Page 9 - January 2005 • Southern California Gaming Guide

Sycuan Band Donates More Than $335,000 to Local Charities for the Holidays
The Sycuan Band of the Kumeyaay Nation honored San Diego local charities during the 2004 holiday season with donations that totaled
more than $335,000. Employees at Sycuan Resort & Casino were asked to choose charities to be recipients of the holiday donations. Over 40 charities including the East County Boys and Girls Club, Father Joe’s Villages, Toys for Tots, e Salvation Army, MADD, and the Jackie Robinson YMCA were some of the organizations that received more than $10,000 each. e Tribe held a breakfast and donation ceremony on December 2, 2004 at Sycuan Casino to present their donations.
IRincon Band of Luiseño Indians Gives 83 Acres to San Diego County
land to San Diego County.
When the Tribe was building its casino resort in
2002, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service required them to mitigate the possible environmental impact on the arroyo toad, an endangered species.
hundreds of small toads and relocated them to an upstream area of the reservation. The Tribe purchased 83 acres of suitable land near Bonsall for about $1.5 million as a potential habitat for the toads.
Luis Ray River. Hailed as a “win-win” for San Diego County, the wildlife service, and the toads, the Rincon Band will also receive mitigation credit for possible future casino projects.
“We are very proud of our sta and their families for selecting such great organizations to donate to,” said Daniel Tucker, Tribal Chairman. “We feel it is important to remember these charities all year long and to recognize their on-going contributions to the San Diego region.”
Members of the Sycuan Band of the Kumeyaay Nation have resided in and around the foothills of the Dehesa Valley near San Diego for nearly 12,000 years. Today, they are a modern government providing services to their members, employees and neighbors.
n early December the Rincon Band of Luiseño The toads reproduce in wetlands like the San San Diego County will use some of the land to Indians, owners of Harrah’s Rincon Casino & Luis Rey River channel that intersects the Rincon widen a road, and some may be used to become Resort, announced the donation of 83 acres of Reservation near Valley Center. Workers captured part of a 1500-acre regional park along the San
San Manuel Band of Mission Indians and Viejas Band of Kumeyaay
Indians Join to Build Sacramento Hotel
n early December the Viejas Band of Kumeyaay Indians and the At a ceremony on December 9, the three tribes participated in a
San Manuel Band of Mission Indians announced they would ground blessing ceremony for the hotel site.
partner with the Oneida Tribe of Indians of Wisconsin to build “Combining nancial interests and expertise with other tribes is
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA GAMING GUIDE
a $53 million, 15-story Marriott hotel in Sacramento, close to the State capitol building. e hotel is scheduled to open in summer 2006. It will have 239 suites, 30 extended-stay units, meeting rooms and business facilities.
Morongo Band of Mission Indians Donates I$75,000 to Relocate American Bison
“ The Vanishing American,” were relocated from Santa Catalina Island to the Rosebud Sioux Reservation in South Dakota, thanks to a donation from the Morongo Band of Mission Indians.“TheVanishingAmerican,”thescreen version of the Zane Grey classic, was about the “disappearance”ofAmericanIndiancivilization. The bison had to be relocated because Santa Catalina Island, 26 miles from Long Beach, had 250 bison and could only support about 150.
this historic event happen in an effort to return not only the buffalo but a symbolic piece of American Indian culture back to its roots.”
The Catalina Island Conservancy, who managed the herd, said there was not enough grassontheislandfortheentireherd.Abarge ferried the buffalo across the channel, and then they were trucked to South Dakota.
another vehicle to ensure nancial stability and security for future generations of our tribal communities,” said Viejas Tribal Chairman,
Anthony Pico.
n mid-December almost 100 American bison, “ The Morongo Tribe is thrilled to support descendants of 14 bison taken from the this project,” Morongo Chairman Maurice Plains to be used in the 1924 silent film, Lyons said.“We are very proud to help make
January 2005 Page 9
Southern California Tribes in the News