U.P. first responders get financial boost from Sault Tribe

NEWS RELEASE
SAULT STE MARIE TRIBE OF CHIPPEWA INDIANS
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SAULT STE. MARIE, MICH. — First responders in the Upper Peninsula received nearly $78,000 toward law enforcement and nearly $21,000 for fire training, gear and equipment thanks to the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians. There’s even $25,000 contributed toward a fire station in St. Ignace.

The money is part of the twice-annual payments the Sault Tribe has distributed since 1993 to U.P. communities and organizations based on two-per cent slot revenues from Tribe’s Kewadin Casino properties in Sault Ste. Marie, St. Ignace, Hessel, Manistique and Christmas. In all, the tribe distributed close to $900,000 in its latest disbursement, with just over a tenth going to support law enforcement.

City and township police departments as well as county sheriffs’ departments throughout the region benefitted from the tribe’s donations. Recipients include:

• Kinross Charter Township, $21,500
• Mackinac County Sheriff Department, $11,250
• Alger County Sheriff’s Office, $9,600
• Schoolcraft County Sheriff Department, $9,600
• Delta County Sheriff Department, $8,000
• City of Escanaba, $6,000
• City of Marquette, $6,000
• City of St. Ignace, $3,500
• City of Manistique, $2,500

In addition to the $25,000 contributed toward the St. Ignace fire station, the Sault Tribe also gave $5,031 to replace the Maple Ridge Township pumper truck; $6,600 to Hendricks Township for fire turnout gear; $4,400 to support the Clark Township Fireman’s Auxiliary in Clark Township; $3,000 to Hudson Township for EMS training and relicensing; and $1,800 for Hendricks Township Fire Hall garage door openers.

“The Kewadin Casinos strengthen the U.P. economy, and the Sault Tribe’s ongoing financial contributions help law enforcement and fire departments be better prepared to protect all of our local communities,” said Schoolcraft County Sheriff Paul Furman.

Maple Ridge Township Supervisor Judy Trudell said that, without the tribe’s contribution, the township in Delta County would have difficulty paying for its pumper truck. “It has made our township a safer place to live,” she said.

Since the Sault Tribe began its disbursements in 1993, nearly $42.5 million has been awarded throughout the U.P. based on the tribe’s 2-percent revenue.

For more information about the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians, please visit http://www.saulttribe.com. For more information about Kewadin Casinos, please visit www.Kewadin.com.

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