November 27 - December 3, 2023

Gashkadino-Giizis (Freezing Over Moon)

Boozhoo Aaniin! This year's Kids Christmas Gift Giveaway is set for Wednesday December 13 from 10 AM - 6 PM at Legendary Waters. Please be sure to sign up by December 8 at www.redcliff-nsn.gov/kidsxmas.

The Christmas & Santa Party is set for Sunday December 17 from 1-4 PM at Legendary Waters. Kids can meet Mr. & Mrs. Claus and decorate an ornament. Snacks and drinks will be served.

Construction on the multi-purpose Cultural Center continues to move forward on the back side of the Cultural Grounds off Hwy 13 and Nuzzo Road.

Concrete frost footings and slab have been poured. The structural steel construction is at approximately 85%. Once the steel is in place, general wall framing will begin followed by roof trusses, with the hope of being fully enclosed by the end of December. The Cultural Center is expected to be completed in the summer of 2024.

The cultural center is expected to provide more services, resources, and opportunities for community members related to culture, wellness, and gatherings.

Please call 715-779-3700 with any questions.

Boozhoo Elders! The next Tribal Elder Food Box Program giveaway date is this Friday December 1.

Boxes are expected to be ready by 1 PM. Please call Red Cliff Food Distribution with any questions at 715-779-3740.

Boozhoo niijii-bemaadiziig (hello my fellow human beings), Makwa niin nindoodem (Bear is the clan I belong to), Gaa-zagaskwaajimekaag indoonjibaa. Misaabekong dash indaa noongom. (I am from the Leech Lake Reservation. Duluth is where I live now).

Giiwedinebinesiikwe indigo anishinaabemong (my Indian name is Giiwedinebinesiikwe). Edye Washington indizhinikaaz zhaaganaashiimong (my name in English is). I am the new Tribal Education Division Administrator.

I have served as an educator for over 20 years in several different capacities and am the founder of the Misaabekong Ojibwe Immersion Program in Duluth, MN. I am extremely passionate about language revitalization and providing equitable educational opportunities for the community. Mii sa iw waa-dazhindizoyaan (that is all I want to say about myself).

The next Sobriety Speaker Feast at the Noojimo'iwewin Center is scheduled for this Wednesday November 29 from 5-7 PM.

All are welcome. Join us for food and fellowship. The Noojimo'iwewin Center is located at 37450 Watertower Road.

Please call 715-779-3508 with any questions.

From Andrea Leider, Foster Care Parent

"I am doing a Buddy Drive this holiday season for an organization that is near and dear to us.

Our Red Cliff ICW story and why it means so much to us:

About 7 years ago I started working with an amazing little girl Miley Gordon at school. She was with another amazing foster family, which my husband had known for years. I started doing a little respite care for them and Miley quickly became one of the family. About 3 years ago now we started working with ICW and became her foster family! Shortly after she was with us we decided we wanted to be her forever family. After going and seeing a lot of her family and sibling and talking to them about it we started the adoption process. She has now been a permanent part of our family for almost 2 years and we wouldn't have it any other way. We love her so much and love that she is still able to be in contact with her family and keeping her native traditions.

ICW has done a fantastic job working with Miley and so many other kids finding them either a temporary home or permanent home, keeping kids safe and connected to their families. For all the hard work they do and everything they have done for us and Miley, I am wanting to give back to them and help them make some great kids smile this holiday season!

Please consider helping make a child smile this holiday season by donating to this amazing cause."

Please contact Andrea directly at 715-419-9463 or see Caitlin Penhollow with the Red Cliff ICW to pay by check or cash. This Buddy Drive will go until December 12.

REMINDER: APPLICATIONS DUE THIS THURSDAY NOVEMBER 30

Applications are being accepted for the Elder Home Modification Project. This wonderful initiative will help at-risk elder homeowners remain safely in their homes. The project will make safety improvements to households.

For more information or help with filling out an application, please contact:

Barb Gordon, Red Cliff Community Health Case Manager-715-779-3707 x 2307

Drew Grant, Red Cliff Aging Disability Resource Specialist (ADRS)-715-779-3706

Sarah Tourdot, Red Cliff Elderly Director-715-779-3706

Red Cliff Family Violence Prevention Program will be giving away supplies to make your own beaded ornaments!

Pick up supplies on December 18 at the Family & Human Services Building, 88385 Pike Rd in Gaa-MIskwaabikaang. To sign up, please call 715-779-3706 ext 5012 or ext 5022.

Send a picture of yourself working on your ornament by December 22 for a chance to win a raffle prize! Send your picture to aubrey.defoe@redcliff-nsn.gov or andrea.beeksma@redcliff-nsn.gov.

Supplies are available on a first come basis. There will be no holds.

The Red Cliff Legal Department is proposing changes to the Red Cliff Code of Laws Chapter 16 and Chapter 25.

Proposed changes to Chapter 16 pertain to business licenses and tax law. Proposed changes to Chapter 25 pertain to rights of way, service lines and trespass.

Public comment on these proposals is encouraged. View all details by clicking the button below. Please drop your comments at the Tribal Administration Building or forward them directly to the Tribal Council. These proposals will be voted upon on Tuesday December 19, 2023 at the Tribal Council meeting. Please contact the Legal Department with any questions at 715-779-3725.

Great Lakes Indian Fish & Wildlife Commission will be sponsoring an opportunity to attend an AFDO Seafood HACCP Training December 5-7, 2023 at Ojibwa Casino, Baraga, MI.

GLIFWC will pay the $136.50 HACCP Registration fee (which includes the course book), provide hotel rooms, and food and mileage reimbursements* for the following qualified participants:

• Any Lake Superior commercial fisherman licensed by Red Cliff, Bad River, Keweenaw Bay or Bay Mills.
• Adult family members of any Red Cliff, Bad River, Keweenaw Bay or Bay Mills licensed fisherman currently working at a family's fish shop.
• Any enrolled member from any GLIFWC member tribe (i.e. enrolled members of Fond du Lac, Mille Lacs, Red Cliff, Bad River, St. Croix, Lac Courte Oreilles, Lac du Flambeau, Sokaogon, Lac Vieux Desert, Keweenaw Bay, and Bay Mills). This includes subsistence fishermen and those active in harvesting and processing fish
• The costs for Tribal fisheries and conservation staff of GLIFWC member tribes will also be covered.

Participants must attend all three days to obtain the HACCP certificate and have their travel costs reimbursed by GLIFWC. *After participants complete the three-day class, they will sign a GLIFWC travel form for mileage and per diem (meals) reimbursement based on Federal GSA rates.

Please contact Laurie White with any questions at lwhite@glifwc.org / 715-685-2156.

Applications for the Entrepreneur Fund Wisconsin Rural Equity Grant Program remain open through Thursday, November 30, to qualifying businesses in the seven Native nations within the Wisconsin service region. Entrepreneur Fund will be awarding 30-40 grants of up to $10,000 each through 2024.

Designed to assist small businesses in northern Wisconsin, particularly those that are underbanked and have been disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Wisconsin Rural Equity Grant Program is open to established, diverse owned businesses for a wide range of business uses. The first round of applications remain open to businesses owned by people who are affiliated with the following Native nations:

• Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa 

• Forest County Potawatomi

• Lac Courte Oreilles Band of Lake Superior Chippewa

• Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa

• Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa

• Sokaogon Chippewa (Mole Lake)

• St. Croix Chippewa Indians of Wisconsin

Click to access the entire Behavioral Health November newsletter.

Fall Open Enrollment runs from October 15 through December 7 each year. This period is also sometimes called the Annual Election Period. During this time, you can make changes to your health insurance coverage, including adding, dropping, or changing your Medicare coverage. Even if you’re happy with your current health and drug coverage, Fall Open Enrollment is the time to review what you have, compare it with other options, and make sure that your current coverage still meets your needs for the coming year.

You can make as many changes as you need to your Medicare coverage during Fall Open Enrollment. The changes you can make include: 

1. Joining a new Medicare Advantage Plan
2. Joining a new Part D prescription drug plan 
3. Switching from Original Medicare to a Medicare Advantage Plan 
4. Switching from a Medicare Advantage Plan to Original Medicare (with or without a Part D plan) 

Regardless of how you receive your Medicare coverage, you should consider:  

• Your access to health care providers you want to see 
• Your access to preferred pharmacies 
• Your access to benefits and services you need 
• The total costs for insurance premiums, deductibles, and cost-sharing amounts  

If you have Original Medicare, visit this page or read the 2024 Medicare & You handbook to learn about Medicare’s benefits for the upcoming year. You should review any increases to Original Medicare premiums, deductibles, and coinsurance charges.  

If you have a Medicare Advantage Plan or a stand-alone Part D plan, read your plan’s Annual Notice of Change (ANOC) and/or Evidence of Coverage (EOC). Review these notices for any changes in: 

• The plan’s costs 
• The plan’s benefits and coverage rules 
• The plan’s formulary (list of drugs your plan covers) 

Make sure that your drugs will still be covered next year and that your providers and pharmacies are still in the plan’s network. If you are unhappy with any of your plan’s changes, you can enroll in a new plan. If you want assistance reviewing your options, contact your State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP) for individualized counseling.

Even if you are happy with your current Medicare coverage, consider other Medicare health and drug plan options in your area. For example, even if you do not plan to change your Medicare Advantage or Part D plan, you should check to see if there’s another plan in your area that will offer you better health and/or drug coverage at a more affordable price. Research shows that people with Medicare prescription drug coverage could lower their costs by shopping among plans each year. There could be another Part D plan in your area that covers the drugs you take with fewer restrictions and/or lower prices.

FoodWIse Nutrition has released its November 2023 newsletter!

FoodWIse is federally funded statewide by the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program-Education (SNAP-Ed) and the Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP). FoodWIse advances healthy eating habits, active lifestyles and healthy community environments for Wisconsin residents with limited incomes through nutrition education at the individual, community and systems levels.

Click HERE to view the full November 2023 FoodWise newsletter.

The Housing Authority Board of Commissioners is scheduled to meet on Monday December 11 at the Housing Authority Offices.

The meeting is scheduled to begin at 5:00 PM.

Red Cliff Chippewa Housing Authority is accepting applications for housing and housing assistance!

RCCHA provides clean, safe, adequate, and affordable housing for qualified families and elders.

Housing options to apply for include low rent, 6-plex, 4-plex, Elderly, Tax Credit, Tax Credit Rehab.

Oski-Ombendaam New Hope Supportive Housing

The Oski-Ombendaam New Hope housing contains efficiency, one-bedroom, two-bedroom, and three-bedroom units. The goal of New Hope housing is to provide supportive services to those individuals and families while providing clean, safe, adequate, and affordable housing.

You are also able to apply for Home Repair Assistance and Down Payment Assistance.

Click HERE to access an application.

Red Cliff Chippewa Housing Authority tenants have access to a Residential Resource Coordinator. The coordinator will help tenants get connected with various resources.

This service is available to Housing tenants Monday through Friday at New Hope Building A, at 37580 Pageant Road.

Please call 715-779-3744 extension 3514 with any questions.

Click to access the entire Treaty Natural Resources Division Ganawenjigaade newsletter for dagwaagin (fall) 2023.

Click HERE to order online!

The Great Lakes Inter-Tribal Council has purchased land in the Town of Cassian within Oneida County to build an Adolescent Recovery and Wellness Center. Above is an image to get an idea of what the youth facility will look like on more than 150 acres of land.

If you’re concerned about the opioids, fentanyl, heroin, and meth flowing into Oneida County and the greater Northwoods, please read the letter below and support construction of this adolescent treatment facility.

Great Lakes Inter-Tribal Council CEO Bryan Bainbridge addresses each point within Cassian Town Resolution 2023-01 opposing the proposed Adolescent Recovery and Wellness Center. 

The project plans follow Oneida County zoning ordinances, and we look forward to continuing to work with elected officials and the community to ensure we’re doing our part to build desperately needed treatment capacity in the Northwoods for youth fighting addiction, he says.

"Doing nothing to fight addiction will only continue to diminish the quality of life for all residents of Oneida County—including the Town of Cassian—and the Northwoods," Bryan writes in the letter below. "The associated costs of not approving this youth treatment facility are too great."

The proposed youth recovery and wellness center is a 36-bed residential facility centrally located in Wisconsin to best serve all Member Tribes and urban Indians. It will provide culturally relevant services and responsive residential substance abuse treatment for Native American youth, ages 13-17, who are suffering from Substance Use Disorder (SUD) and any co-occurring mental health conditions. Priority will be given to Native American youth, but the facility would be open to non-Native adolescents as well.

Click here to follow GLITC on Facebook for updates and opportunities to voice support for this project throughout the permitting process.

The Following Letter From GLITC To Cassian Town Board Encourages Support For Youth Recovery Center

The Indigenous Futures Survey is an annual survey that aims to capture Indigenous people’s voices, perspectives, and concerns for use in developing policy, understanding socio-economic trends, and highlighting important issues impacting Indian Country. This information will help inform Tribal leaders and members of Congress about issues facing Indigenous People. This survey will ask about your experiences, thoughts, and beliefs on current and historical issues within your community. Your participation in the survey is entirely voluntary, and you can choose not to answer any question or leave the study at any time.

This year’s survey is co-led by IllumiNative and Native Organizers Alliance, with Kauffman and Associates, Inc. supporting the survey development and analysis.

Wisconsin Conservation Voices is looking for a Native Vote Director who has a deep commitment to Wisconsin’s tribal communities, enjoys managing staff and developing programs, and believes in the power of voting to create positive change. This is a full-time position and there is geographic flexibility within the state. The full position description can be found HERE.