless all of you and guide you in your endeavors. 

Sincerely,

Bradley Kowing

Roll #1816

Dear Smoke Signals:

This is to all my fellow Tribal members for your consideration. Over the past few months several things have happened in our Tribe that have bothered me and should bother you, too.

One of our main issues as a people that we should be protecting is our sovereignty. Over the past few years it seems that our Tribe has moved more and more to getting people disenrolled and if you read some of the things of how these people were asked to leave the Tribe you would be outraged.

I have concerns because what is to stop these people who clearly have an agenda? What is to stop them from going after somebody else who they do not like? Maybe they will come after you because you do not like them or their family. Maybe they will come after you because they do not like your political or social views.

I feel strongly that our strength is found in our people. If our ancestors could see what our leaders are doing to our own people today I am sure that our leaders would no longer lead. It should be our number one goal to keep the people enrolled in our Tribe. You do not see those who were adopted into our Tribe removed from our list, so why would we remove those people who have been a part of our Tribe for years and have a true blood lineage?

Certain people who come into power feel that because their paperwork was not filled out correctly they should be asked to leave. Our Tribe has been through a lot these past few years. You would think that our leaders would be helping us get stronger as a people instead of forcing division among us. The recession has been with us for quite some time and it does not look like it is going to be leaving any time soon.

I know this has been a trying time for our Tribal people and as a Tribal member I feel that we should be doing everything to ensure the strengths and well-being of all Tribal members and their families. I understand that we need to have cutbacks in the budget and stick to them as this is important to the well-being of our Tribe and Tribal future. I do not think as a Tribal member that we should be guaranteeing any company a three-year loan when our per capita keeps dropping and we are asking people to leave our Tribe.

When me and my wife lived in reservation housing, we paid over $900 a month. Now keep in mind, I am on Social Security disability and she worked at the dental clinic at the time, and we were asked to pay $900 a month to live on reservation land. We asked why the rent was so high. We were told that the Tribe was basing rental rates out of Portland, which is two hours away. There is more opportunity in Portland than there is on a reservation as we have found and relocated, and we pay only $625 a month for a two-story duplex.

I really do wonder if the people who do not live here locally really know what is going on. When they come here do they see that there is very low Tribal employment, that there are a lot of nonTribal members working for our Tribe, that a lot of those Tribal jobs are held by nonTribal members who are making more money than most Tribal members?

Now these issues are certainly not new, but what is new is how much it is getting out of hand. I know, and I'm sure most of you know, that the recession is not going away. It is going to be here for awhile and I think as a people we should be pulling together, keeping the people we have here and strengthening our families and making our leaders more accountable for their actions.

For example, those who voted to have people disenrolled. We should not support that decision and we should not re-elect those leaders who support that come election time. Our leaders have asked us to tighten up and be patient that we're going through a recession. So I understand their point of view and that is fine, but it does not seem to me that they understand our point of view because not one of them have or is willing to take a cut in pay.

I strongly feel that we are all family and we should be looking out for each other instead of tearing each other apart. Our government was almost successful in this effort, so are we just continuing where they left off?

If we keep this up we will destroy our Tribe emotionally and spiritually. I am asking you as a fellow Tribal member to contact the council members and let them know what they are doing is wrong and that you will remember their actions come re-election time.

Michael Bolton

Roll #4762