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By
Leah Andrews
The
Coeur d’Alene Tribe is turning heads in Idaho as well as nationally.
Not only because of their large casino and hotel, but also for their
social programs, involvement in conservation and their Supreme Court
victory granting them the southern portion of Lake Coeur d’
Alene.
The tribe as been featured in the New York Times, Christian Science
Monitor, and other national publications for some of its programs
and initiatives.
"We have people with vision," said Coeur d’ Alene
Chairman Ernie Stensgar. "I’d like to think I’m
carrying out that vision."
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Coeur
d'Alene Tribal Chairman Ernie Stensgar
responds to questions in his office at the
tribal headquarters in Plummer. |
The tribe has taken on a number of prodigious projects in the past
ten years, including an innovative health care center and wellness
center that are serving as models for other tribes and rural communities
around the country.
Not only does the facility provide basic medical care to tribal members
and non-tribal members, it also provides counseling, dental care,
prescriptions, and can serve as an emergency facility before helicopters
or ambulances can arrive.
The wellness center focuses on preventative health and functions as
a health club for the community, but also houses a rehabilitation
center with a special swimming pool and other tools of healing.
The tribe has not always known such prosperity.
"When I was growing up, the tribe was poor. We didn’t have
any employment," said Stensgar, who grew up in the small reservation
town of Desmet.
Yet the land has always been a source of wealth for the tribe.
"We were really poor, but we didn’t know it. It is such
a beautiful place. We spent the whole summer going to the creek and
the mountains," he said.
Stensgar said that he and other Coeur d’Alene Indians are tied
to the land even if they are away from the reservation for a while.
"We automatically know we are going home, our spirit is here.
It’s hard to explain to non-Indians," he said. "I
don’t think in that sense anybody ever leaves. This is my home.
It’s beautiful. It’s magic to me."
Stensgar is serving his thirteenth year as chairman of the tribe.
He has seen some drastic changes, including the creation of numerous
jobs on the reservation.
"If you don’t have a job, you don’t want to work,"
Stensgar said. "We have created employment on the reservation
for every tribal member."
Jobs at the casino and other tribal run businesses give preference
to Coeur d’ Alene tribal members first.
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The
evening sun shines on
the southern portion of Lake Coeur d'Alene |
Education
has also been another focus for the tribe. There is a new $5 million
building housing the tribal school, which allows both tribal members
and non-tribal members to attend. "Our school is 61 percent Indian,
but students there are color blind. It's not like when I was young
and couldn't date a white girl," Stensgar says. Although the tribe
and surrounding towns have had success with joint projects, Stensgar
said there is a lack of cooperation between Idahoís state legislators
and the tribe, especially with sovereignty issues, including the tribal
gaming and gas tax issues. "I think tribal-state relations have deteriorated.
We're working very very hard," he said. "Instead of fighting we could
be working together to be a showcase for tribal-state relations."
The casino, which has helped the tribe beat unemployment and poverty
and has also caused controversy in the state, is probably one of the
first things that comes to mind for many people when thinking of the
tribe. If all goes according to plan, the Casino will one day be much
more. Laura Stensgar, casino marketing director and the chairmanís
daughter, said the goal is to make what is now the Coeur d' Alene
Bingo Casino and Hotel a destination resort. To do that they plan
to add a golf course and amusement park on to the hotel and casino.
"We can't totally rely on gaming," she said. "I truly don't think
gaming will be here forever, and diversification is important." Eventually
people may think of Worley as a golf resort and an amusement park
with some gaming machines inside the building, if all goes according
to plan. And although Laura is skeptical about the future of gaming,
the tribe is also spearheading an initiative that would go beyond
the current gaming compact the Northern Idaho tribes have with the
state of Idaho and make gaming a safer bet for tribes. "We want to
get gaming on the ballot," she said. The initiative comes after the
tribe tried to work through the governorís office, but met opposition
from the State house and senate. "We followed the process, and now
we are taking it to the people," she said. Gaming has had a large
impact not only on many aspects of life for Coeur d' Alene Tribal
members and those who live near the casino or work there, but also
for many others in the Idaho community. The tribe donates five percent
of gaming revenues to education each year, and those donations are
not limited to the reservation. Some money goes to institutions of
higher education in Idaho and even to schools that don't seem to have
much connection to the tribe.
The
school district in Troy, for example, received $26,000 from
the tribe to build a new high school. Laura said the money from
the casino helps sustain the tribe as well as groups that are
in need in Idaho. "It all goes in a circle, it comes back to
us," she said. "We are not just here to make money." |
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