Published Bi-Weekly for the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska • Volume 48, Number 29 Saturday, February 10, 2018
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Published Bi-Weekly for the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska • Volume 48, Number 29 Saturday, February 10, 2018
Winnebago Tribe begins negotiations with the Indian Health Service
Bago Bits…
The Winnebago Sacred Fire group took
their message all the way to the Nebraska
Capitol running all the way there.
ATF agents recently came onto Winnebago
Reservation lands unannounced to take
records and inventory from the Tribe’s
Economic Development Corporation.
During the week of January 29,
2018, Winnebago Tribal representatives met with Indian Health Service
(“IHS”) officials to begin negotiations for
the Tribe’s assumption of health care
programs at the Omaha-Winnebago
Hospital. This was the first of a series
of meetings that will take place between
the Tribe and IHS to work out details
before the July 1, 2018, assumption
date.
In an effort to provide information
about the Tribe’s assumption of the
Hospital, the Tribe also hosted a com-
munity meeting on January 25, 2018.
The community meeting was attended
by over 40 people and was streamed live
online. The Tribe intends to host additional community meetings in the near
future. Meeting dates will be announced
in the WIN and on social media.
The Winnebago Tribe is committed
to improving the quality of healthcare
available to the community. As part of
this initiative, the Tribe was approved
to participate in the Indian Health Service Tribal Self-Governance Program.
The Tribe also recently established the
Winnebago Comprehensive Healthcare
System to manage the Tribe’s health
programs, including the new programs
that the Tribe will assume at the Hospital.
For more information about our
Tribe’s journey to self-governance and
efforts to improve health services available to our community, you can check
the Tribe’s Facebook page @WinnebagoTribeofNebraska and internet website
at www.winnebagotribe.com. These
sources of information will be updated
regularly, so keep checking.
The Winnebago Tribal flag to be displayed around community
HoChunk Renaissance, the langage program of the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska, recently led the initiative to produce duplicates of the
tribal flag for community display. The Tribal Council and HoChunk Renaissance donated WinnaVegas Casino & Resort with a tribal flag to
display in the casino.
Indian’s Senior point guard D’Von
LaPointe recently hit the 1000 point
mark…Congratz D’Von!
Food Distribution Program Receives Recognition
The new and improved Winnebago Food
Distribution Center boasts the feel of a
big time food store. Participants are allowed to shop for their items throughout
the month.
The Indian’s senior boys are honored at
their last home game.
The Winnebago Food Distribution Program held a Grand Opening this past week of their need food distribution system. Program clients
will now be able to shop for their own groceries throughout the month at the new grocery store style program warehouse. The Program also
received recognition by the Denver Area office for converting their program service to the new style, one of the only programs in the Denver
service area. Pictured here are JoAnn Baker, program Director, Sharon Frenchman, Tribal CEO, program staff and Representatives from the
Denver Area office.
Indianz.com…
Winnebago Tribe slams raid on businesses as attack on
sovereignty
WinnaVegas Casino Resort recently
hosted the ShoBox title fight night, the
event was a hit for WinnaVegas.
Federal agents in unmarked black
sports utility vehicles can be seen
parked at the headquarters of HoChunk Inc. on the Winnebago Reservation in Nebraska on January 30, 2018.
Posted: Wednesday, January 31,
2018
Federal agents spend two days on
reservation as part of tobacco probe
Tribe calls action a 'dir ect assault' on its sover eignty
By Kevin Abourezk
The leader of the Winnebago Tribe is
firing back at federal and state officials
in Nebraska, a day after federal agents
“Zagurski” Winnebago’s first Wrestling
G.O.A.T pictured here with his Ma & Pa.
V i s i t
u s
a t
raided the offices of the economic development corporation on the reservation.
Chairman Frank White laid blame
for the raid by the Bureau of Alcohol,
Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives on
the state of Nebraska, which has been
in a long-running dispute over tobacco
taxes with Ho-Chunk Inc., the tribe’s
economic development corporation.
“We believe the ATF was influenced
by the state of Nebraska to investigate
Ho-Chunk, Inc. and its subsidiary,
Rock River Manufacturing, to help the
state gain advantage in an ongoing tax
dispute,” White said in a statement.
“This is unfortunate because the federal
agents’ actions place many of our tribal
members’ jobs at risk.”
Federal agents remained on the
tribe’s reservation in northeast Nebraska on Wednesday. Just a day
earlier, nearly 50 ATF agents were seen
on the reservation. Many could be seen
carrying boxes out of corporate offices,
including the company’s headquarters,
HCI Distribution, Rock River Manufacturing and Village Pointe, an office complex that houses many of the company’s
subsidiaries.
The agents arrived around 8am
Tuesday and entered the company’s
offices with their guns drawn, according to witnesses. They primarily drove
black, unmarked SUVs and remained
in the community late into the night,
packing boxes into loading trucks.
Federal agents in unmarked black
sports utility vehicles can be seen
parked at the headquarters of Ho-Chunk
Inc. on the Winnebago Reservation in
Nebraska on January 30, 2018. Photo
by Kevin Abourezk
Con’t. on page 4
w w w . w i n n e b a g o t r i b e . c o m
Page 2— Winnebago Indian News, Saturday, February 10 , 2018
Bago News
Next WIN News Deadline: February 19th
Winnebago Indian News, Saturday, February 10, 2018 — Page 3
Winnebago News
Thoughts from a Very Long Week
By Lance Morgan
ATF
Well the ATF showed up at our offices
last week in a big way. The Tribe issued
a strong statement about it being an
attack on tribal sovereignty and listed
out all the good things the tribe does
with it’s tobacco and gas tax revenues.
Ho-Chunk, Inc. issued a statement
saying a version of this issue has been
going on for about 20 years and this is
the latest chapter.
100 House Update
As I have discussed before, the tribe
has allocated 30 percent of Ho-Chunk,
Inc.’s dividend to a 5-year plan to
build 100 housing units and add the
infrastructure for 100 more. We are
a little over two years into this ambitious plan and should by the end of
this year be within shouting distance
of the 100-housing unit goal. This
year we intend to build a few more of
the 4 plex’s near the statute garden in
the Ho-Chunk Village and we have a
few more houses scheduled to be built
in the Ho-Chunk Village. But what is
really driving the growth is the low-
income housing designed to create affordable home ownership south of town
at Thunder Way.
The Tribe and the Housing Authority
had some lots at Thunder Way that had
been sitting idle for years. Some Tribal
Council members pushed for more affordable homes and we thought that we
could use those lots to try and get some
built. These lots are in trust so there
won’t be any property tax, which saves
about $150 per month. If you meet the
income guidelines you can have the lot
for free. We also built smaller homes to
keep the price down. We were able to
combine the tribal down payment assistance, with federal and state money
to provide about 30 to 35 percent of the
cost of the home. The typical mortgage
requires 20 percent down.
We started with four lots at Thunder
Way and then had to ask for 4 more lots
and they are almost all spoken for. We
are working on the possibility of another
6 lots now. Also, the infrastructure for
another 36 lots is in the ground, but we
just need a road. We have been working on grant funding for that road, but
the Tribe is also considering making
those two roads a priority for BIA road
funding, which could greatly speed
things up.
What makes these houses so exciting
is that the payments are coming in from
$500 to $650 per month range, which is
less than an old 1 bedroom apartment
rents for in Sioux City and what a very
old home in rough condition rents for in
Walthill, NE. So our people can get a
simple, quality home that they own for
the price of an old rental unit.
We are about to start designing the
next phase of the Ho-Chunk Village and
I will have an update on that in the next
month or so.
Contact me at hochunk@aol.com
ALDRICH LEADING THE STATE
Semia Aldrich, a junior at
Whiting High School, is cur rently leading the entire
state of Iowa in the number of
free throws attempted. Whiting
High School is one of the
ten smallest schools in the state
of Iowa with a total enrollment
of K-12 of just over 200
students. Semia's accomplishment shows you do not have to be
a part of a large,
powerhouse program to accomplish great things individually.
Aldrich has attempted 133 free
throws in 16 games for an average of 8.3 per game.
This is nine more attempts than
the next closest athlete in the
state. Semia reached a
career high against Walthill, NE,
with 17 attempts in that contest.
Leading the team
in free throws is not the only thing
Semia has accomplished. She
is also the team's leading
scorer averaging 10.8 points per
game. She also leads the team
in rebounds with 106.
Semia is also the team leader
for blocked shots with 15 so
far this season.
Leading the state in free throws
did not just happen for Se-
mia. She has made the
transition from playing wing last
year to playing center this year.
Semia has put in a lot
of extra hours honing her skills.
She learned to be a much more
physical player inside the
paint. She has put in many extra hours working on post moves
and driving to the basket
to get to where she is in today's
rankings. She is not afraid to
drive to
the basket against any player
she is up against.
Semia also realizes she
wouldn’t be wher e she is in
this category without a
team supporting her. The Whiting
High School girls team is currently ranked second in the
state of Iowa in the number of
free throws attempted. Teammates of freshman, Halle
Murray is currently in the
top 50 players and sen i o r, D e l a n e y T u r n e r i s
currently in the top 75
players for the number of free
throws attempted. To put these
statistics in better
perspective, there are 354 schools
competing in girls basketball in
the state of Iowa with
4,524 varsity girl athletes. So, to
have a team in second and three
athletes in the top 75
players and one of them leading
this many athletes is an amazing
accomplishment.
Semia Rose Aldrich is the
daughter of Mark Aldrich &
Dana Coyle. The granddaughter of Carol & Jim Snow, Jeff
& Carla Fiscus and the Late
Charile Cool Aldrich.
Semia is a very active young
lady, who also participates
in Volleyball, Softball, Choir,
Speech and is a member of the
National Honor Society.
We are all very proud of her.
JESUS OUR SAVIOR
LUTHERAN OUTREACH
'People are the same the world over'
My wife and I were blessed to live
among the Kono tribe of Sierra Leone
for nearly five years. There are twelve
different tribes, each with their own
distinct language, customs, and traditions in Sierra Leone. We admired
those we lived among, especially for
their hospitality and contentment in
spite of having so little in comparison
to our homeland.
One day I asked Fred, an elderly
American who was supervising the construction of our mud-crete block home
with the aid of Kono laborers, if they
were good workers. Fred responded
with 'people are the same the world
over.' He went on to say that some of
them arrive early, work hard all day
and put forth good efforts. Some arrive late and leave early. Others only
work when the 'boss man' is watching
them. Still others will steal if given the
opportunity. Yes, people are the same
the world over.
Recently I read the following passage
from Sacred Scripture. The apostle
Paul wrote to Pastor Timothy: "But
mark this: There will be terrible times
in the last days. People will be lovers of
themselves, lovers of money, boastful,
proud, abusive, disobedient to their
parents, ungrateful, unholy, without
love, unforgiving, slanderous, without
self-control, brutal, not lovers of the
good, treacherous, rash, conceited,
lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of
God— having a form of godliness but
denying its power. Have nothing to do
with them." [2nd Timothy 3:1-5 NIV]
These are harsh words. Truth be told
we are all sinners. There is no one who
is righteous. We were born sinners and
helpless to overcome the consequences
of sin, namely death. Left on our own
we will be judged guilty.
People are the same the world over.
And yet God loves all people. While God
loves all people He still hates sin. He is
just and does not merely look the other
——————————————————
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Winnebago Indian News
P.O. Box 687
Winnebago, Nebraska 68071
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Phone: 402-878-2272
The Winnebago Indian News (WIN),
founded in January 1972, is published
bi-weekly for the Winnebago Tribe of
Nebraska.
way. His judgment may not happen
as swiftly as we would like, someone
must pay for the sin of all people. That
someone was none other than the Son
of God. Jesus suffered so that people of
every tribe, nation and language could
seek His mercy and receive His grace.
Paul also wrote another pastor by
the name of Titus these words: "For
the grace of God that brings salvation
has appeared to all men. It teaches us
to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly
passions, and to live self-controlled,
upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed
hope—the glorious appearing of our
great God and Savior, Jesus Christ,
who gave himself for us to redeem us
from all wickedness and to purify for
himself a people that are his very own,
eager to do what is good.
These, then, are the things you
should teach. Encourage and rebuke
with all authority. Do not let anyone
despise you" [Titus 2:11-15 NIV].
For the believer in Jesus Christ, we
are to take God's teachings one step
further. Paul goes on to write: "Remind
the people to be subject to rulers and
authorities, to be obedient, to be ready
to do whatever is good, to slander no
one, to be peaceable and considerate,
and to show true humility toward all
men.
At one time we too were foolish,
disobedient, deceived and enslaved by
all kinds of passions and pleasures. We
lived in malice and envy, being hated
and hating one another. But when the
kindness and love of God our Savior
appeared, he saved us, not because
of righteous things we had done, but
because of his mercy. He saved us
through the washing of rebirth and
renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he
poured out on us generously through
Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we
might become heirs having the hope
of eternal life" [Titus 3:1-7 NIV].
A Statement from Frank White, Chairman
of the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska, on the
federal raid of Ho-Chunk Inc. offices
WINNEBAGO, Neb (Jan. 31, 2018) – The Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska considers the recent activities of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and
Explosives a direct assault on tribal sovereignty.
On Tuesday, Jan. 30, ATF agents raided four Ho-Chunk, Inc. sites in
Winnebago and seized records related to tobacco sales. Ho-Chunk, Inc. is
an award winning economic development corporation owned and operated
by the Winnebago Tribe. The majority of seized information is subject to an
ongoing federal court case in the D.C. Court of Appeals filed by the Tribe.
As a sovereign nation, the Winnebago Tribe implements and enforces its own
tax codes, including taxes from tobacco sales. Every cent of the tax collected is
utilized to directly improve and enrich the lives of the Winnebago community and
its members. The greatest impact includes our Little Priest Tribal College, Community Development Fund, Tribal Health Department, Language Revitalization
Department, and Tribal Roads. Additionally, in recent years the taxes helped 40
families purchase new homes through down payment assistance funds.
Additionally the tribe has attempted to negotiate a tobacco tax compact with
the state of Nebraska. However, last year, Nebraska canceled our tobacco tax compact negotiations. “We believe the ATF was influenced by the State of Nebraska
to investigate Ho-Chunk, Inc. and its subsidiary, Rock River Manufacturing,
to help the state gain advantage in an ongoing tax dispute. This is unfortunate
because the federal agents’ actions place many of our tribal members’ jobs at
risk,” said Frank White, Chairman of the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska. “The
Winnebago Tribe looks forward to settling this dispute and will continue to fight
to protect its sovereign status.”
LPTC Men’s Schedule 2018
Little Priest Women’s Basketball Schedule (2017-2018)
Date
Time
Team
Place
2/17/2018
2/20/2018
2/24/2018
2/26/2018
3/5/2018
1:00
5:00
2:00
5:30
5:30
Marshalltown
Southeast
Cottey
Central
TBD
Home
Away
Away
Away
Away
The next issue of the WINNEBAGO INDIAN NEWS will be published on February 24, 2018.
The Mission of the WIN is to inform and to
educate the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska
of issues that affect them, and to be a
vehicle in which stresses positive and
beneficial concerns and points of view.
LETTER POLICY: Signed editorials, letters and articles appearing in the WIN
are the responsibility of the authors and
do not necessarily reflect the opinion or
attitude of the Winnebago Indian News or
the Winnebage Tribal Council.
The WIN encourages the submission of
Letters to the Editor; however, letters must
be signed and addressed. Letters may be
edited for language and length.
Pastor Ricky Jacob
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. The reproduction of editorial or photography content
without permission is prohibited.
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TBD
DEADLINE for this issue will be February 19, 2018.
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Winnebago Indian News Staff
Jerome LaPointe, Sr. .................... Editor
V.J. Wolfleader...............Office Manager
Winnebago Tribal Council
Frank White ............................Chairman
Curtis St. Cyr .................. Vice Chairman
Coly Brown ............................. Secretary
Roland Warner ....................... Treasurer
Tori Kitcheyan .......................... Member
Vince Bass, Sr. ......................... Member
Kenny Mallory ........................... Member
Isaac Smith ............................... Member
Jim Snow .................................. Member
Page 4 — Winnebago Indian News, Saturday, February 10, 2018
Bago News
... Indianz.com
...Con’t. from front page
Michelle Free LaMere, a 51-year-old
tribal member, said she spent nearly
six hours Tuesday watching federal
agents as they walked in and out of HCI
buildings and later witnessed agents
loading boxes into loading trucks.
She even briefly followed one truck
as it left south from Winnebago on Nebraska Highway 77. On Tuesday night,
she watched agents loading boxes into
trucks filled with items they had taken
from Village Pointe.
“We could see them loading box after box after box,” she said. “It looked
like they had merchandise on pallets.
They were using a forklift to move the
pallets.”
After filling the truck, which was
nearly the size of a semitrailer truck,
they moved it away from a loading bay
behind Village Pointe and moved a UHaul-sized loading truck into the bay
and began loading more items.
“As the first one was pulling out, we
saw the agents, two agents, high-fiving
each other, and we thought that was
not very tasteful,” she said.
Offices at Village Pointe on the Winnebago Reservation in Nebraska were
among those raided by federal agents
on January 30, 2018. Photo by Kevin
Abourezk
HCI Distribution and Rock River
Manufacturing are subsidiaries that
are engaged in tobacco manufacturing
and distributing.
The company’s spokesman, Sam
Burrish, spoke to reporters briefly
Tuesday, saying he was limited in what
he could disclose because HCI was the
subject of an ongoing investigation.
“The law enforcement activities at
Ho-Chunk, Inc. on Tuesday are the latest round in a 20-year state-tribal tax
dispute,” Burrish said during a press
conference held at Ho-Chunk Centre, a
company property in Sioux City, Iowa.
“We are fully cooperating with authorities. Ho-Chunk, Inc. is confident that in
the end, tribal sovereignty will prevail.”
ATF agents have referred media
representatives to the U.S. Attorney’s
Office in Nebraska. Jan Sharp, chief of
the criminal division in Omaha, said he
couldn’t comment on the investigation.
“Per (Department of Justice) policy,
we’re just not allowed to comment on an
ongoing investigation,” he told Indianz.
Com on Tuesday.
Offices at the Ho-Chunk Village on
the Winnebago Reservation in Nebraska
were among those raided by federal
agents on January 30, 2018. Photo
by Kevin Abourezk
In its press release Wednesday, the
tribe said it considered the federal raid
“a direct assault on tribal sovereignty.”
The tribe said ATF agents raided four
Ho-Chunk Inc. sites and seized records
related to tobacco sales.
The majority of seized information
is subject to an ongoing federal court
case in Washington, D.C., according
to the tribe. As part of the lawsuit, the
company is seeking to get a lower court’s
decision reversed.
The case involves efforts by the ATF
to get HCI to hand over records related
to its tobacco sales to other tribes or
individual tribal citizens. The company
already has agreed to hand over records
related to its sales to non-Indian individuals or entities.
But the federal government has
argued that the Contraband Cigarette
Trafficking Actrequires tribes to hand
over all of their tobacco sales records.
Last May, a federal judge agreed and
ruled that the company must comply
with the law. An appeal of the decision is pending before the D.C. Circuit
Court of Appeals, with oral arguments
scheduled for March 15 in Ho-Chunk,
Inc. v. Sessions.
Like most governments, the tribe
relies on tax revenues to fund essential
programs and services. At Winnebago,
the tobacco taxes help pay for the tribal
college, a community development fund,
health care, language revitalization and
infrastructure.
“Additionally, in recent years the
taxes helped 40 families purchase
new homes through down payment
assistance funds,” the tribe said in its
statement.
The tribe has attempted to negotiate
a tobacco tax compact with the state of
Nebraska to address ongoing issues. But
negotiations ended last year without a
resolution, according to the tribe.
The state believes the tribe should
be required to participate in the tobacco master settlement agreement,
even though the 1998 court agreement
between 46 states, five U.S. territories,
the District of Columbia and major tobacco companies did not include Indian
Country. The state also contends the
tribe should be required to pay money
to Nebraska for its tobacco sales, just
like the big tobacco companies.
The tribe, on the other hand, has argued that its sovereign status protects it
from having to participate in the settlement without its consent.
Ho-Chunk Inc. has long engaged
in tobacco sales, manufacturing and
distribution on the reservation and
in Indian Country. Its activities have
seen repeated threats and actions from
state and federal authorities.
“The Winnebago Tribe looks forward
to settling this dispute and will continue
to fight to protect its sovereign status,”
Chairman White said.
Free LaMere, a university student
studying education, said she’s frustrated to see HCI have to continually
fight off attacks by state and federal officials as the company has attempted to
build its tobacco sales and distribution
business. She credited Lance Morgan,
president and CEO of HCI, and his staff
for defending the tribe’s economic development efforts.
“To me, it’s disgusting, the level of
greed,” she said. “They can’t let Winnebago or HCI take just a tiny morsel
of the pie. They have to have the whole
thing."
“It’s just frustrating, but I’m very
proud of Lance and his crew for fighting
so hard and for overcoming all the obstacles that they’ve overcome so far and
I have faith they’re going to overcome
this one, too.”
HCI owns Indianz.Com. The website
is operated by a different subsidiary
and is not involved with the tobacco
operations.
This post has been updated with
comments from Michelle Free LaMere, a
tribal citizen who witnessed the actions
of the federal agents on the reservation.
For this and more stories from around Indian Country visit us at www.indianz.com
Next
WIN News
Deadline:
February 19th
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Care (TIC) 101
MONDAY FEB. 26TH, 9-3PM
AT LITTLE PRIEST TRIBAL COLLEGE
ELK CLAN AUDITORIUM.
COMMUNITY TRAINING - OPEN TO
PUBLIC ALL SHOULD ATTEND
Workforce Protection and Psychosocial
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Frank Grijalva
Participants will acquire these skills
and elements of trauma informed
care:
Identify the factors and stressors that
traumatize a child
How to observe the external signs not
only in themselves but also in a child
Learn what trauma does to the biology
of a human being
Examine personal experiences relating
to dysregulated children
How to cue client reactions as a
means of guidance towards healing
and recovery
Recognize social skill development,
brain development, and emotional
development for the specific service
recipient populations of the training
group
Develop customized concrete processes for healing and recovery
RSVP TO DONNA WOLFF, NATIVE
CONNECTIONS COORDINATOR, 402878-3659 OR donna.wolff@ihs.gov, BY
FRI. FEB. 23RD.
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Care (TIC) 102
TUESDAY FEB. 27TH, 9-3PM
AT LITTLE PRIEST TRIBAL COLLEGE- ELK CLAN AUDITORIUM
COMMUNITY TRAINING- OPEN TO
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Workforce Protection and Psychosocial Approaches to trauma exposure
by Frank Grijalva
Participants will acquire these
skills and elements of trauma informed care:
Formulate personal nervous system distress in the face of client’s
trauma responses
Master personal acute safety plans
Utilize de-escalation strategies to
build safety-calming-connectedness
during engagement with crisis clients
Develop customized concrete processes for healing and recovery
Apply specific pro-social engagement behaviors to field work
RSVP TO DONNA WOLFF, NATIVE
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Winnebago Indian News, Saturday, February 10, 2018 — Page 5
Winnebago News
WINNEBAGO TRIBE OF NEBRASKA
RE-ORGANIZATION MEETING
WinnaVegas Casino & Resort,
December 21, 2017
TRIBAL COUNCIL PRESENT:
Frank White
Vincent Bass (out 12:29 p.m.)
Coly Brown
Roland Warner
Curtis St. Cyr
James Snow
Victoria Kitcheyan
Isaac Smith (out 12:45 p.m.)
OTHERS PRESENT:
Sharon Frenchman
Teresa Littlegeorge
Tyresha Wolfe
Joy Johnson
Chiara Cournoyer
Barbara Eagle
Joseph Painter
TRIBAL COUNCIL ABSENT:
Kenneth Mallory
CALL TO ORDER: Chairman White
called the meeting to order at 9:43 a.m.
OPENING PRAYER: Sharon Frenchman offered the opening prayer.
AGENDA:
Victoria Kitcheyan motioned to approve the agenda as presented. Vincent
Bass seconded.
VOTE: (7) yes (0) no (0) abstain
Motion carried.
WORK GROUP & COMMITTEE
ASSIGNMENTS:
RADIO STATION COMMITTEE:
Currently: Isaac Smith, Sarah
Snake, Morray, Danelle Smith, Elenore
St. John are all working on development
and placement.
[Victoria out, for Conf. Call]
Vincent Bass motions to establish
a Winnebago Radio Station Committee and advertise for 30 days. Roland
Warner seconded.
VOTE: (6) yes (0) no (0) abstain
Motion carried.
WINNEBAGO FOOD SOVEREIGNTY COMMITTEE:
Curtis St. Cyr motioned to establish the Winnebago Food Sovereignty
Committee and advertise for 30 days.
Roland Warner seconded.
VOTE: (6) yes (0) no (0) abstain
Motion carried.
[Frank out, Curtis assumes chair]
ALCOHOL ADVISORY COMMITTEE:
Roland Warner motioned to reestablish the Alcohol Advisory Committee and the Alcohol Program Quality
Assurance Committee. James Snow
seconded.
VOTE: (5) yes (0) no (0) abstain
Motion carried.
[Victoria in]
[Frank in, assumes chair]
[Roland out]
HEALTH ADVISORY BOARD:
[Roland in]
Victoria Kitcheyan motioned to appoint Roland Warner and Coly Brown
as Tribal Council Representatives for
the Health Advisory Board. Isaac Smith
Seconded.
Brief discussion, motion withdrawn.
Victoria Kitcheyan motioned to appoint Roland Warner as the delegate
and Coly Brown as alternate Tribal
Council Representatives for the Health
Advisory Board.
Isaac Smith Seconded.
VOTE: (7) yes (0) no (0) abstain
Motion carried.
NURSING HOME COMMITTEE:
Victoria Kitcheyan motioned to reaffirm Vincent Bass, Curtis St. Cyr as
Tribal Council Representatives and
Sarah Snake, Jack LaMere, and William
DeCora II as members. Roland Warner
seconded.
VOTE: (7) yes (0) no (0) abstain
Motion carried.
SAFETY COMMITTEE:
Victoria Kitcheyan motioned to reaffirm James Snow and Isaac Smith to
the Safety Committee. Vincent Bass
seconded.
VOTE: (7) yes (0) no (0) abstain
Motion carried.
WINNEBAGO SENIOR CITIZENS
ADVISORY BOARD: Current.
ENROLLMENT COMMITTEE: Current.
POW-WOW COMMITTEE:
Victoria Kitcheyan motioned to appoint the Winnebago Tribal Council
Treasurer on the Pow-wow Committee.
Vincent Bass seconded.
VOTE: (7) yes (0) no (0) abstain
Motion carried.
VETERANS COMMITTEE:
Curtis St. Cyr motioned to reaffirm
appointment of FrankWhite, James
Snow and Isaac Smith to the Veterans
Committee. Victoria Kitcheyan seconded.
VOTE: (7) yes (0) no (0) abstain
Motion carried.
EDUCARE BOARD/QUALICB:
James Snow motioned to reaffirm Vincent Bass and Isaac Smith
to the Educare Board/QUALICB. Curtis St. Cyr seconded.
VOTE: (7) yes (0) no (0) abstain
Motion carried.
HEAD START PARENT COMMITTEE: Current.
LPTC BOARD OF DIRECTORS: Current.
WINNEBAGO EDUCATION APPEALS
COMMITTEE: Current.
GAMING COMMISSION: Current.
NEBRASKA COMMISSION ON
INDIAN AFFAIRS:
James Snow motioned to reaffirm
Kenneth Mallory and Curtis St. Cyr to
the Nebraska Commission on Indian
Affairs. Vincent Bass seconded.
VOTE: (7) yes (0) no (0) abstain
Motion carried.
WINNEBAGO GAMING DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION:
Victoria Kitcheyan motioned to reaffirm Kenneth Mallory and Coly Brown
to the Winnebago Gaming Development
Commission. James Snow seconded.
VOTE: (7) yes (0) no (0) abstain
Motion carried.
CREDIT COMMITTEE: Current.
DHD COMMITTEE: Current.
HO-CHUNK, INC BOARD OF DIRECTORS:
Victoria Kitcheyan motioned to reaffirm Vincent Bass and Kenneth Mallory
to the
Ho-Chunk, Inc. Board of Directors.
Vincent Bass seconded. Vincent Bass
withdraws the seconded.
[Vincent out @ 12:29 p.m.]
Motioned failed.
RECESS:
Chairman White calls for recess at
12:45 p.m.
Chairman White calls the meeting
back to order at 1:48 p.m.
DEPARTMENT OVERIEW PRESENTATIONS:
LAW ENFORCEMENT: On a call, will
not be able to attend.
TRIBAL COURT: Presented by Barbara Eagle
YCIC
Youth Facility
PLANNING & DEVELOPMENT: Presented by Joy Johnson
PHYSICAL RESOURCES: Presented
by Joseph Painter
HUMAN SERVICES: Presented Chaira Cournoyer
Curtis St. Cyr motioned to adjourn
at 3:58 p.m. Roland Warner seconded.
VOTE: (5) yes (0) no (0) abstain
Motion carried.
Chairman White adjourned the meeting at 3:58 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Teresa Littlegeorge, Executive Assistant, Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska
CONCUR:
Coly Brown, Secretary
Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska
WINNEBAGO TRIBE OF NEBRASKA
REGULAR TRIBAL COUNCIL
MEETING
January 2, 2018
TRIBAL COUNCIL PRESENT:
Frank White
Curtis St. Cyr
Coly Brown
Roland Warner
James Snow
Vincent Bass
Kenneth Mallory
Isaac Smith
OTHERS PRESENT:
Sharon Frenchman
Aric Armell
Tom DeCora
Nate Bigfire
Patty DeCora
Louis LaTray
Lilly Snow
Tiffani Warner
Leah Hunter
Garan Coons
Joseph Painter
Angelo Wolf
James Price
James Tidwell
Jason Lawrence
Kenny Walker
Jeffery Thomas, Sr.
TRIBAL COUNCIL ABSENT:
Victoria Kitcheyan
CALL TO ORDER: Chairman White
called the meeting to order at 9:11 a.m.
OPENING PRAYER: Curtis St. Cyr
offered the opening prayer.
APPROVE AGENDA:
Curtis St. Cyr motioned GPTCA and
Winter Gathering travel requests under
New Business, and approve the agenda.
James Snow seconded.
VOTE: (7) yes (0) no (0) abstain
Motion carried.
READING OF THE MINUTES:
DEC. 18, 2017 MID-MONTHLY
Kenneth Mallory motioned to approve
the December 18, 2017 Mid-Monthly
minutes. James Snow seconded.
VOTE: (7) yes (0) no (0) abstain
Motion carried.
DEC. 20, 2017 CEO REPORT
Kenneth Mallory motioned to approve
the December 20, 2017 CEO Report
minutes.
Curtis St. Cyr seconded.
VOTE: (7) yes (0) no (0) abstain
Motion carried.
[Frank out, Curtis assumes Chair]
DEC. 21, 2017 RE-ORGANIZATION
MEETING
Kenneth Mallory motioned to approve
the December 21, 2017 Re-Organization
Meeting minutes. James Snow seconded.
VOTE: (6) yes (0) no (0) abstain
Motion carried.
RATIFY FIVE SIGNATURES:
NEW YEARS EVE SOBRIETY POWWOW PAYMENT
Kenneth Mallory motioned to ratify
the five signature approving the New
Year’s Eve Sobriety Pow-wow payment.
Vincent Bass seconded.
VOTE: (6) yes (0) no (0) abstain
Motion carried.
[Frank in, reassumes Chair]
ABSOLUTE RELINQUISHMENT
Kenneth Mallory motioned to ratify
the five signature approving resolution 18-31: Absolute Relinquishment.
James Snow seconded.
VOTE: (7) yes (0) no (0) abstain
Motion carried.
HONORARIUM FOR T. HERNANDEZ
Kenneth Mallory motioned to ratify the
five signature approving an Honorarium
for T. Hernandez for her work on the Sobriety Pow-wow. Vincent Bass seconded.
VOTE: (7) yes (0) no (0) abstain
Motion carried.
OLD BUSINESS:
Kenneth Mallory motioned to suspend the rules. Coly Brown seconded.
VOTE: (7) yes (0) no (0) abstain
Motion carried.
J. BOUCHAL
Kenneth Mallory motioned to have
Isaac Smith assist in retrieving tools
from former employment at facilities.
Curtis St. Cyr seconded.
VOTE: (7) yes (0) no (0) abstain
Motion carried.
NEW BUSINESS:
WATER TAPPING FEES
Curtis St. Cyr motioned to have
Physical Resource Director to set meeting to address utilities fees. Roland
Warner seconded.
VOTE: (7) yes (0) no (0) abstain
Motion carried.
LAW ENFORCEMENT – Update, no
action taken.
TRAVEL REQUEST ECONOMIC
SUMMIT
James Snow motioned to approve
the Travel request from Kenneth Mallory to attend the Economic Summit in
Chandlar, AZ. Curtis St. Cyr seconded.
VOTE: (7) yes (0) no (0) abstain
Motion carried.
GREAT PLAINS TRIBAL CHAIRMAN’S
ASSOCIATION
Kenneth Mallory motioned to approve
travel to the GPTCA meeting in Flandreau, SD on January 16, 2017. Coly
Brown seconded.
VOTE: (7) yes (0) no (0) abstain
Motion carried.
TRIBAL COUNCIL ITEMS:
T. DECORA
A. ARMELL
Roland Warner motioned to recommend to have the mentioned programs
(Parenthood, Fatherhood/Motherhood
is sacred, DDU, Alcohol Program, Seniors/Elders, Children, Mental Health)
participate in any way with the Sacred
Fire. Curtis St. Cyr seconded.
VOTE: (7) yes (0) no (0) abstain
Motion
L.PRETENDS EAGLE
[Isaac out-fire call]
OTOE-MISSOURIA WINTER ENCAMPMENT
Kenneth Mallory motioned to approve travel for G. Coons, L. St.Cyr,
and C. Cleveland, Jr. to attend the
Otoe-Missiouria Winter Encampment
in Oklahoma on January 20, 2018.
Vincent Bass seconded.
VOTE: (5) yes (0) no ( 1 ) a b s t a i n ,
CS
Motion carried.
ADJOURN:
Curtis St. Cyr motioned to adjourn
at 12:01 p.m. Vincent Bass seconded.
VOTE: (6) yes (0) no (0) abstain
Motion carried.
Chairman White adjourned the meeting at 12:01 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Coly Brown, Secretary
Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska
WINNEBAGO TRIBE OF NEBRASKA
GENERAL COUNSEL MEETING
January 3, 2018
TRIBAL COUNCIL PRESENT:
Frank White
Curtis St. Cyr
Coly Brown
Roland Warner
James Snow
Vincent Bass
Victoria Kitcheyan
Kenneth Mallory (in @10:20 a.m.)
Isaac Smith
OTHERS PRESENT:
Danelle Smith
Marian Thomas
Katherine Washburn
Marian Holstein
Lenae Bigfire
CALL TO ORDER: Chairman White
called the meeting to order at 10:11 a.m.
OPENING PRAYER: Danelle Smith
offered the opening prayer.
AGENDA:
Vincent Bass motioned to approve
the agenda with the addition of the Governor’s Address on January 10, 2018.
James Snow seconded.
VOTE:
(7) yes (0) no (0) abstain
Motion carried.
[Kenneth in 10:20 a.m.)
ACTION ITEMS:
JUVENILE CODE
Victoria Kitcheyan motioned to adopt
resolution #18-32: Amending the Winnebago Tribal Code Title 4 Juvenile
Code. James Snow seconded.
VOTE: (8) yes (0) no (0) abstain
Motion carried.
IHS CONTRACT SUPPOR T COST
CLAIMS
Victoria Kitcheyan motioned to approve the IHS Contract Support Cost
Claims.
James Snow seconded.
VOTE: (8) yes (0) no (0) abstain
Motion carried.
GOVERNOR’S ADDRESS-TRAVEL
Victoria Kitcheyan motioned to approve travel for Tribal Council to attend
the Governor’s Address in Lincoln, NE
on January 10, 2018. Roland Warner
seconded.
VOTE: (8) yes (0) no (0) abstain
Motion carried.
NEW MATTERS:
SAME SEX MARRIAGES – Discussion, No action
[Isaac out @ 11:35 a.m.]
ADOPT RESOLUTION
Vincent Bass motioned to adopt
resolution #18-33: Seven Directions,
A Center for Indigenous Public Health
Grant. James Snow seconded.
VOTE: (7) yes (0) no (0) abstain
Motion carried.
[Isaac in @ 11:50 a.m.]
[Vincent out @ 12:15 p.m.]
KEY UPDATES: (the following are
updates only, no action taken)
IHS HOSPITAL/SELF-GOVERNANCE PLANNING AND NEGOTIATIONS
LAND LEGISLATION
RADIO STATION
CFS CONTRACTS
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
DEPARTMENT
RAMAH NAVAJO CLASS ACTION
CASE SETTLEMENT
TRIBAL UTILITY PROJECT
NURSING HOME PROJECT
LAW ENFORCEMENT
ADJOURN:
Curtis St. Cyr motioned to adjourn at
1:54 p.m. Kenneth Mallory seconded.
VOTE: (7) yes (0) no (0) abstain
Motion carried.
Chairman White adjourned the
meeting at 1:54 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Coly Brown, Secretary
Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska
WINNEBAGO TRIBE OF NEBRASKA
SPECIAL MEETING – FINANCE
January 9, 2018
TRIBAL COUNCIL PRESENT:
Curtis St. Cyr
Coly Brown
Roland Warner
James Snow
Victoria Kitcheyan
Kenneth Mallory
Isaac Smith (in 1:40 p.m.)
OTHERS PRESENT:
Alan Post
Sharon Frenchman
TRIBAL COUNCIL ABSENT:
Frank White (leave)
Vincent Bass (sick leave)
CALL TO ORDER: Vice-Chairman
St. Cyr called the meeting to order at
1:10 p.m.
OPENING PRAYER: Roland Warner
offered the opening prayer.
AGENDA:
Victoria Kitcheyan motioned to approve the Agenda as presented. Roland
Warner seconded.
VOTE: (5) yes (0) no (0) abstain
Motion carried.
LINE OF CREDIT AT LIBERTY NATIONAL BANK
Purpose: Fund assumption activities
(payroll, legal, office needs, etc.) for
the IHS hospital project. Requesting
approve of $2,000,000.00 LOC (Line
of Credit) from Liberty National Bank.
Amounts to be drawn down with initial
funding of $10,000.00 with automatic
drawdowns as checks clear in $1,000.00
increments.
Kenneth Mallory motioned to approve
the Line of Credit term sheet and move
forward with securing the loan. Roland
Warner seconded.
VOTE: (5) yes (0) no (0) abstain
Motion carried.
OPEN CHECKING ACCOUNT
Kenneth Mallory motioned to approve
to open a checking account at Liberty
National Bank for IHS Assumption Project. Victoria Kitcheyan seconded.
VOTE: (5) yes (0) no (0) abstain
Motion carried.
INITIAL TRANSITION BUDGET
Victoria Kitcheyan motioned to
approve the initial Transition
Budget for IHS Assumption Project.
James Snow seconded.
VOTE: (5) yes (0) no (0) abstain
Motion carried.
[Isaac in]
MERCHANT ACCOUNTS
Need to open Merchant accounts for
acceptance of credit cards, as considCon’t. in next issue...
Page 6 — Winnebago Indian News, Saturday, February 10, 2018
Community News
Masthead Scene
The Indians recently had
their last home game as they
played Rez Rival EmersonHubbard Pirates in the first
round of the Lewis & Clark
Conference Tournament.
The Indians won the game
and moved on in the Tournament. This is a shot of the
Indian’s Senior Class, these
boys played their final game
on their home court, and
defended it well we might
add. The Indians haven’t
been beaten at home in over
6 years. Good job Class of
2018.
NEOLA WALKER
BUILDING
878-2626
LEGAL NOTICE
LEGAL NOTICE
In the Matter of the
Guardianship Petition of:
MICHAEL & HEIDI MILES,
In the Matter of the
Guardianship Petition of:
MICHAEL & HEIDI MILES,
In Re:
A. E. (DOB 03/2012)
A. E. & A. E. (DOBs 02/2014)
In Re:
J. J. S. (DOB 10/2014)
Notice of Hearing
Case No. CV18-020
Notice of Hearing
Case No. CV18-021
TO:
SUICIDE IN INDIAN COUNTRY PART 13
Bullying and Suicide
The relationship between bullying and suicide is complex. Many media reports
oversimplify this relationship, insinuating or directly stating that bullying can
cause suicide. The facts tell a different story. In particular, it is not accurate
and potentially dangerous to present bullying as the “cause” or “reason” for a
suicide, or to suggest that suicide is a natural response to bullying.
Bullying: Bullying is typically defined as the ongoing physical or emotional
victimization of a person by another person or group of people. Cyberbullying is
an emerging problem in which people use new communication technologies, such
as social media and texting, to harass and cause emotional harm to their victim.
Bullying, and especially chronic bullying, has long-term effects on suicide
risk and mental health that can persist into adulthood (Arseneault et al., 2010).
One review of the research concluded that bullying can cause (or contribute to)
“comparatively low levels of psychological well-being and social adjustment and
to high levels of psychological distress and adverse physical health symptoms”
(Rigby, 2003)
Bullying prevention and suicide prevention share common strategies in
three areas: (1) school environment, (2) family outreach, and (3) identification
of students in need of mental and behavioral health services (and helping these
students and their families find appropriate services). The fact that bullies and
their victims share some risk factors (e.g., depression) and that the victims of
bullying may be at risk partially because of personal risk factors (e.g., anxiety
disorders) suggests that both suicide and bullying can be prevented using strategies to identify and treat students with these risk factors.
LGBT youth attempt suicide at a rate 2–4 times higher than that of their
heterosexual peers. In the words of one expert, LGBT adolescents “must cope
with developing a sexual minority identity in the midst of negative comments,
jokes, and often the threat of violence because of their sexual orientation and/
or transgender identity.
If you know of someone struggling with suicidal ideation please contact The
National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255 (TALK) or Winnebago
Behavioral Health 1-402-878-2911 or After Hours Crisis # 1-712-259-3263.
TO:
SONYA WHITE, Mother
ARIC A. ELMORE, Father
You are hereby notified that a petition
has been filed for Guardianship and a
hearing concerning the above referred
Individual(s) in Case No. CV18-020 has
been scheduled and will be heard in the
Winnebago Tribal Court of Winnebago,
Nebraska on the 13TH day of MARCH,
2018 at the hour of 11:30 A.M.
LEGAL NOTICE
Notice of Hearing
Case No. CV18-038
In the Matter of the
Divorce Petition of:
TIFFANY BUCHANAN
vs
SUNGMAITUSKA BUCHANAN
You are hereby notified that a petition
has been filed for Guardianship and a
hearing concerning the above referred
Individual(s) in Case No. CV18-021 has
been scheduled and will be heard in the
Winnebago Tribal Court of Winnebago,
Nebraska on the 13TH day of MARCH,
2018 at the hour of 11:30 A.M.
LEGAL NOTICE
Notice of Hearing
Case No. JFJ17-051
The People of the Winnebago Tribe
In the Interest of:
M. W. (DOB 10/2006)
ANDREA HARLAN, Mother
To:
To:
SONYA WHITE, Mother
JERREN E. SPRINGS, Father
BIOLOGICAL FATHER:
SUNGMAITUSKA BUCHANAN:
You are hereby notified that a Divorce petition has been filed and a
hearing concerning the above referred
Case No. CV18-038 has been scheduled and will be heard in the Winnebago Tribal Court of Winnebago,
Nebraska on the 12TH day of MARCH,
2018 at the hour of 10:30 A.M.
LEGAL NOTICE
Notice of Hearing
Case No. CV18-029
You are hereby notified that a hearing for Initial Appearance concerning
the above referred minor individual(s)
in case no. JFJ17-051 has been
scheduled and will be heard in the
Winnebago Tribal Court of Winnebago,
Nebraska on the 13TH day of MARCH,
2018 at the hour of 11:00 A.M.
LEGAL NOTICE
Notice of Hearing
Case No. CV13-038
In the Matter of the
Guardianship Petition of:
EMILY L. HERRINGTON,
In the Matter of the
Guardianship Petition of:
APRIL BARNES,
In Re:
R. G.-M.. (DOB 08/2011)
In Re:
T. F. (DOB 06/2010)
TO:
TO:
HANNAH GRIFFIN, Mother
DWIGHT MORRIS JR., Father
APRIL ROBERTSON, Mother
KENNETH FRAZIER JR., Fa-
ther
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This institution is an equal opportunity provider
You are hereby notified that a petition has been filed for Guardianship
and a hearing concerning the above
referred Individual(s) in Case No. CV18029 has been scheduled and will be
heard in the Winnebago Tribal Court
of Winnebago, Nebraska on the 27TH
day of MARCH 27, 2018 at the hour of
9:30 A.M.
You are hereby notified that a petition has been filed for Guardianship
and a hearing concerning the above
referred Individual(s) in Case No. CV13038 has been scheduled and will be
heard in the Winnebago Tribal Court
of Winnebago, Nebraska on the 20TH
day of MARCH 2018 at the hour of 9:30
A.M.
LEGAL NOTICE
LEGAL NOTICE
Notice of Hearing
Case No. CV17-049
In the Matter of the Custody Petition of:
JONIELLE SMITH
vs.
JAMISON ROBINSON
To:
JAMISON ROBINSON,
You are hereby notified that a
Custody petition has been filed and a
hearing concerning the above referred
Individual(s) in case no. CV17-049 has
been scheduled will be heard in the
Winnebago Tribal Court of Winnebago,
Nebraska on the 22ND day of FEBRUARY, 2018 at the hour of 10:00 A.M.
LEGAL NOTICE
Notice of Hearing
Case No. JFJ17-028B
The People of the Winnebago Tribe
In the Interest of:
A. H. (DOB 06/2011)
STEPHANIE HARLAN, Mother
Notice of Hearing
Case No. JFJ17-025
The People of the Winnebago Tribe
In the Interest of:
S. R. JR. (DOB 09/2014)
To:
You are hereby notified that a hearing for Initial Appearance concerning
the above referred minor individual(s)
in case no. JFJ17-025 has been scheduled and will be heard in the Winnebago
Tribal Court of Winnebago, Nebraska
on the 13TH day of MARCH, 2018 at
the hour of 10:00 A.M.
LEGAL NOTICE
Notice of Hearing
Case No. JFJ18-004
The People of the Winnebago Tribe
In the Interest of:
Z. W. (DOB 08/2016)
To:
To:
LAM LOK CHAN, Father
You are hereby notified that a hearing for Initial Appearance concerning
the above referred minor individual(s)
in case no. JFJ17-028B has been
scheduled and will be heard in the
Winnebago Tribal Court of Winnebago,
Nebraska on the 27TH day of MARCH,
2018 at the hour of 11:30 A.M.
RAELANA BERNARD, Mother
TRISTA WHITEWATER, Mother
ALLEN WEITZEL, Father
You are hereby notified that a hearing for Initial Appearance concerning
the above referred minor individual(s)
in case no. JFJ18-004 has been
scheduled and will be heard in the
Winnebago Tribal Court of Winnebago,
Nebraska on the 20TH day of MARCH,
2018 at the hour of 10:00 A.M.
Winnebago Indian News, Saturday, February 10, 2018 — Page 7
Bago News
The Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska is moving
forward with plans to take over the Indian
Health Service hospital on its reservation
By Kevin Abourezk
The Winnebago Tribe recently hosted
an information forum for tribal members to educate them about the process of self-governance, the method
by which the tribe plans to take over
the Omaha-Winnebago Hospital. The
tribe held a forum on January 25 at a
community center and plans to host
another forum within about a month
before planning to take control of the
hospital on July 1.
The move to self-governance – as set
forth by Title V of the Indian Self Determination and Education Assistance
Act of 1975 – allows tribes to assume
control over health care programs
that IHS would otherwise provide. The
federal legislation also allows tribes
to assume control over portions of
health care programs that IHS would
otherwise provide, a process called selfdetermination.
Nearly 225 tribes take part in selfdetermination, having taken control of
portions of the health care programs
provided to them. More than 350 tribes
take part in self-governance, and two
tribes in Michigan completed their
moves to self-governance in December.
However, no Great Plains tribes
currently operate all of their health
programs, and the Winnebago Tribe
would be the first to do so.
The Winnebago Tribal Council voted
in November to take control of the
tribe’s hospital after IHS officials failed
to get the hospital recertified following
a July 2015 decision by the Centers
for Medicare and Medicaid Services to
terminate that certification. That loss
of certification led to the hospital losing
Medicare and Medicaid funding.
“The tribe has taken great care in
each step because we want this to be
the best turnaround, the top-notch
health care facility for all those Native
Americans that choose to walk through
that door and have their health care
delivered,” said Tori Kitcheyan, a tribal
council member.
Myra Munson, an attorney helping
guide the Winnebago Tribe through its
self-governance process, offered information to the tribe’s members recently.
The former commissioner of the Alaska
Department of Health and Social Services, Munson has worked with numerous tribes over nearly three decades
that have completed self-governance
and self-determination initiatives.
“You’re in very good company all over
the country,” she told the tribe’s members during an informational meeting
on Jan. 25 in Winnebago.
The tribe currently operates the
hospital along with the Omaha Tribe
of Nebraska. In order to continue to
offer all of the same programs with the
same funding, both tribes would need
to agree to move forward with selfgovernance, Munson said.
If one of the tribes opposes the effort,
the other tribe can still move forward
with taking over its part of the programs
and funding due to it, she said.
“The money can be divided and the
program can be divided so that both
tribes are fairly treated,” she said.
“The Winnebago Tribe is not willing to
or interesting in doing anything that
undermines another tribe.”
Omaha tribal leaders have so far opposed the effort to take over the OmahaWinnebago Hospital, though they are
still negotiating with Winnebago and
IHS officials.
Michael Wolfe, Omaha tribal chairman, said he doesn’t understand why
the Winnebago Tribe wants to take
control of a failing hospital.
“I feel that IHS has failed us, has
killed our people, has not fulfilled their
obligations to the people,” he said. “Now
they’re bailing out, and they’re just
happy and tickled pink that Winnebago
wants to take this hospital over. They
broke it. Why should the Winnebago
want to come and fix it?”
“And if it fails again, who are they
going to blame? They’re going to blame
all Indian people.”
Alan Harlan, treasurer for the Omaha Tribe, said he doesn’t like the idea of
the federal government trying to dictate
the decisions of the Omaha Tribe.
“The IHS seems to be on the side of
the Winnebago Tribe so we have to meet
with both of them, the government and
the Winnebago Tribe, to come to a reasonable agreement to this,” he said. “I
hope we can. I don’t want to see us grow
apart. I want to see us grow together.”
Munson said it will take at least a
year for the Winnebago Tribe to regain
certification for the hospital once it
takes it over. Until then, the tribe won’t
have access to Medicare and Medicaid
funding for its inpatient and emergency
departments. The tribe will be able to
continue to access Medicaid funding for
its clinic, however.
The tribe already has begun advertising for new positions that will be
needed to begin the process of recertification, including for an executive director, hospital administrator, a contract
specialist and a human resources staff
specialist.
Munson said IHS spent three year
trying to get the hospital recertified and
ultimately failed.
“Maybe it’s time to try something
else,” she said.
She said not a single tribally operated hospital in America has been
decertified, as self-governance offers
many protections to tribes.
Munson offered numerous facts
about the self-governance process to
the Winnebago Tribe’s members at the
recent informational forum. Among
those facts:
·
The tribe won’t see a reduction
in funding for the programs it will take
over. Indeed, most tribes that complete
self-governance see increased health
funding as they aren’t required to pay
as much in administrative costs as
IHS does.
·
Under self-governance, the
tribe would continue to receive funding
for its hospital, even if it fails to reach a
funding agreement with IHS one year.
That’s very much unlike tribes that
complete self-determination. Those
tribes remain under the whim of IHS,
at least as far as funding. “IHS must
continue to fund you exactly as it would
have had you continued your funding
agreement, including any increases,”
Munson said. “It takes away the ability of IHS to manipulate or to pressure
tribes.”
·
Self-governance tribes tend
to have more health experts working
for them than other tribes that rely on
IHS for expertise on health care policy.
·
Tribes that complete self-governance never risk conceding any sovereignty through the process. “Nothing
that would arise out of the exercise of
self-determination and self-governance
leads to that result,” Munson said.
·
The move to self-governance
doesn’t prevent federal employees from
working for the tribe. In fact, the Winnebago Tribe plans to offer contracts
to all of the hospital’s current federal
employees. “It is absolutely essential
for good programs to have stability in
their health care staff,” Munson said.
She said the hospital has had 13 different acting or permanent CEOs over
the past three years. “The lack of consistent leadership, the lack of vision has
impaired the ability to recruit people
and get them commit to be here.” She
said she’s hopeful the tribe will be able
to change that, by providing consistent
leadership to the hospital’s staff and by
offering salaries that are competitive
with private market rates.
·
The move to self-governance
also doesn’t mean the tribal council
will take direct control of the hospital,
deciding who to hire and fire. Munson
said efforts are underway to ensure
some separation of powers between the
hospital’s leadership and the tribe’s.
·
It will be important for the
tribe to consider training programs for
aspiring health professionals, since it
currently doesn’t have enough trained
health professionals to adequately staff
the hospital. Munson said a health consortium in Alaska has even considered
starting a college to train health professionals to staff its programs.
·
The tribe doesn’t plan to change
its patient eligibility guidelines. “Anyone who’s getting care at the hospital
today who wants to continue to can
count on the fact that they will be able
to afterwards,” Munson said.
Jim Snow, a Winnebago T ribal
Council member, said the move to selfgovernance will provide the tribe much
greater power to control its own health
programs.
“We’re trying to provide quality care
for our tribal members and anyone that
comes into our hospital,” he said.
More information on the Winnebago
Tribe’s move to self-governance can
be found online at: http://www.winnebagotribe.com/index.php/government/winnebago-hospital-self-governance.
Tribal Councilwoman Tori Kitcheyan was
recently elected Vice Chair of the National
Indian Health Board
The National Indian Health Board (NIHB) represents Tribal governments—
both those that operate their own health care delivery systems through contracting and compacting, and those receiving health care directly from the
Indian Health Service (IHS). Located in Washington DC on Capitol Hill, the
NIHB, a non-profit organization, provides a variety of services to tribes, Area
Health Boards, Tribal organizations, federal agencies, and private foundations,
including:
Advocacy
Policy Formation and Analysis
Legislative and Regulatory Tracking
Direct and Timely Communication with Tribes
Research on Indian Health Issues
Program Development and Assessment
Training and Technical Assistance Programs
Project Management
The NIHB continually presents the Tribal perspective while monitoring
federal legislation, and opening opportunities to network with other national
health care organizations to engage their support on Indian health care issues.
The only organization of its kind; dedicated to strengthening healthcare for all
AI/ANs. For more information on NIHB, visit their website at www.nihb.org.
Winnebago Wrestling
Coach Tranmer
Well the wrestling regular season has come to an end today. The Bago Wrestlers competed in two meets over the weekend. Friday night the boys wrestled
in the Pender Duals Winnebago goes 2-3 with wins over Ponca 30-24 and N/V.
Losing Duals to OC, Pierce, and Pender. Derrell goes 5-0, Jamisen 3-0, Nick
3-2, Tobias 4-1, Kiylista 1-4, Tommy gets his first win in a match goes 1-2. The
boys woke up at 6am and traveled to Wakefield today. We didn’t have our full
line up but we wrestled pretty good. Tobias Thomas 138 went 1-3 on the day
with a pin. Kiylista Harden 182 went 0-1 and had to medical forfeit her last 4
matches due to an arm injury. Tommy Hunter 220 went 0-3 on the day. Nicholas Painter wrestled at 195 and had a tough day going 1-2 on the day. Nick is
one of only 2 wrestlers to earn over 100 match points and 100 team points in a
season. Darion Earthh 285 went 0-3 but in his last match wrestled as good as
ever losing 7-1. Jaylen Harden 285 went 3-2 on the day in his last competition
of his high school career with two pins and got 5th. Derrell Zagurski went 5-0
on the day and was 285 Champ. He scored 32 takedowns and had 5 pins and
improved to 49-1. As a senior ranked #6 in Class C He is 49-1, 152 takedowns
with 35 pins.
He has won 8 straight tournaments and won his last 42 matches heading
into C3 District. He has a three year career record of 110-27. Derrell rewrote
the individual and career record book this season in his three year career and is
the other wrestler who has earned 100 team and 100 match points in a season
he has an astonishing 349 match points and 315.5 team points.
Friday the Bago Wrestlers head to North Bend for the C3 District where it
is all or nothing. You lose two matches here and you are done for the season.
Wrestling for the Indians (weights and varsity records) will be 113 Antonio
Robles 14-20, 120Matthew Mcdonaldd 4-16, 160Kye Thomass 4-22, 170Samantha Littlegeorgee 2-8, 182 Kiylista Harden 7-13, 195Zeriah Georgee 2-8,
220 Nicholas Painter 19-22, and 285 Derrell Zagurski 49-1. Wrestling will begin
Friday at 3pm where we will wrestle 4 rounds (if you lose 2 you are done) and
then on Saturday is the big day at 10 am will be the semi finals and wrestle
backs where you earn you State birth. Come cheer on your Wrestling Indians.
Where we hope to qualify a couple for state in Omaha
This is a copy of a public record, reproduced as it was published. It is not legal advice, and it may not be the version a court would rely on. Check the official source before you cite it.