Valley Roadrunner | Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Photo: Pauma Chairman Chris Devers, left, accompanies several tribal members at the Tribal Nations Conference.
WASHINGTON — Local tribal leaders attended President Obama’s White House Tribal Nations Conference last week.
They included Pauma Tribal Chairman Chris Devers, San Pasqual Chairman Allen Lawson and Rincon council members Steve Stallings and Gilbert Parada. ?Chairman Devers, accompanied by several tribal members, was one of only a handful of tribal leaders that was able to speak last week.
Tribal representatives attended the meetings, as well as the opening of the American Indian Embassy in D.C., which symbolizes and recognizes the tribes as sovereign nations, but also accommodates the constant interaction tribes must have with congress on bills to ensure they aren’t left out or are written in in ways that they feel are harmful.?
On Thursday, President Obama spoke to the conference, which provided leaders from the 564 federally recognized tribes the opportunity to interact directly with the President and representatives from the highest levels of his Administration.
Obama Launches Yearly American Indian Summits
UpNorthLive.com | Thursday November 05, 2009
Councilwoman Juana Majel-Nixon of the Pauma Band of Mission Indians, right, wears a decorative hair clip during a meeting between House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama is making good on a campaign promise to have a yearly summit with American Indians to hear their concerns.
Obama is to deliver opening and closing remarks Thursday for the meeting of members of his Cabinet and tribal leaders, the first such event since 1994. Officials planned to discuss problems facing American Indians, including economic development, education, health care, public safety and housing.
"This is an opportunity for tribal leaders to interact directly with the president, and we all know working in this area that there are so many difficult and monumental issues which face Indian nations throughout our country. And frankly, the last administration did not pay any attention to these issues," Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said.
During the Democratic primary, Obama traveled to Indian reservations and promised health care improvements.
"I'll appoint an American Indian policy adviser to my senior White House staff to work with tribes and host an annual summit at the White House with tribal leaders to come up with an agenda that works for tribal communities," Obama said in a video address to the National Congress of American Indians' convention in Phoenix during the final days of last year's campaign. "That's how we'll make sure you have a seat at the table when important decisions are being made about your lives, about your nations and about your people."
He made good on that pledge, creating a new post within the White House. He appointed Kimberly Teehee to serve as senior policy adviser for Native American affairs within the Domestic Policy Council. Teehee, a member of the Cherokee Nation, previously served as an aide to Rep. Dale Kildee, D-Mich., and worked for the Democratic National Committee.
He also tapped Dr. Yevette Roubideaux to serve as director of the Indian Health Service within the Department of Health and Human Services, making her the first American Indian to head the federal agency since its founding in 1955. Roubideaux, a member of the Rosebud Sioux tribe, worked for IHS on the San Carlos Indian Reservation and in the Gila River Indian community.
Thursday's event is an opportunity for the administration to tout its $787 billion economic stimulus bill. Some $3 billion of the economic stimulus funding was directed to tribal communities and Obama has sought budget increases for Indian health care and programs run by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, officials said. They hope to develop a list of steps the administration and tribes can take to improve the quality of life on reservations.
"We won't be able to wave a magic wand and resolve all of the issues," Salazar said, "but it is a great foundation for the work that lies ahead."
Pauma Tribe Dedicates New Fire Station
Friday’s dedication of the new Pauma Band of Luiseño Indians tribal fire station 69 was also a remembrance of the eighth anniversary of 9/11, which is, more than any other day, associated with the heroism of firefighters—343 were killed in the attack of 2001. About 70 members of the community attended the dedication and the lunch that followed.
The dedication began with a flag ceremony that included both Old Glory and the Pauma tribal flag, accompanied by a Luiseño chant. Chairman Chris C. Devers performed the blessing of the station, which was accompanied by sage smoke, also used to purify the station.
“We picked this day, 9/11, to remember that fateful day when our country was attacked and to remember the firefighters and responders who lost their lives that day,” he said, declaring that it was an especially appropriate day to open a fire station.
“We hope this significant addition of our facility will improve their resources and strengthen their impact within the community,” he said. Devers said that the goal of building the station goes back to 2007, and the decision was made shortly before the Poomacha wildfire of 2007 ravaged the valley.
He credited the Pauma tribal council with having the courage to authorize the station. At that time the Pauma tribal fire crew was a hand crew. The tribe decided that year to upgrade it to an “all risk” crew capable of handling all emergency calls and work with other similar agencies.
“When the valley was evacuated we had our hand crews deployed protecting lives and personal property,” said Devers. He noted that the tribe lost 4,000-5,000 acres of timberland that it owns during that fire. He called the new fire station, “a structure, but a lot more than a structure.” During the ceremony Pauma Firefighter Joey Latscha, one of the 14 firefighters, read the Firefighter’s Prayer, which includes these lines: “When I am called to duty, God, Whenever flames may rage, Give me strength to save some life, Whatever be its age.”
Fire Chief William Melendez introduced the 13 firefighters who will be working with him. “We share our house with our brothers and welcome you to our new fire station.” He added, “You don’t know what this day means to us. We are making history in Pauma Valley—we should be very proud.” Cal Fire Chief Jeff Johnson was also a guest speaker. “We have a strong working relationship with all of the departments in this area,” noting that Pauma has signed a mutual aid agreement with Cal Fire,” he said. “Our hope and desire is that we have a strong brotherhood and sisterhood in the fire services. We have seen a lot of changes and we are going to see more soon. Fire knows no boundaries. This new station will serve not only Pauma but the surrounding communities.”
Chief Melendez has spent the last year and a half training his crew from scratch to be ready for the station opening, which will actually be in service in about a week. He has spent his entire 27 year career in the fire services, including four years as division chief of the fire department that protected NASA’s facility in Simi Valley. That job had its special challenges since the highly flammable liquid oxygen is stored a large quantities.
He soon expects the qualify some of his crew as paramedics. The station has one engine and one brush engine, but will eventually have a hook and ladder engine and a total of 24 firefighters by the time the tribe is done expanding its casino to include a hotel. “We are very proud of how far we have come,” the chief told The Roadrunner. “We are going to work hard to provide the best quality service. I’m glad to be here and part of this history.”
Pauma Valley's Secret to Healthy Eating
San Diego Daily Transcript | Friday, July 17, 2009
PAUMA VALLEY – Eating healthy is easier than you might think: Go organic. It improves not only your diet but also your environment and, ultimately, your health. Today, you'll find more organic produce at increasingly lower prices, and your children can learn about organic food as early as elementary school -- thanks in part to people like the Pauma Band of Luiseño Indians.
In the spirit of better health and the empowerment of future generations, the Pauma tribe began the process of organically certifying the fruit grown on and near its reservation in early 2008. Instead of sourcing fruit from distant locations, its casino now uses citrus and avocados from its 135-acre grove.
“It’s better for the environment,” said Water Master Miguel Hernandez, a tribal member who manages the grove. “Plus, the fewer pesticides and fertilizers we use, the less gets into the groundwater.” (In the photo above, Pauma tribal member Claude Devers, left, shows his grandson, Torin Chavez, center, and a friend the basics of organic farming. Photo: Lisa Gisczinski, Elle Photography for Tierra Miguel Foundation)
Asteroids Named in Luiseño Language
PALOMAR MOUNTAIN ---- By giving three asteroids American Indian names, astronomers at the Palomar Observatory and tribal leaders said Tuesday they hope to spark new interest in an ancient local culture.
The three asteroids discovered with the 200-inch telescope atop Palomar Mountain were named after figures in the Luiseno tribe's story of creation: Tukmit, Tomaiyowit and Kwiila.
"As we try to teach our culture to our kids, this is very significant to us," said Chris Devers, chairman of the Pauma Band of Mission Indians, whose reservation is a few miles down the mountain in Pauma Valley.
Devers said the Luisenos, the original inhabitants of Palomar Mountain and Pauma Valley, believed that Tukmit, or Father Sky, was made from nothingness and together with Tomaiyowit, Earth Mother, bore the first people. (In the photo above, Children from the Pauma Band of Luiseño Indians perform a Native American "thank you" blessing during a ceremony to name three asteroids Tuesday at Palomar Mountain. Photo: Bill Wechter, Staff Photographer)
Pauma Media Stories 2007-2008
CSUSM Names 'Tukwut Courtyard'
By NOELLE IBRAHIM - Staff Writer | Thursday, March 1, 2007
SAN MARCOS ---- The tribal chairman of the Pauma Band of Mission Indians shook a turtle shell rattle as he sang a traditional Luiseño song Thursday afternoon during a ceremony naming Tukwut Courtyard at Cal State San Marcos.
Accompanied by his son and nephew, Chris Devers then blessed the courtyard, which is on the third floor of Craven Hall, with incense from burning sage, a Luiseño tradition he said was meant to protect the area and ward off evil spirits.
"We'd like to ask the creator to look down on this area for all those who will come here to sit and think ... and to guide them on the journeys they make," Devers told a crowd of more than 100 students, staff, administrators and members of the local Indian community who gathered to witness the dedication. The courtyard takes its name from the Luiseño Indian word for mountain lion.
Pala Buys Big Parcel by Pauma Casino
By Chet Barfield
STAFF WRITER
November 19, 2006
PALA INDIAN RESERVATION – The Pala Indian band has purchased 1,800 acres of adjacent land that halfway surrounds a neighboring tribal parcel where the Pauma tribe plans to expand its mid-size casino into a potentially huge resort.
But Pala leaders say last month's $27 million purchase was for an environmental hedge, not to rein in a gambling rival.
Complete Story
Pauma Band of Luiseño Indians, California
Posted: August 01, 2001
By Staff Reports / Indian Country Today
The band has agreed to pay more than $1.4 million for road improvements near the reservation. Pauma is the third tribe in northern San Diego County to reach such an agreement with county officials. The deal will have the tribe spend $1.3 million for work on Pauma Reservation Road and $129,000 for improvements on Valley Center Road, outside of Escondido. The tribe also agrees to negotiate with the California Department of Transportation about any additional work that may be needed on state Route 76. Four newly opened tribal casinos are located on or near the two-lane highway.
Complete Story
