Tulalip News

HiJinx Carnival treats grade school kids to Halloween fun Oct. 26

Karen Whitehead helps her son Bryson don his Wolverine costume at the Oct. 22 'Give a Costume, Take a Costume' exchange in preparation for the Oct. 26 HiJinx Carnival.— image credit: Kirk Boxleitner — Karen Whitehead helps her son Bryson don his Wolverine costume at the Oct. 22 ‘Give a Costume, Take a Costume’ exchange in preparation for the Oct. 26 HiJinx Carnival.
— image credit: Kirk Boxleitner

Kirk Boxleitner, Arlington Times Reporter

LAKEWOOD — The Lakewood School District doesn’t want their grade school kids to be left out of the seasonal fun on the weekend before Halloween, which is why Lakewood Elementary, English Crossing Elementary and Cougar Creek Elementary have come together again to stage the annual HiJinx Carnival from 6-8 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 26, in the gymnasium of Lakewood High School.

David Campbell, president of the English Crossing Elementary PTA, explained that local PTAs put on this fall carnival for all the families in the Lakewood School District and the surrounding community.

“Our main focus is to provide the students of our schools the chance to come together, in a spirit of friendship and community, in a safe environment for kids,” Campbell said. “Since we encourage each of the kids to come in costume, we’ve arranged for a few local family photographers to capture this moment. The Lakewood High School Drama Department has also agreed to give us a great time of spooky stories throughout the night.”

These new features will complement familiar favorites such as games, bouncy houses, raffles and a cake walk, all of which are administered by PTA members and volunteers to whom Campbell expressed his appreciation.

“HiJinx is a great carnival that is completely volunteer-run,” Campbell said. “While the PTA is a main sponsor of the event, we recruit local individuals, businesses and other groups to help out with the event, and we always encourage groups and clubs from the high school and middle school to come by and pitch in. The football team, the cheerleaders, Drama and Honor Society, just to name a few, help run our games, paint faces and generally support the elementary school kids.”

According to Campbell, a yearly average of 30 adult volunteers are required to set up and tear down the staging for the event, but the majority of volunteers come from high school groups.

“These students really fill each of the booths and help the younger students have a great time,” Campbell said.

This year, Lakewood Elementary PTA President Julane Urie suggested a costume exchange, which took place at her school on Tuesday, Oct. 22, and marked the first “Give a Costume, Take a Costume” event for the Lakewood School District.

“It was a huge success,” Campbell said. “Anyone with school-age kids probably has a few boxes of costumes from years past that are still in great condition, but are too small for their own kids to wear another year. For many families, these costumes are worn only once, then put into storage, so this was a great way for everyone to get the chance to try a different costume without spending any cash at all.”

Especially in light of the country’s ongoing economic troubles, Campbell acknowledged that a number of families in the Lakewood School District might not otherwise be able to furnish their children with Halloween costumes.

“We really hope that this gave them a chance to step forward and enjoy this lasting memory,” Campbell said.

Looking to the HiJinx Carnival itself, Campbell reiterated that the invitation to this event extends beyond the boundaries of the Lakewood School District, to all grade school-aged kids. “This event isn’t about school politics, PTA grants or sports boosters, but rather, it’s just about clean safe fun for all families,” Campbell said. “In recent times, trick-or-treating has caused anxiety attacks for parents, when they think about sending their kids out door-to-door, so we strive to create a safe place for parents and kids to come and enjoy this holiday.”

Although the fall can often turn into a mad dash between various school sports and extracurricular activities, Campbell hopes the community will take the time to treat themselves to one of the largest volunteer-run events presented by local PTAs throughout the year.

“Halloween is a holiday that parents and students should try and fit into their busy schedules,” Campbell said. “By encouraging appropriate costumes for all of our families, we hope to allow parents and their children a chance to enjoy this event and celebrate the season.”

Lakewood High School is located at 17023 11th Ave. NE in Arlington.

5 Cons From Obama’s First Year of Second Term

Source: Indian Country Today Media Network

For President Barack Obama, the first year of his second term has been filled with plenty of ups and downs for the United States but also for Indian country.

The country has seen the Obama Administration deal with a government shutdown, and the Benghazi incident in the short span that has been this second term so far.

On October 10, Indian Country Today Media Network highlighted five positives that the administration has produced so far this year.

Not everything has been positive within Indian country as the administration has produced some negative effects as well. Below are five of them.

Just a Miscalculation

In March the National Congress of American Indians released a policy paper saying that tribal economic growth had already been thwarted; the National Indian Education Association said the cuts “devastate” Indian education; and Native journalist Mark Trahant estimated that the overall financial reduction for funding in Indian country totals $386 million—and that was just through the end of September. This all came out under the federal government’s sequester.

In all, the joint decision by Congress and the Obama White House, first made in 2011 and carried out on March 1, to allow an across-the-board 9 percent cut to all non-exempt domestic federal programs (and a 13 percent cut for Defense accounts)—known collectively as the sequester—amounted to a major violation of the trust responsibility relationship the federal government is supposed to have with American Indians, as called for in historic treaties, the U.S. Constitution and contemporary American policy.

While all of the cutbacks are troubling and difficult to bear, perhaps the most problematic of all were the ones happening at the Indian Health Service (IHS), housed in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. IHS Director Yvette Roubideaux and her staffers had said at various tribal meetings and in letters throughout 2011 and early 2012 that “the worst-case scenario would be a 2 percent decrease from current funding levels” for IHS, rather than the 9 percent forecasted. Then Indian country began to learn those predictions were wrong. IHS would be cut on March 1 at the same rate as every other non-protected agency.

Leaders Raise Concerns Over Budget Cuts

In April of this year, leaders throughout Indian country raised concerns about President Barack Obama’s proposed budget for 2014 and the lack of support at upholding the nation’s trust responsibility to American Indians as he has promised.

The budget, released April 10, was the president’s first time while in office to dramatically shrink his support for Indian programs in some key areas, including reductions in contract support services, education and school construction cuts, and spending on low-income housing.

Maintaining the Status Quo on Education

With President Barack Obama’s first term came hope for improvements across the board of Indian education, but five years later that hope has waned and now it’s gone to a “just hang on” mentality.

Indian education was still reeling in 2009 in Obama’s first term with No Child Left Behind under the Bush regime. Native culture, learning methods, and tribal language development were largely not on the minds of federal policy makers when the law was passed.

Since then successes have been small, funding cuts have occurred under federal sequestration, and the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (No Child Left Behind Act) has still not been reauthorized due to gridlock in Congress.

First Native Council Meets Sans Tribal Leaders

President Barack Obama announced the establishment of the White House Council on Native American Affairs on June 26. On July 29, the first meeting of the Council met without tribal leaders present.

According to the Obama administration the Council is intended to oversee and coordinate the progress of federal agencies on tribal programs and consultation with tribes across the federal government.

Instead of being present for the meeting, Department of the Interior Secretary Sally Jewell, appointed chair of the council by Obama, asked tribal leaders to provide input via conference call held July 26. The input from the call was used to guide the meeting.

Tex Hall, chairman of the Three Affiliated Tribes, may have said it best, “That’s not a real government-to-government relationship.”

Cheating Tribes on Health Costs

According to the U.S. Supreme Court 2012 ruling in Salazar v. Ramah Navajo Chapter the federal government must pay for the full contract support costs (CSC) incurred by tribes while providing healthcare and other government services for their tribal citizens through Indian Self-Determination Act contract agreements.

The White House shared with Congress late this summer a continuing resolution budget proposal that would allow the federal government to forgo paying millions of dollars worth of CSC to tribes. The proposal authorizes the Indian Health Service and the Bureau of Indian Affairs to limit how much each tribe would be paid for CSC. Leaving tribes to pay for any CSC funding not appropriated by Congress.

Tribal leaders who have reviewed the plan say it’s a tribal cap on a tribe-by-tribe basis that would wipe out tribal legal claims and put tribes in the difficult position of being required to spend money to administer contract support programs without providing them the funding to do so.

AIM and Idle No More to Protest at Redskins-Broncos Game Sunday

Source: Indian Country Today Media Network

Two Denver-based groups are set to protest against the Washington Redskins refusal to change its name and mascot.

Members of the American Indian Movement and Idle No More in Colorado will call on the football team to change its name at the Broncos-Redskins game on Sunday.

Protestors at Lambeau Field in Green Bay last month. (Associated Press)

Members of the group say that the name is “racist” and “an insult to all indigenous peoples.” They are also telling all Colorado news and sports journalists to banish the so-called ‘R’ word from their reporting; asking that local press such as The Denver Post and NBC’s KUSA to call them “the team from Washington, D.C.”

Both groups say that most American Indians consider the word to have a long racist history in the U.S.

Most recently, about 20 members from various Native American tribes protested outside Lambeau Field at the team’s game against the Green Bay Packers.

In a news release, the group invited “all people of goodwill” to protest at the football game. Protestors will gather at Sports Authority Field at Mile High in Denver. No location or time information has been announced.

Cabela’sTulalip Spooktacular, Oct 26

Cabela’s halloween

Cabela’s Tulalip will host a “spooktacular” for kids and adults from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, with trick or treating in each department of the store. Then take a stroll through the haunted aquarium, try a shot in the 3D Pumpkin Archery Range, decorate yourself with ghostly camo face paint, sample some terrifyingly delicious Dutch oven treats and hunt for the elusive, hairy Sasquatch. Try your hand (1-15 years of age) at the Sasquatch calling contest at 1 p.m. for a chance to win prizes.

For more information, call 360-474-4880.

How the Affordable Care Act Improves the Lives of American Women

By Kathleen Sebelius, Secretary of Health and Human Services

Today, we join our White House colleagues in celebrating National Breast Cancer Awareness month; and almost four weeks into the launch of the Health Insurance Marketplace, I’m reminded of the tremendous impact the Affordable Care Act has on the lives of American women.

As the President said, the law is much more than just a website – it’s affordable, quality health insurance made available to everyone. Through the Marketplace, 18.6 million uninsured women have new opportunities for affordable, accessible coverage. And if you’re one of the 85 percent of Americans who already have insurance, today you have stronger coverage and more choices than ever before.

Important preventive services are now available to women at no additional cost. These include an annual well woman visit, screening for breast, cervical, and colorectal cancer; certain contraceptive methods; smoking-cessation treatment and services; breastfeeding support and equipment; screening and counseling for interpersonal and domestic violence; immunizations; and many more. Thanks to the health care law, more than 47 million women have guaranteed access to preventive services without cost-sharing.

These preventive services are critical to keeping women healthy. For example, breast cancer is the most common cancer affecting women and the second leading cause of cancer death for women in the US, after lung cancer. But when breast cancer is caught early and treated, survival rates can be near 100 percent.

The Affordable Care Act also protects women’s access to quality health care. No one can be denied health insurance coverage because of a preexisting health condition, such as breast cancer, pregnancy, depression or being a victim of domestic violence. And there are no more annual and lifetime dollar limits on coverage.

Today, health plans in the Marketplace offer a comprehensive package of ten essential health benefits, including maternity care. An estimated 8.7 million American women currently purchasing individual insurance will gain coverage for maternity services, and most women will no longer need a referral from a primary care provider to obtain obstetrical or gynecological services.

Cost has also been a significant barrier to care for many women. According to one study, in 2010, one third of women spent 10 percent or more of their income on premiums and out of pocket costs. For low income women, that situation is much worse – over half of women who make $11,490 per year or less spend at least $1,149 a year on care. But through the Marketplace 6 out of 10 uninsured individuals can get coverage for $100 or less.

This year, as in every year, women will make important decisions for themselves and their families about health care. They can apply for coverage through the Marketplace: Online at Health care.gov; Over the phone by calling the 24/7 customer service center (1-800-318-2596, TTY 1-855-889-4325); Working with a trained person in their local community (Find Local Help); or by submitting a paper application my mail.

The six-month enrollment period has just begun. And unlike a sale on Black Friday, coverage will not run out; it will not get more expensive. Sign up by December 15, 2013 for coverage starting as early as January 1, 2014. Open enrollment continues until March 31, 2014.

To read more about the how the Affordable Care Act addresses the unique needs of women, visit: http://www.hhs.gov/healthcare/facts/blog/2013/08/womens-health-needs.html

New hotel to be paired with Angel of the Winds Casino

October 23, 2013

By Sharon Salyer, Everett Herald writer

ARLINGTON — The Angel of the Winds Casino, which drew more than 1 million visitors last year, has announced plans to add a $20 million, 125-room hotel.

Construction is scheduled to last 14 months. “I would like to see a grand opening maybe on New Year’s Eve of 2014,” said Travis O’Neil, the casino’s general manager, on Wednesday.

The casino, which opened in 2004, is one of the last along the I-5 corridor to add a hotel, he said.

The five-story hotel will make the casino a destination rather than just a day-trip site, he said. “It’s something the guests have been asking for for quite a while.”

The project also will add more than 100,000 square feet onto the casino and include a new gift shop, smoke shop and drive-up entryway.

Bellingham-based Exxel Pacific has been selected as the project’s general contractor.

Plans for the hotel have been under consideration for the past 18 months, O’Neil said. Casino staff went to members of the Stillaguamish Tribe to see “what we could do and what we could afford,” he said.

The hotel doesn’t aim to be a copy of the five-star, 370-room Tulalip Resort Casino, O’Neil said. Instead, he said, it will fit the character of the casino, known by its advertising tagline, “The World’s Friendliest Casino.”

Room prices will be in the $100- to $120-a-night range with plans to offer promotional packages with discounts on those rates, O’Neil said.

Groundbreaking for the project is scheduled for 10 a.m. Friday. Workers erected a fence around the construction site on Monday.

That has greatly reduced the parking on the south side of the casino, but parking on its north side hasn’t been affected. Shuttles are available to help people navigate the area, O’Neil said.

The casino is expected to hire an additional 50 employees to work at the hotel.

“We are truly blessed to have an opportunity to add a hotel to our facility and provide more services to our guests,” Shawn Yanity, chairman of the Stillaguamish Tribe, said in a statement. “Not only are we growing our tribal economy, but growing the local economy too by increasing job opportunities and tourism.”

The last major expansion at the casino, at 3438 Stoluckquamish Lane, was in 2008, a $44 million project that tripled the size of its gaming area.

Sharon Salyer: 425-339-3486; salyer@heraldnet.com.

Chief Wansum Tail Seeks Pocahottie: Yes, It’s Halloween Again

Source: Indian Country Today Media Network

Sorry ladies, but we’re calling Halloween 2013 a win for the boys.

Because Halloween in Indian country is always a horrorshow of snide stereotypes peddled to mainstream America as harmelss costumes. Usually — like, almost always — the stereotype is the playful “Native American women are sluts.” Oh, so fun. But this year we’re struck by the men in the Dreamgirl “Restless Wranglers”collection of Halloween costumes: Chief Wansum Tail and Chief Big Wood.

Really? Chief Wansum Tail is OK? Because we wonder whether the same company would dare market an African-American themed costume (we don’t claim to know what it would look like) with the name “Big [anything sexual] Jones.” And lest we neglect the American Indian women unjustly characterized as “Pocahotties,” let’s also wonder whether Dreamgirl could put out an Asian-themed costume called “Little Miss [anything sexual] Geisha.”

Here’s the complete collection of Native-themed costumes from Dreamgirls — and yes, we’re aware that most of them were available last year, if not earlier. No points for longevity. Dreamgirl has a Facebook page.

Chief Big Wood

Chief Wansum Tail

Hot On the Trail

Pocahottie

Rain Dancing Diva

Reservation Royalty

Tribal Princess

Tribal Trouble

Eastside steelhead fishery off to fast start

By Wayne Kruse, The Herald

The upper Columbia and its major tributaries opened for steelhead last week and anglers found “lights out fishing in the Methow for the first few days,” according to Don Talbot at Hooked On Toys in Wenatchee (509-663-0740).

Instead of a simple float-and-jig rig, Talbot said, more and more steelheaders in his bailiwick are going to a “float-and-whatever,” adding a second lure to the setup hanging under the float.

“They’re tying a couple of feet of leader directly to the jig hook (the bend, not the eye), and then either a small Corky or a same-size bead on a number-4 hook to finish off the second lure,” Talbot said. “Use a Corky if you want the second lure to float, or the 6- to 8-mil bead if you want it to sink.”

Pinks are popular colors for the rig, as are red/black combinations.

“The setup is a little unwieldy to cast,” Talbot said, “but on the other hand, you always hope you’re going to hook a double.”

The bottom 12 miles of the Methow have been the most productive so far, he said. The lower Wenatchee is also a possibility, although there are fewer fish, apparently, in the Wenatchee run.

“Put in your time on the river, cover a lot of water, change colors,” Talbot said. “Persistence pays off.”

State Fish and Wildlife Department regional fish manager Jeff Korth in Ephrata said about 14,000 adult steelhead are expected to return to the upper Columbia system this year, enough to allow a fishery, but with a caution. Korth said fishing will be more tightly regulated this year than last because protected wild-stock fish are expected to make up a higher percentage of the run.

These fisheries traditionally remain open through the winter, but Korth said, “We may have to close early due to the higher number of encounters with wild steelhead expected this year.”

Anglers are required to keep the first two hatchery, fin-clipped, steelhead they catch, and that with the exception of the Columbia proper, where bait may be used, selective-gear rules apply.

San Juan salmon

Fishermen in the San Juan Islands are transitioning from coho to winter blackmouth, with pretty fair fishing available for both right now. Kevin John at Holiday Sports in Burlington (360-757-4361) said big, wild, “hooknose” coho are the target along the west side of San Juan Island, while blackmouth anglers are finding fish “inside” at Lopez Flats and around Cypress Island. Small baits and lures — yellow-label herring, Coho Killer spoons in shades of green — are popular choices, John said.

River coho

Work some different water for coho; try the main stem Stillaguamish, which has been putting out better than usual fishing the past couple weeks. Kevin John said the I-5 and Silvana areas are both good bets, although coho are where you find them. Try Dick Nite spoons in green, chartreuse or 50-50, he said.

The best bet for boat fishermen right now might be the Skagit River in the Sedro-Woolley area, backtrolling Brad’s Wigglers or drifting Vibrax spinners.

Snow geese

Waterfowl hunting has been slow around the state, with bluebird weather the general rule, but when winter storm fronts start marching through the area, there should be snow geese available locally. The prediction by state biologists is that it was at least a fair hatch and that it should be a decent, if not great, hunting season.

Because of changes in farming practices on the Skagit delta, and other factors, over-wintering snows have separated themselves into three fairly distinct groups: the Stanwood flock, the Fir Island flock and the Bow flock. Goose populations at all three locations are building each day.

Steelhead clinic

Mark your calendar for the annual Steelhead and River Fishing Workshop sponsored by the Everett Steelhead and Salmon Club and Everett Parks & Recreation. It’s free and open to all interested anglers. The popular seminar is scheduled from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Nov. 9 at Floral Hall in Forest Park in Everett.

The event covers methods and techniques for river fishing, tackle selection, hook tying, rigging and casting, reading water and more. There should be something here for both beginning and experienced anglers.

For more information, call Everett Parks at 425-257-8300, extension 2.

Cabela’s halloween

For more information, call 360-474-4880.

Shellfish made poisonous by toxic algae may bloom into bigger problem

Click image to watch video or listen to interview.

Oct. 23, 2013

PBS NEWSHOUR

The Pacific Northwest is known for its seafood, but when algae blooms in coastal waters, it can release toxins that poison shellfish and the people who eat them. Katie Campbell of KCTS in Seattle reports on the growing prevalence and toxicity of that algae, and how scientists are studying a possible link to climate change.

Transcript

HARI SREENIVASAN: Next to the West Coast, where algae has been poisoning shellfish and subsequently people.In recent years, toxic algal blooms have been more potent and lasted longer.That has scientists trying to understand whether climate change could be contributing to the problem.

Our report comes from special correspondent Katie Campbell of KCTS Seattle.She works for the environmental public media project EarthFix.

KATIE CAMPBELL, KCTS:Every family has its legends.

For Jacki and John Williford and their children, it’s the story of a miserable camping trip on the Olympic Peninsula in the summer of 2011.It all started when the Willifords did what Northwest families do on coastal camping trips.They harvested some shellfish and cooked them up with garlic and oregano.

JOHN WILLIFORD, father:Oh, they were amazing.I was like, wow, these are pretty much the best mussels I have ever eaten.And I think I said in a text to Jacki.

JAYCEE WILLIFORD, daughter:They were the best mussels in the whole wide world.

JOHN WILLIFORD: Is that what you said?Yes.

KATIE CAMPBELL: Two-year-old Jessica and 5-year-old Jaycee were the first to get sick.Next, John got sick.

JACKI WILLIFORD, mother:They just were so violently ill, and I just knew it had to be the mussels.And that next week, I called the health department and said, I think we got shellfish poisoning or something from the shellfish.And that’s when all the calls started to come in.

(LAUGHTER)

KATIE CAMPBELL: It turned out that Willifords were the first confirmed case in the United States of people getting diarrhetic shellfish poisoning.DSP comes from eating shellfish contaminated by a toxin produced by a type of algae called Dinophysis.

It’s been present in Northwest waters for decades, but not at levels considered toxic.

NEIL HARRINGTON, Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe:It’s unfortunate to discover you have a new toxin present by people getting ill.

KATIE CAMPBELL: Neil Harrington is an environmental biologist for the Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe in Sequim, Washington.Every week, he collects water and shellfish samples from the same bay where the Willifords harvested mussels two summers ago.He tests for Dinophysis and other naturally occurring toxins in shellfish.

NEIL HARRINGTON: Shellfish are filter feeders, so they are filtering liters and liters and liters of water every day.If they are filtering phytoplankton that is a little bit toxic, when we eat the shellfish, we’re eating essentially that — that toxin that’s been concentrated over time.

KATIE CAMPBELL: A number of factors can increase the size and severity of harmful algal blooms.As more land is developed, more fertilizers and nutrients get washed into waterways.It’s a problem that has also hit Florida and the Gulf of Mexico as well.

NEIL HARRINGTON: The more nutrients you add to a water body, the more algae there is, and the more algae you get, the more chance that some of those algae may be harmful.

KATIE CAMPBELL: But on top the local problem of nutrient runoff is the larger issue of global warming.Scientists believe the increase in prevalence and toxicity of Dinophysis is linked to changing ocean chemistry and warming waters.

STEPHANIE MOORE, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration:There’s a whole lot of changes that are occurring in Puget Sound, and not — and they’re not occurring in isolation.And that’s the challenge for scientists.

KATIE CAMPBELL: Stephanie Moore is a biological oceanographer for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.She studies Puget Sound’s harmful algae.Most algal blooms here occur during warmer weather.

Because climate change is expected to raise temperatures in the coming decades, Moore says that could directly affect when and where harmful algal blooms occur.

STEPHANIE MOORE: We’re going to have to look for these blooms in places and during times of the year when, traditionally, we haven’t had to worry about them.Their impacts could then span a much larger time of the year, and that could cost a lot more money in terms of the effort that needs to go into monitoring and protecting the public from the toxins that they produce.

KATIE CAMPBELL: Washington has one of the most advanced algae and shellfish testing systems in the country.It’s in part because of the state’s 800 miles of shore and its multimillion-dollar shellfish industry.

Today, Moore is testing a new piece of equipment that has the potential to raise the bar even higher.The environmental sample processor, or ESP, automatically collects water from a nearby shellfish bed, analyzes the samples, and sends Moore a photograph of the results.

STEPHANIE MOORE: This is a huge advancement in our ability just to keep tabs on what’s going on, and in near real time.It’s amazing.

KATIE CAMPBELL: Moore says she hopes that, next year, the ESP will be equipped to monitor for Dinophysis, the toxin that caused the Williford family to get sick.

In the meantime, Jacki Williford says she will continue to be extremely wary of eating shellfish.

JACKI WILLIFORD: I think it’s scary because you just — you just don’t know what you’re getting anymore in food.

KATIE CAMPBELL: As for the rest of the family, well, not everyone has sworn off mussels.

JOHN WILLIFORD: It doesn’t change a thing for me.

(LAUGHTER)

JACKI WILLIFORD: For him.

(LAUGHTER)

HARI SREENIVASAN: Jaycee might keep eating mussels, but the high levels of toxins have forced the Washington State Department of Health to shutdown shellfish beds in six counties around the Puget Sound.

Halloween pet photo submissions

Pet friends of Tulalip tribal members and employees get in the Halloween spirit.