February 6, 2020

ACTION NEWS Can you guess who we are? page 21 THE SALT RIVER PIMA-MARICOPA INDIAN COMMUNITY NEWSPAPER www.oodhamnews.org FEBRUARY 6, 2020 CHANGE SERVICE REQUEST CHANGE SERVICE AZ 85256 Scottsdale, 10005 E. Osborn Road ACTION NEWS O'ODHAM Permit No. 319 Scottsdale, AZ Scottsdale, PRESORTED STANDARD U.S. Postage PAID NORTHEAST WALK FOR O’ODHAM / PIIPAASH, AMBULATORY CARE CENTER Saturday, February 8, see ad on page 5 GROUNDBREAKING **** BY TASHA SILVERHORN Leonard; Council representa- McDowell Road. this health care campus possible. SRPMIC MEMBERS O’odham Action News [email protected] tives; Charles Ty Reidhead, “Thank you for coming out “We want to make this one of USS ARIZONA M.D., director of the Phoenix and celebrating this event, the best places where our [Com- MEMORIAL GARDENS On Friday, January 17, Joseph Area Indian Health Service; as which has been about 20 years munity members] and other PREVIEW TOUR, Remitera, director of Salt River well as Community members, in the making,” said Remitera Native American people receive special guests and staff to the before calling upon Council the best health care [available],” Saturday, February 15, Pima-Maricopa Indian Com- see ad on page 9 munity’s Department of Health groundbreaking for the North- representative Deanna Scabby to said Leonard. and Human Services, welcomed east Ambulatory Care Center. give the blessing. President Harvier talked SRPMIC President Martin The new facility is to be located Vice-President Leonard about the importance of the new Harvier; Vice-President Ricardo at the southwest corner of High- welcomed everyone and thanked facility to the Community. way 87 (Beeline Highway) and the people involved in making Continued on page 3 Hundreds Attend First Community Biometric Screening at Wellness Expo Community’s Red Dress Walk Brings Awareness, Remembrance of MMIW page 4 SRPMIC Council member Tom Largo Sr. gave the invocation. 25th Annual Indian Nations and Tribes Legislative Day at Arizona State Capitol Native Actor DeLanna BY DALTON WALKER House Rusty Bowers and Senate O’odham Action News Studi Visits Acceler- President Karen Fann. ated Learning Academy The event was established The Arizona State Capitol page 10 by the Inter Tribal Council of was packed on January 15 for Arizona in 1995 and gives tribal the 25th annual Indian Nations leaders and members of the pub- and Tribes Legislative Day. lic the opportunity to meet with Each January, the state leg- elected officials that represent islature hosts the event either their districts. Most recently, the at the Arizona Senate gallery event has been hosted by the floor or the Arizona House of Arizona Governor’s Office on Representatives gallery floor. Tribal Relations. This year’s event was held at Each year, tribal leaders from the House in a joint protocol Youth and their families get their height, weight, blood pressure, heart rate, and A1C three of Arizona’s 22 tribal session that included brief open- checked during the biometric screening. There were more than 1,000 SRPMIC members communities are selected to and their immediate family members that attended the StrongLife Wellness Program’s ing remarks by Speaker of the Wellness Expo on Saturday, January 11, at the Salt River Clinic. Families also participated deliver a State of Tribal Na- Employee Service in a fi ve-minute Narcan training and StrongLife Wellness informational session, when Awards completed they received a $100 gift card. Continued on page 11 Continued on page 16 page 12 TAKE YOUR GAMING TO THE NEXT LEVEL Although quick thinking and even quicker thumbs are a must in gaming, sometimes it’s your internet that can make or break your performance. You need a fast, reliable, and lag-free connection to stay one step ahead of your opponents. Take your gaming to the next level by taking your internet to the next level. FiberSpeed Connect 500 Internet Bundle for only $149.95/mo* CALL 480-362-7150 NOW 10190 E McKellips Road Scottsdale, AZ 85256 480-362-7150 www.saddlebackcomm.com *Service availability and internet speeds will depend on location. Prices subject to change. Call for details. Cornerstone Group © 2020 2 O'odham Action News February 6, 2020 Continued from page 1 NORTHEAST AMBULATORY CARE CENTER GROUNDBREAKING (L-R) Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community’s Health and Human Services Director Joseph Remitera, Phoenix Area Indian Health Service Director Charles Ty Reidhead, SRPMIC Council Member's Wi-bwa Grey, Diane Enos, Thomas Largo, Cheryl Doka, SRPMIC President Martin Harvier, SRPMIC Vice-President Ricardo Leonard, SmithGroup Architect Lyle Steely, SRPMIC Council Member's Deanna Scabby, Michael Dallas, and Archie Kashoya do the honors of turning the ground to offi cially begin construction on the 200,000 square foot facility. “I hope all of you felt the excitement disease and cancer. He said that hav- their academic goals now, so there will the approach to and departure from the of turning the ground over this morning ing this new facility here in the Com- be a crop of Community members who facility would go toward Red Moun- to get started on this project. This an ex- munity would improve health care and can be employed at the health care tain,” said Steely. The building will be citing day. It seems like it’s been a long help extend the lives of the Community facility when it opens in two years. made of concrete, and the materials will journey; [we have been talking about] members. “I look forward to when we cut the be coming from Salt River Materials getting this ambulatory care center here “[We] have been tracking the average ribbon. Our first patients will enter the Group. Significant cultural symbols will in the Community for a long time,” age of death every five years; the latest doors in February 2022,” he said. be used throughout the facility. said Harvier. “I remember back [when I numbers indicate average age at death Architect Lyle Steely of SmithGroup, Steely stated that the design work was] vice-president, pleading for funds for the [Community’s] male population the Phoenix architectural design firm isn’t yet complete, and SmithGroup will to build this [health care facility] and is 47 years and for women it’s 55 years. that is designing the facility, talked continue to work with the Community hoping that appropriations would be put The national average is close to 80 about the building and its design fea- advisory group and contractors as the in place. A lot of projects were on the years, so that’s a 30-year difference,” tures that reflect the Community and project continues. list prior to this facility being built, so said Harvier. “Having this facility is an culture of the O’odham and Piipaash At the conclusion of the event, dif- it was kind of ‘Wait your turn.’ I really opportunity to improve our health care people. ferent groups of people took turns with appreciate over the years the relation- … to extend our lives so we can be with “A story that was told to us was how shovels to turn the ground. The first ship with PIMC (Phoenix Indian Medi- our families [longer].” the healers would travel from peak group included the SRPMIC Council cal Center) and the area IHS (Indian Harvier also mentioned that the to peak to learn how to heal for the members, Health and Human Services Health Services) office and all those health care facility will be offering Community, and the significance of the staff and Indian Health Service staff. involved in getting us here today.” up to 500 new job opportunities for mountains to the Community—specifi- The second group included the archi- Harvier mentioned the health chal- Community members. He said he’d cally Red Mountain—and that’s what tects and contractors, and the third lenges that the Community faces, which encourage those who may be interested really resonated with us. The decision group consisted of SRPMIC seniors. include high rates of diabetes, heart in health care as a career to start setting was made to orient the building so that There were displays of different renderings of what the new facility would look like. This is a birds eye view (L-R) SRPMIC members Cecilia Antone, Rudy Butler, Lonita Jim, and Deborah Robinson join a group of how the new Ambulatory Care Center would look like Community elders in the turning of the ground ceremony during the Northeast Ambulatory Care Center on the southwest corner of the Highway 87 (Beeline groundbreaking. Highway) and McDowell Road. This rendering shows what the front of the building will look like when completed in February 2022. (L-R) Salt River Clinic staff Medical Director Michael Truesdell, Chief Pharmacist Vanessa Thomas-Wilson, Clinic Offi ce Manager Yvette Gates, Clinic Nurse Manager David Kiss and Clinic Administrator Timothy Joyce are looking forward to the new facility. February 6, 2020 O'odham Action News 3 Community’s Red Dress Walk Brings Awareness, Remembrance of MMIW BY DALTON WALKER munity Building and walk to the Two people out to generate awareness about late spring of 2019, calling the crisis O'odham Action News Waters Complex’s Friendship Park and the MMIW crisis. The tribal govern- a “genocide.” back. The group walks on Longmore ment’s Facebook page and O’odham Villalpando said two of her cousins The idea for an awareness walk Road with assistance of a Salt River Action News also have promoted the went missing and were killed, and to remember Missing and Murdered Police Department escort, which is part Red Dress Walk. that’s how she connected with the Indigenous Women (MMIW) was of the permit.

Load more