Author: Kim Kalliber

High On Life: Tommy Chong brings iconic humor to Tulalip Remedy

By Micheal Rios, Tulalip News

On Saturday, July 10, Grammy Award winning comedian Tommy Chong graced Tulalip’s retail cannabis shop with his legendary presence. Best known as part of the iconic comedy duo Cheech & Chong, the now 83-year-old Chong is enjoying his twilight years as a patron saint within the country’s largely decriminalized and ever-growing pot industry. 

“What does cannabis mean to me? Well, for starters my career as an entertainer has spanned 50 years now and it’s all thanks to this amazing green plant,” marveled Chong in his trademark gritty voice. “When I sit back and reflect on my life, there are so many moments I’m still am in awe of. From writing and directing movies to making music to making millions of people laugh around the world…and doing it all while high, man. It’s unbelievable.”

His enthusiasm and pure joy was shared by lucky Remedy customers whose names were entered and pulled in a weeks’ long raffle to meet the cannabis icon. Adoring fans, the VIP meet and greet winners showed up with their valuable Cheech & Chong collector’s items with the intention of getting Chong’s authenticating signature. Even more valuable than his signature was the opportunity to embrace Chong like that world’s coolest grandpa and express how much he meant to them. 

“It’s crazy because never did I think I’d be in this kind of situation to meet someone of Chong’s status in the stoner industry. It’s surreal being able to hang out with him and talk about a subject we’re both super passionate about,” said Tulalip tribal member Carmen Miller. In his possession was an original 1973 Cheech & Chong album with accompanying rolling paper that Chong himself was stunned to see again.

“I grew up watching all his movies. Up In Smoke is an all-time classic and as a teenager I couldn’t watch it enough. Some might say those experiences led me to being nominated as ‘Stoner of the Year’ in high school,” joked Billy Burchett while sporting a super limited scratch and sniff Up In Smoke vinyl. As for the particular scent of the scratch and sniff vinyl? “Cannabi for men,” he said.

Within the smoke-filled world, Chong’s green haze aura still reigns supreme, even after five decades. If anything time has made his counter-culture legend grow bigger. When one loyal fan produced a limited edition Cheech & Chong bong with his likeness on it, the grey haired toker commented on how ironic the moment was. Back in 2003, Chong was sentenced to nine months in a federal prison after pleading guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute drug paraphernalia. He was part of the financing and promotion of his son’s business, Chong Glass, which sold handmade glass water pipes or bongs. Now in 2021, it’s legal for companies to mass produce bongs. How quickly times change.

“It’s always been a medicine to the people, but the legislators chose to demonize because they couldn’t profit off it like your typical pharmaceuticals. We’ve come a long way and I’m thrilled to see it being used to treat so many common ailments today.” 

“It’s not that public perception has changed when it comes to wide-spread acceptance of cannabis use, it’s the public officials, police, and the judicial system that have changed. If the public didn’t accept marijuana in the 60s and 70s, Cheech & Chong wouldn’t exist,” reflected Chong. “It’s always been a medicine to the people, but the legislators chose to demonize because they couldn’t profit off it like your typical pharmaceuticals. We’ve come a long way and I’m thrilled to see it being used to treat so many common ailments today. However, it’s only when they fully legalize it federally that we can say the war on drugs is finally over.” 

It’s been nine years since Washington State voters passed Initiative Measure 502, legalizing the use of recreational marijuana for people 21+. Shortly thereafter, the Board of Directors opted to decriminalize marijuana on the Tulalip Reservation. Then the Tribe became one of the first in the nation to open a retail cannabis store, Remedy, in August 2018. Remedy has thrived under the Quil Ceda Village enterprise and guidance of store manager Jennifer Ashman. 

Balancing traditional values with the realities of the 21st century means embracing a changing culture that views marijuana and cannabinoids as natural medicines, especially when compared to prescription pharmaceuticals that have countless side-effects and potentially lethal health warnings.

Remedy’s success has led Tulalip leadership to think much bigger and bolder when it comes to the business side of cannabis.

“Bottom line the Remedy model is profitable and the tax generated from cannabis sales stays within the Tribe and QCV to benefit our community via support services and programs,” explained Martin Napeahi, Quil Ceda Village general manager. “Our vision is to open another cannabis dispensary on Marine Drive, across the street from the new Quil Ceda Creek Casino. Also, it’s only logical that we have our own grow operation and processing facility to become vertically integrated. To be able to sell directly into the 502 market and our own stores means more profits and more job opportunities for our people.”

Like Chong declared during his Remedy special guest appearance, “All thanks to this amazing green plant. Crazy, man.”

Family Spirit: Evidence-based, home-visit program developed for Natives by Natives

Sasha Smith, Family Haven  Family and Youth Support Coordinator.

By Kalvin Valdillez, Tulalip News

To spread the word about their new program, Family Spirit, Tulalip Family Haven held a giveaway last month, raffling off fun summertime prizes such as sidewalk chalk, a Radio Flyer Wagon and bubble wands for young kiddos and their families. Participants were entered into the raffle simply by calling-in and inquiring about the program and hearing how Family Spirit can assist them along their parenting journey.

Geared toward tribal members who are either moms-to-be, expectant fathers, grandparents or caregivers of a Tulalip child under the age of three, the program is a resource that families can utilize during the early years of their kid’s childhood, to help establish a strong foundation for both the child and parent as they grow together.  

Although Family Spirit is new to the community of Tulalip, the program has actually helped thousands of tribal families across the country since the early nineties. Developed by the John Hopkins Center for American Indian Health, Family Spirit is a home-visiting program that was designed for Natives by Natives, who unfortunately knew all too well about the struggles that many Indigenous families face, largely due to a lack of resources and support for first-time parents and families raising young children.

Sasha Smith, Family Haven’s Family and Youth Support Coordinator, explained, “Family Spirit has been really successful in other tribal communities. It’s evidence-based and the information is culturally relevant, and we really try to intertwine our Tulalip culture and what those experiences look like for us. We talk about historical trauma to get a better understanding of why parents parent the way we do.”

Addressing future participants of Family Spirit, Sasha continued, “Your first meeting would be an opportunity for us to get to know you, what stage of parenting you’re in, a little bit about your hopes and dreams and what parenting looks like for you. And depending on where you are at, we’ll go from there.”

The program’s area of focus surrounds having a safe and healthy pregnancy and subsequently, raising a healthy and happy baby by teaching parents about childbirth, newborn care, and early childhood development. The participants design a personalized parenting plan and Family Spirit provides any necessary and available resources, as well as modern and traditional teachings in regards to parenting. Most importantly they offer their support, helping empower young parents by giving them the tools to ensure their child has everything they need to embark on a bright future.

  “We have lessons that we go by, but if you don’t want to talk about a certain topic right away, we can form it to the way you need it to be,” Sasha stated. “If you don’t want to talk about labor and delivery, we can talk about getting the home ready and what a safe home looks like to bring home baby. Or we can do goalsetting for a healthy family. And at the beginning and the ending of each meeting that we have, we’ll do referrals. So, if they need to get on WIC or they need to contact housing, whatever it is, we can check up on that – just making sure we share those resources with them.”

Along with helping their clients with all their children’s needs, Family Spirit also assists parents by making sure they’re on track to meet their personal life goals, providing referrals for job training, or helping them through the process of beginning or continuing their academic career, and even routinely checking-in with a parent who is in recovery.

Ideally, in a COVID-free world, the Family Spirit paraprofessional (i.e. Sasha) would pay a weekly visit to the client’s home in order to conduct lessons or provide services, for as long as the parent or family requested or until the child reached the age of three. However, since the virus is still present, Sasha explained that for the time being they are willing to make adjustments so that parents, caregivers and families are comfortable when participating in the program. 

“We’ll meet the client wherever they want,” she said. “Primarily we are an in-home service, but it all depends on the comfort level of the parent. We can do Zoom, we can meet in-person at my office, or we can find a place where they’re most comfortable. The kids can be included or not included. It’s really just trying to meet them where they’re at, building that personal connection and learning what they need to grow as a parent.”

To learn more about Family Spirit, please contact Family Haven at (360) 716-4402.

Roy Robinson Subaru donates $16,200 to Tulalip Foundation

By Kalvin Valdillez, Tulalip News

“We’ve been in Tulalip and the Marysville area for almost 50 years now,” said Robb McCalmon, Roy Robinson Subaru General Manager. “We have a very good relationship with the Tribe and it’s important for us to give back to our community. They’re the reason why we’re here and why we get to stay here.” 

A giant check amounting in $16,200 was presented to the Tulalip Foundation on a warm summer afternoon in late June. Each winter, Subaru dealerships around the country take part in a holiday seasonal event known as Share the Love. A donation is made each time a vehicle is sold during the two-month promotion. The buyer selects where they would like the donation to go, either the National Park Foundation, the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA), Meals on Wheels, the Make-A-Wish Foundation or a local hometown charity handpicked by the respective dealership. To date, the Share the Love event has raised over $200 million for the four foundations and made donations to over 1,440 hometown charities, including the Tulalip Foundation. 

“This is our third year being the hometown charity for Roy Robinson,” exclaimed Tulalip Foundation Executive Director, Nicole Sieminski. “They were nice enough to choose us and they could’ve chose anyone.”

The donation is dispersed in $5,000 increments through grants to help fund local programs and community events. Nicole explained that after Roy Robinson’s first donation in 2018, the Share the Love event contributed to the Tulalip Tribe’s Natural Resources summertime youth Mountain and Fish camps, the suicide prevention Warrior Walk held at Tulalip, The Tulalip Restoration Program’s Planting project, and Leah’s Dream Foundation’s Christmas program. And thanks to the 2019 Share the Love donation, two grants were awarded, one to the beda?chelh Sponsor-A-Child Christmas event and the other to the Healing to Wellness Court’s incentive program.  

Rochelle Lubbers, the Tulalip Foundation’s Secretary, expressed excitement during the check presentation, stating that this year’s donation will result in at least three $5,000 ‘mini-grants’. The Tulalip Foundation is a non-profit organization dedicated to empowering the wellbeing of the Tulalip reservation and the surrounding communities. Since 2007, the Foundation has worked with numerous programs to create a brighter future for the Tribe, founded on three important values: education, justice and culture.

  Over the years, the Tulalip Foundation has awarded several grants to a number of programs based on those three values including the Betty J. Taylor Early Learning Academy and the Tulalip TERO Vocational Training Center for education; the Tulalip Office of Civil Legal Aid (TOCLA), the Healing to Wellness Court and the Criminal Conflict Counsel program for justice; and the Hibulb Cultural Center for culture. The Foundation also hosts a number of their own fundraising events throughout each year such as the Hibulb Cultural Center Salmon Bake and the Tulalip Foundation Giving Tuesday event. 

Although the funds from this year’s generous donation by the Roy Robinson dealership have yet to be decided, the Tulalip Foundation is excited just thinking about the possibilities the Share the Love event will help support in the near future.

Patti Gobin, the Tulalip Foundation Vice-Chairwoman expressed, “This is such a great thing because the Tulalip Tribes only has so much within their budget to spread throughout the Tribe to meet the community’s needs. This helps in areas that mean a lot to our community members, some of them are grassroots and trying to get things started. I think it’s a wonderful opportunity for those programs and the Tulalip Foundation is honored to be the vehicle.” 

For more information, please contact the Tulalip Foundation at (360) 716-5400.  

Tulalip transitional units near completion

By Micheal Rios, Tulalip News

In early May, tribal council officially broke ground on what was dubbed ‘emergency transitional living units. In the process they began a long requested service that will benefit Tulalip’s membership. It’s been two months since that ground breaking and the first of several planned sites intended to prevent homelessness is nearing completion. 

Located across the street from Tulalip Bay fire department, the inaugural site consists of five units that will be fully furnished when complete. Essential amenities include a bath tub with shower, kitchenette and washer and dryer. The living space is compact (240 square feet) and meant for emergency purposes and short term living only. 

“These transition units will be a blessing for our community,” stated Chief Operating Officer Wendy Fryberg. “We recognize that our people sometimes have transition requirements, and homelessness should not be a concern for our members who have find themselves in such challenging circumstances.

“We anticipate as soon as these units are complete we will find a location to build more,” she added. “These units are designed to assist tribal members to live independently on a short-term basis while they create relationships with various programs. Those programs will become their stepping stone, providing resources needed for long-term solutions in the prevention of homelessness.”

In addition to providing a sense of stability for families who will use the transitional units as a stepping stone to independent living, each unit will provide crucial comforts like water and sewer utilities, electricity, and the ability to have cable or a Wi-Fi connection.

Rent will be $300 per month to cover the water, sewer and Public Utility District (PUD) costs. There will be more information coming out about the policy, eligibility, and application process for Tulalip membership interested in temporarily residing in one of these transitional units.

By contrast, the Tulalip Tribes homeless shelter utilizes shared utilities, including a shared kitchen area. Many of the region’s tiny home villages that have become more and more common also lack running water and cooking facilities. 

“This is our first project of this type. Yes, we have the homeless shelter, but these units have their own bathroom and kitchenette,” explained Vice-Chairman Glen Gobin. “These transitional units will provide a foundation for tribal members to build upon and carry on in a good way. We pray this will be a success for individuals and families who find themselves in such circumstances. This project is intended to assist and help them build a good positive foundation and move forward in that good way.”

Tulalip’s committed construction team has been diligently putting in the necessary work for what is sure to be a game changer in our community. During the recent record-breaking heat wave, construction superintendent Bob Lapham was on-site for each unit’s roof completion. According to Bob the builder, his crew is well coordinated and excited to be working on such a meaningful project. For such a compact size, the units have a large bathroom setup and living quarters with all the necessities, plus they’ll be nice took at both inside and out, he said. 

C.O.O. Wendy Fryberg wants the community to know these initial transitional units are on schedule and expected to be complete by July 31st.  The procedures and application process will be announced soon. Stay tuned.

Cannabis supports war on COVID

By Micheal Rios, Tulalip News

Seems like only yesterday both federal and state governments were raging the war on drugs. Now in a stunning turn of events, marijuana, the long hyped ‘gateway drug’, is being strategically used in a war against COVID.

Washington State’s Liquor and Cannabis Board announced earlier this month it would allow state-licensed cannabis retailers to provide one joint to adult consumers who receive COVID-19 vaccination at an in-store clinic. The weed-friendly program is the latest vaccination incentive in Washington, where an impressive 73.1% of all adults are already vaccinated, according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). 

When word reached Tulalip’s own Jennifer Ashman, manager of the Tribe’s cannabis store Remedy, she immediately contacted Tulalip Pharmacy staff to coordinate a Joints for Jabs event. It didn’t take long to work out the details and send out promotional materials to Remedy’s dedicated fan base. 

“We were fortunate that Tulalip declared our retail shop and employees as essential early on in the pandemic,” explained Jennifer, cannabis enthusiast and Remedy manager. “This is a poetic opportunity for us to not only give back, but to incentivize efforts to create a more vaccinated community. Plus, it’s truly a historic occasion being able to give out free cannabis. Who doesn’t love that idea?!”

On Tuesday, June 22, a red medical tent was setup outside Remedy where diligent Pharmacy staff awaited with both scheduled appointments and casual walk-ins who were eager for the sense of relief that typically accompanies the vaccine. 

“I’ve been wanting to get vaccinated, but it never worked out with my hectic work schedule,” shared 24-year-old Bayley King after participating in Joints for Jabs. “When I found out about this event I was excited because it was on my day off and the process of making an appointment was so simple. Getting my shot means returning back to normal and regaining my freedom.”

With roughly 200,000 small businesses forced to shut their doors forever as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, it’s quite the unanticipated accomplishment that retail cannabis shops like Remedy continue to thrive. Industry-wide cannabis sales continue to soar as a result of society doing its best to cope with the uncertain times brought on by COVID and the residual aftereffects of isolation, social distancing, and incessant mask wearing.

Remedy has benefited from an influx of new customers as it’s stellar reputation for customer service and product knowledge has spread via word of mouth advertising. While some cannabis enthusiasts look to relieve every day ailments associated with aches and pains, others desire to elevate their mental state in an effort to calm their nerves, diminish anxiety and lower tensions brought on by the new normal. 

“It’s a real stressful time right now and being able to just relax is a real luxury,” said Remedy regular and Marysville resident Michelle Moe after receiving her single dose vaccination. “Cannabis helps with pain and anxiety and depression, it’s an all-in-one therapeutic really.

“I’ve put off getting vaccinated for a long time now because I was really nervous about it. Ideas like if there’s been enough research or has it really been proven to be safe made me hesitant,” she added. “But at this point so many of my friends and family are vaccinated and doing just fine. Figured that was good enough for me to make this decision now and add the additional protection for myself and those I’m around socially by getting vaccinated. I’m definitely feeling a new sense of freedom already. Just in time for 4th of July celebrations.”

Participation in Remedy’s Jabs for Joints event reached the double digits. Although not allowed to spark up their free pre-rolled joint while getting vaccinated, one participant was witnessed lighting up that complimentary melon-flavored Stinger in his car. Imagine this community oriented citizen thinking to himself, “Merica! Boosting the vaccination rate one puff at a time.”

What a time to be alive.

Fire Precautions due to Excessive Heat

Nick Johnson, Forestry Program Manager

The Tulalip Tribes would like you to be aware that the current weather forecast for the next 10 days is for no rain and temperatures possibly getting into the 100s this weekend. Although the Tribes have not imposed a complete burn ban all burning permits issued by the Tulalip Tribes are suspended until further notice.  If the weather stays hot and dry a burn ban will be declared by the Tulalip Tribes. 

Please be extremely careful with fireworks, matches, smoking materials, catalytic converters, etc. Recreational campfires may be lighted in approved metal or concrete enclosures in designated areas within campgrounds or on private land with the owner’s permission and which: 

  • Are spread no larger than three (3) feet across;
  • Material being burned is dry 
  • Are located in a clear spot free from vegetation for at least 10 feet in a horizontal direction and having no overhanging branches; and
  • Wind isn’t strong enough to carry embers out of the approved enclosure. 
  • Are attended at all times by an adult with immediate access to a shovel and a charged water hose.

This Burn Ban does not affect ceremonial or cultural fires but they must be attended at all times by an individual with equipment capable of extinguishing the fire.