FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE March 18, 2020 12:06 p.m. MISSION, Ore. – Wildhorse Resort & Casino announced today that the casino is temporarily closing in order to reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus in the region and allow employees to follow social distancing recommendations. The casino will close at noon on Wednesday, March 18 and will reopen on April 8.…
By Casey Brown of the CUJ MISSION – CTUIR’s COVID-19 ICT (ICT) started out with a public health focus, but was converted March 12 to a pandemic response unit when the World Health Organization (WHO) reclassified Novel Coronavirus from “outbreak” to “pandemic.” The group, which is comprised of Tribal government officials, Yellowhawk Tribal Health Center leaders, and officials from CTUIR…
By Casey Brown of the CUJ MISSION – Wildhorse Resort & Casino and Nixyaawii Education Center re-opened Wednesday, March 5, two days after Tribal officials learned that an employee of the gaming facility had tested presumptive positive for coronavirus. It was the third person in Oregon who was presumed positive for COVID-19, commonly referred to as novel coronvirus. The other…
By Casey Brown of the CUJ UMATILLA INDIAN RESERVATION – A State of Emergency was declared Feb. 6 by the Board of Trustees for the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR) when the Umatilla River breached its banks Feb. 6-7. Heavy snow topped by four inches of rain and unusually warm temperatures caused a melt that resulted in…
By Casey Brown of the CUJ MISSION – One day after class, Paul Rabb’s business professor Mrs. Bygun pulled him aside. She wanted him to know that he was born to be a leader, and nearly three decades later Rabb stepped into the largest leadership role of his life. It was a coincidence that he was in charge of operations…
MISSION – Voters passed a constitutional amendment Feb. 26 that clarifies the Umatilla Indian Reservation boundaries to be used for elections of Board of Trustees members and General Council officers. Members of the Confederated Tribes overwhelmingly voted against the “diminished boundary” advocated by previous members of the Board of Trustees, five of whom were defeated in their bids for re-election…
OLYMPIA – Longhouse leader Armand Minthorn delivered the invocation to start the floor session for the Washington State House of Representatives at the capitol in Olympia Feb. 26. Minthorn, who also is a member of the Board of Trustees (BOT) for the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR), and Kat Brigham, BOT Chair, were guests of Washington state…
By Casey Brown of the CUJ SALEM, Ore. – A bill aimed at increasing protections for Indian children and a flood relief funding package of over $11 million are two of many stalled in the State Capitol. Republicans in the Oregon State Senate walked out Feb. 24 and their counterparts in the Oregon House of Representatives joined them the following…
By Casey Brown of the CUJ International Women’s Day is March 8, which falls on a Sunday this year, and the month of March is Women’s History Month. Indian Country celebrates the day and the month along with the rest of the nation. Women’s History Month started as a day, then became a week, and since 1986 has been a…
MISSION – Native Americans suffer from one of the highest problem gambling rates in the United States, according to the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions. Some tribes fund problem gambling programs through their state gaming compacts while others make contributions directly to organizations that provide support for people with addictions. Wildhorse Casino offers a Gambler’s Anonymous hotline…