Message from Chief Paula Pechonick

Note: This is the lead article in the October 2012 issue of the Delaware Indian News

He’, Kulamàlsi hàch? I hope all is well with you and your families. In July, I reported that the Tribal Council was working on negotiations with the Cherokee Nation. It has turned out to be a slower process than I expected. They have postponed several meetings so far but we have been assured that they will be able to meet with us soon. I hope to have more extensive news to report to you at the General Council and Tribal Election, which will be held on November 3.

I will be delivering the State of the Tribe Address at General Council, which begins at 1:00 at the Delaware Community Center in Bartlesville. Votes to elect new tribal officials may be cast either there or at our Caney, KS headquarters building from 9:00am to 1:00pm. Please plan on attending this important event if at all possible. I envision this annual meeting to be an orderly and informative opportunity for everyone to learn more about the exciting progress our tribe has made over the last year as well as to discuss our goals for the future. Door prizes will be awarded and we will eat, visit and have a stomp dance following the meeting.

For those of you who cannot be in attendance for General Council and the election, absentee ballots must be requested this time. When our previous administration decided to mail ballots to all voting-age tribal members, a dramatic increase in the voter response was envisioned. This, however, was not the case so we have returned to having you request absentee ballots in order to save money on mail-outs. Therefore, if you cannot be present to cast your vote in person for the election on November 3 and haven’t yet sent in for your absentee ballot, please remember to do so!
There is a mail in request form on page 3 of the latest (October) Delaware Indian News or you may download one from the tribal website. Absentee ballot requests must be received no later than October 15th. I strongly encourage each of you to vote and continue the forward momentum and progress of the Tribe.

As many of you have noticed, there is a lot of construction going on around our headquarters complex. We are very excited to be able to respond to the needs and concerns of our tribal members through the construction of a storm shelter, a new social services building, and an extension of the road through the property which will accommodate our growth.

The extension of Barbara Avenue, which runs in front of the headquarters and elder housing, is now finished. We will file with the city to have the name of Barbara Ave changed to something more suitable for the Tribe and would like your ideas. Chris Miller has been designated to collect your suggestions. You may email him at cmiller@delawaretribe.org or call the office at 918-337-6590.

The Social Services building is starting to go up now. This new building will house our tribal library and archives collection as well as offices for services available to Tribal members. We applied for a grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) to equip computer workstations in the library portion of the new building. Unfortunately, the program was only able to award 14 grants and we were not selected. I have heard of organizations in the past offering the Tribe computers. If you know of an organization that might be interested in helping equip the library please contact the office and point us in the right direction. We intend for the walkway in front of the new building to be inlaid with personalized bricks similar to the area at the entrance of the community center building. The prices are very affordable.

Please do not wait to order your bricks! There are a limited number of spaces available and due to our construction schedule there is a quick turnaround for the project. All orders must be submitted by Nov. 15.

On a sadder note, I am sorry to report the resignation of Wayne Stull after many years of service to the Tribe. He has served the Tribe well and tirelessly for years and said he needs a break for a while. We hope to have him continue to be active with the tribe in whatever capacity he sees fit.

For those of you with access to the internet, please look at our website for up-to-date information about the Tribe. We are continuing to expand the website to meet the needs of Tribal members both local and worldwide.

I hope to see you all at General Council and at Delaware Days enjoying this beautiful fall weather! Làpìch knewël!