Sequoyah County Times from Sallisaw, Oklahoma • 2

A-3 8w whC lrTlti.8ailMW.OfcU.SM4w.AtMt 1S.W4 Letters to the Editor- Obituaries A question for all Cherokees; It has been 12 months one year since the elections, what campaign premises, made by h've you seen actually happen and come to pass. Let me ask you a second question, If you performed your job the way our elected officials do, how long would you have a job? One very good example is Joel Thompron, head of Housing Authority of the Cherokee Nation. There has been no funding of HACN for the past three years. This office cannot follow simple directions and fill out forms properly. How long does it take for our elected officials to wake up? What lame excuses are we going to hear as reasons to keep Joel Thompson on the payroll.

How many Cherokees are waiting on homes, and have they been told the reason why they are still waiting is because of an incompetent department head? I for one am disgusted with the performance of some of the department heads and the lame excuses they offer for not performing duties. What lame excuses are our council members going to offer for not getting something done? They will most likely go into executive session behind closed doors to come up with an excuse. They do not even have the guts of real leadership to conduct our business out in the open. Maybe it is best they conduct their meetings behind closed doors, otherwise it might make us sicker than we already are. When are we going to get leaders who care about their people? Leaders, who think and act Cherokee, instead of the selfish, self-serving, white-thinking ones we currently have.

I know this does not apply to all, but it sure applies to some! Council members, does it apply to you? There are many good Cherokees who resist the temptation to become something other than a Cherokee. I am proud of your courage to be steadfast in your belief of who and what you are, a Cherokee. Our problems are much greater than we care to admit, Ive only scratched the surface here. Barbara Scott, from Jay, summed it up best, Its time to get down to the real business of improving the quality of Cherokee peoples lives. The Cherokee people deserve and should demand the best from all elected officials.

Its time for us to stand up and be Cherokee. Wah-Doh Rodger Hartley Sallisaw Footnote: Board of Indian Commissioners, annual report, 1902. Teachers Attend Summer Institute Thinks Cherokee Nation Has D.S. Dear Editor: A condition exists within the Cherokee Nation, which all tribal members need to be made aware of. Its D.S.

Its technical name is Dawes Syndrome. There is only one symptom, and it may not be obvious that one is infected with D.S. It is usually isolated to small groups, and most Cherokees are immune. There is no known cure. When D.S.

does surface it is very detectable and obvious. Whether D.S. is fatal, is not known. However, D.S. is not to be taken lightly, it is a very serious disorder.

For those of you who are not familiar with D.S., it is named after Sen. Henry L. Dawes, a white Yankee from Massachusetts. Dawes and his eastern friends met to discuss the problem-the Indian, the Cherokee. They were told by Dawes, "The head Chief told us that there was not a family in the whole nation that had not a home of its own.

There was not a pauper in the nation, and the nation did not owe a dollar. It built its own capital, in which we had this examination, and it built its schools and its hospitals. Yet the defect of the system is apparent. There is no selfishness, which is at the bottom of civilization. Their goal was to make us white, by the extinction of our tribal governments.

It has taken nearly one hundred years, but we are now seeing D.S. surface within the Cherokee people. On June 19, 1996, my wife was seen at the Wilma P. Mankiller Clinic in Stilwell by Dr. Kotho and Mr.

Palmer, P.A. My wife is of Cree descent and is not Cherokee, so she was seen on a one-time courtesy visit. This is a courtesy visit to us, because I am Cherokee, 1932 by blood. An objection has been raised by an LP.N. about the doctor and PA.

seeing my wife. Our medical insurance information was given, and prescriptions were given to us which were filled at the Wal-Mart Pharmacy in Sallisaw. After years of treatments and tests by physicians in Fort Smith, and Sallisaw, who were unable to determine the cause andor the problem, Dr. Kotho and Mr. Palmer PA, have apparently diagnosed her illness and prescribed the proper medication.

After one month she feels better than she has in over 12 years. Apparently Dell Palmer, PAs position may be in jeopardy, because he performed his job. David Rico, who is one of Dr. Kingfishers assistants in the health care department has apparently decided to make an example of Mr. Palmer for doing his job.

Apparently, David M. Rico does not understand the fact, that his position is that of a servant, to the Cherokee people to help provide the best health care, doctors, and staff possible, for which he is very well paid. What does he do, he tries to run off a very good physicians assistant. It seems to me that David Rico is the person failing the Cherokee people by not providing the best health care staff he can. Instead he is playing petty politics with our health care.

Does David Rico suffer from D.S. or is he a white man masquerading as a Cherokee? LPN Cains jumped the gun. She wanted to know if Chief Byrd wanted my wife to be seen by the clinic. She was the only person to mention the Chiefs name. She then proceeded to bypass the normal chain of command and went straight to Tahlequah for answers.

The end result of taking matters into her own hands is the present turmoil between the Deputy Chief and Dr. Kingfisher which has resulted in the involvement of the Chief, the Tribal Council and the Administrator of the Stilwell Clinic, and also resulted in the transfer of other staff from the clinics. LPN Cains should be proud of herself for disrupting services, peoples lives and the waste of thousands of dollars, which could have gone toward services, because one employee was not satisfied with doing her job. She stepped into an area where she did not know what was going on. She is not qualified as an RN, physicians assistant, a department supervisor, a clinic administrator, a health department administrator or a tribal leader, She is qualified as an LPN.

Why not do the job you were hired to do? I am sure there is a job description for this position, if not ask your supervisor what it is. Councilwoman, Ms. Watie, from Stilwell has also made this a big issue. Ms. Watie, didnt the oath of office you took, obligate you to serve all the Cherokee people to the best of your ability all the time, or do you pick and choose who you help, when you help and on what you help! I am well aware of the feet that my wife is not Cherokee, and is therefore not able to receive any further medical services.

I am also not aware of any courtesy housing visits. If you are not familiar with courtesy housing, it works like this; (The non-Cherokee spouse of a Cherokee, living in a house provided by the Cherokee Nation, only gets to spend one day in the house. Where does the non-Cherokee spouse live the rest of the time)? Sounds allot like a courtesy medical visit, doesnt it? Maybe we should break services down to blood quantum. Then when someone is say, 12 Cherokee, we only provide half a job, or half a house, or half a vote, or half an operation. The only problem is which half is the Cherokee half? In my opinion Ms.

Watie is also suffering from D.S. What we Cherokees need are Cherokee-thinking elected officials, Cherokee-thinking departments, instead of selfish, I got mine, whitethinking leaders. You may look Cherokee and speak Cherokee but your actions are white, not Cherokee. The needs of Cherokees are different than the needs of a white person, we think different and have different beliefs in the way we conduct our lives, there is a definite life style difference between us. AnnaBelle Conley Farmer Funeral services for AnnaBelle Conley Farmer, 67, of Vian are being held at 10 a.m.

Saturday at Vian United Methodist Church with the Rev. Dennis Smith officiating. Burial is in Garden of Memories Cemetery in Vian under the direction of Agent Funeral Home in Sallisaw. Mrs. Farmer was bom Feb.

21, 1929, in Vian, to Leo and Iva (Gentry) Conley. She died Wednesday, Aug. 14, 1996, in Vian. She was a retired registered nurse and was a lifetime member of the Vian United Methodist Church. She was past vice-president of Maricopa County Nurses Association in Arizona and former Maricopa County, Ariz.

Medical Association Nurse of the year. She married Eugene M. Buddy Farmer Dec. 24, 1950, in Vian. Survivors include her husband, Buddy Farmer of the home; two daughters and one son-in-law, Beth Ann and Jeffrey Drake of Puyallup, and Pattie Farmer Smith of Mesa, and one brother, CW.

Bunk Conley of Houston, Texas. Pallbearers are Charles Bane, Bill Bane, Jack Rosenberg, Ed Brockman, James Haraway, and Hany Goaz. Memorials may be made to Sequoyah Memorial Hospice in Sallisaw. Delta Yvonne Vanzandt Funeral services for Delta Yvonne Vanzandt, 51, of Muldrow were held at 10 a.m. Friday at Moffett Full Gospel Church with the Rev.

Wayne Hall officiating. Burial was in Maple Cemetery, northeast of Sallisaw, under the direction of Agent Funeral Home in Sallisaw. Mrs. Vanzandt was born Sept. 15, 1944, in Fort Smith, to Everett Armon England and Ida Belle (Norwood) England.

She died Wednesday, Aug. 14, 1996, in Fort Smith. She was a homemaker and of the Holiness faith. She married Charles Franklin Vanzandt Oct. 22, 1960, in Stilwell.

Survivors include her husband, Charles F. Vanzandt of the home; three daughters, Tammy Dianne Keith, Vicki Marlene Gibson, and Tanya Louann Porter, all of Muldrow; one son, Charles Franklin Vanzandt Jr. of Flat Rock, seven grandchildren; two sisters, Louann Nguyen of Fort Smith, and Diane Blackman of Roland; and one brother, Dayton England of Fort Smith. Pallbearers were Teddy Eubanks, Robert Mathis, Terry Mathis, Lance Barron, Roger Fuller, Danny Hoover. Honorary pallbearers were Jeff Keith, Brian Keith and John McLinn.

Mrs. Vanzandt was preceded in death by one brother, John Armon England, and her parents. In AmericaCl KJ. BONDS George W. Wilson Funeral services for George W.

Wilson, 74, of Roland are being held at 2 p.m. Saturday at Agent Chapel in Muldrow with the Rev. Qaybura Bratton officiating. Burial is in Roland City Cemetery under the direction of Agent Funeral Home in Sallisaw. Mr.

Wilson was born Oct. 15, 1921, in Sequoyah County to H.W. Wilson and Ola Mae (Osborne) Wilson. He died Thursday, Aug. 15, 1996, at his home.

He was retired from Plywood Milling Lumber in Roseburg, and was of the Baptist faith. He married Katherine A. Capps June 27, 1951, in Muskogee. Survivors include his wife, Kay Wilson of the home; two daughters, Dianna Toleno of Roseburg and Mary Aguilar of Myrtle Creek, one son, George Aaron Wilson of Roland; five grandchildren; his mother, Ola Mae Wilson of Roland; six sisters, Ellen Jones, Lucille Gage, Martha Trammell, Wanda Cheek and Carol Jones, all of Roland, and Ruby Metcalf of Tulsa; and two brothers, Frank Wilson and Joe Dale Wilson, both of Roland. Pallbearers are Albert Cates, Anthony Cates, Jack Cates, Sonny Trammell, Larry Wilson and Darrell Wilson.

Memorials may be made to Fort Smith Community Hospice, 1115 S. Waldron Road, Fort Smith, Ark. 72903, and New Hope Baptist Church of Greenwood, Ark. Dorothy Mae (Dokey) Wood Funeral services for Dorothy Mae Dokey Wood, 65, of Roland are being held at 10 a.m. Saturday at Agent Chapel in Muldrow with Bro.

Bill Henry, Mathew Griffin and Dr. Eldridge L. Miller officiating. Burial is in Roland City Cemetery in Roland under the direction of Agent Funeral Home in Sallisaw. Mrs.

Wood was born July 13, 1931, in Roland, to Ira Eugene and Allie Beatrice Wofford. She died Wednesday, Aug. 14, 1996, in Fort Smith, Ark. She was a homemaker and attended the First Baptist Church of Roland for 50 years. She married Dennis Wood Sept.

2, 1949, in Van Buren, Ark. Survivors include her husband, Dennis Wood of the home; one daughter and son-in-law, Leslie and Mathew Griffin III of Fort Smith; two sons and one daughter-in-law, Randy and Carol Wood of Sallisaw, and Dennis R. Wood of Alma, one granddaughter, Jordan Wood of Sallisaw; two sisters, Helen George of Roland, and Sue Gardner of Fort Smith; and two brothers, Charles Wofford of Tulsa and Joe Wilson Wood of Roland. Pallbearers are Larry Eugene Wofford, Eddie George, Stan George, Ira Wofford, Danny Gardener, Scott Gardner, Dennis Rogers, Marty Rogers, Heath Wood, Montie Wood, and Eddie Hicks. Try a TIMES Classified Ad Call 775-4433 or 1-800-495-4433 Culture, Brain-Friendly Learning, Applied Math and Recitation with Confidence.

Sequoyah County teachers attending were from: Webbers Falls Elementary- Judy Rock with the Bilingual Education Program at NSU; Sallisaw Eastside Tracy Baker, Barbers Gipson, Martha Howell, Lisa Langleu, Judith Tuck, Ruth Watson, Harold Whitaker, Pat Whitaker and David Wright; Sallisaw Liberty Linda Batchelor, Tammy Farmer, Donald Jackson, Doris Johnson, Ilona Jones, Gloria Neer, Virginia Osburn, Debbie Phillips, Lou Cynda Real, and Lynda Simmons; Vian Sondra Bethel, Joyce Cottier, DaNan Ellis, Gwen Henshaw, Susan Holder, Rema Lou Isham, Carrie Johnson, Kennilee Mooney, Sandra Morris, Brenda Rouse and Marla Sanford. Nearly 800 teachers from Oklahoma and Arkansas including some from Sequoyah County attended the sixth annual Great Expectations Summer Institute at Northeastern State University in Tahlequah. Sessions were held June 10-14, June 24-28 and July 15-19. First time participants enrolled in methodology courses, a basic requirement of all participating educators. These provided insight into the basic philosophy of the Great Expectations program.

Those in their second year of attendance and beyond chose from various programs including Hands-On Science, Advanced Methodology, Classics in Literature, Fabulous Fables, Mythology, Music in the Classroom, Foreign Language and JIM HOLMAN Most Qualified County Commissioner Dlstv2 VOTE FOR VICKI (STUES) i BEATY 12 Years Experience" Democrat For Sequoyah County Court Clerk August 27, 1996 PBtHMlAdPHtorhyVIcmafBMty Dedicated and Determined to Work HARD for District 2 ELECT Lewis B. Warren Your County Commissioner MMol Ad MS fcrbj Uvia a Wm My platform is to: Support an application to the Oklahoma Corporation Commission for extended telephone service, whereby there would not be toll (Long Distance) charges in certain Geographical areas. Promote tourism to District 2, namely Blue Ribbon Downs, Tenkiller Lake and the lower Illinois River area, taking advantage of help programs and working closely with the Oklahoma Department of tourism. An ongoing road improvement program, utilizing to the maximum each and every dollar for road construction and maintenance, WITH ALL OF DISTRICT 2 TREATED EQUALLY. Promote industrial development in District 2, by utilizing those amenities that are already in the place, in the Industrial Pa area and the Port area on the Navigation Channel, resulting in more jobs for our area.

Initiate a feasibility study to use jail labor for jobs such as road cleaning, mowing, trash removal, etc. Wo closely with the Sheriffs Department to advantage of all programs available for the improvement of our County Law Enforcement and obtain additional funding for an understaffed Sheriffs Department A County Commissioner should be a person with NANCR MANAGEMENT SKILLS. AS WELL AS THE USF, op heavy FninPMENT FQRRQAD BUILDING AND I believe I have the background and skills necessary to serve as Sequoyah County Commissioner of District 2 and appreciate any support that you may give me. Sincerely, Jim Holman ELECT Johnny Philpot Sequoyah County Sheriff August 27 ATTENTION CANDIDATES TIME IS RUNNING OUT Election day is approaching fast and voters are deciding on who would serve them best in each individual office. Have you told the voters everything you want them to know about your position on the many important issues concerning them? If not, take out an ad in your Sequoyah County TIMES.

SOON! These are the deadlines for all issues that appear prior to election day: ISSUE DEADLINE Aug. 18 Paper Aug. 15 3:00 pm Aug. 22 TMP Fri, Aug. 16 3:00 pm Aug.

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