Use Fire Rock for HQ, Flowing Waters for Shiprock, Twin Arrows for jail

I decided to write once again to address Navajo Nation Police buildings that’s been condemned and has been an eyesore for several decades and also offer some potential solutions for our elected tribal officials to give serious attention and take some corrective measures. It’s a matter of life-or-death situation.

Why did Northern Edge and Fire Rock casinos reopen to resume operation, which is limited to Navajo Nation residents only? I was denied entry to Northern Edge Casino when it first reopened because I live in Farmington. The casinos should be shut down period.

On the other hand, the Navajo Police headquarters is in an unprecedented crisis and operating in a totally dilapidated building, which was condemned years ago; it was built 50-plus years ago. The safety and well-being of the employees, as well as visitors, are at stake here.

It’s embarrassing and what part of condemnation does the tribal leaders not understand?

Let’s see if this down to Navajo senior citizens can define what condemn means. It means it is to declare to be reprehensible, wrong, or evil after weighing evidence and without reservation.

A building or facility of that size and magnitude should be in a safe, sanitary and occupiable condition. The current building is condemned and needs to be demolished immediately before someone gets seriously injured. The elected tribal officials shouldn’t wait for something to happen before they wake up and try to fix the problem.

The other concern is the Shiprock Police Department, which is also totally dilapidated and should be replaced without further due before some employees or inmates get seriously injured or a death occurs. Where and how are the tribal priorities set? They are too dangerous for occupancy.

If the casinos cost the nation millions of dollars to build then why isn’t the Navajo Nation Police buildings not being replaced and properly funded?

These dilapidated and condemned buildings are also contributing factors to the police shortage. Keep in mind the men and women in uniform provide public safety and security to the general public. That means you and me.

If funding these facilities are not possible, I would like to offer two solutions for our tribal leaders to consider and are herein stated: How about shutting down the casinos so the buildings can be converted to the public safety buildings temporarily until new ones can be built?

The short-term solution: Fire Rock Casino should be converted to serve as the public safety headquarters and detention center. The Flowing Water Casino can be converted to the Shiprock Public Safety building and the Northern Edge Casino can be converted to serve as the detention center. These are not dumbfounded ideas.

The long-term solution: Provide funding for permanent public safety buildings.

The headquarters should be the metro public safety building like in Phoenix or Albuquerque and Shiprock like the Tuba City public safety building. The Kayenta and Dilkon public safety buildings need some consideration.

Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to address these important issues of concern.

Vern Charleston
Farmington, N.M.

Looking for biological mother

Hi, I am helping my cousin, Jordan Koonce, to try and find his biological mother since he was adopted.

Jordan’s mother is Gina or Regina Tsosie and she might be in her mid-40s or older today. She was living or visiting in Los Angeles, California, in late 1996.

She was around 19 or 20 then and met a man named Richard Rivas who is Jordan’s father and my uncle. My uncle Richard helped Gina get a bus ticket home where she lived in Arizona since she was from the Navajo Reservation. It was said she was from Tuba City.

Gina didn’t know she was pregnant at the time. She later gave birth to Jordan Koonce on April 21, 1997, in Phoenix. She named him Hugo Tsosie.

Six months later she gave him up for adoption. He was adopted by a family that took him to Oklahoma. We know that Gina has an aunt and uncle who were asked to take him but they said no, so the state gave him up for adoption.

Please, if anyone knows anything or has any answers, it would be a blessing if you shared that information. All Jordan wants is to find his mother and reunite with his family on his mom’s side.

He has no anger or resentment. He just wants a chance to know where he comes from.

Please contact me at 509-218-7102 or email me at rivastim78@yahoo.com.

I can also be found on Facebook under Tim Louie Rivas. Jordan can also be found on Facebook under Jordan Koonce. Thank you and have a blessed day.

Timothy Rivas
Grand Coulee, Wash.

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