Office of the Miko, January 2010, Part II

Education [12.31.09]

The Choctaw School System has come a long way. In the modern era, we have always had talented, committed teachers and staff but there was a lack of accountability. Administrators and teachers were not evaluated regularly and were left without goals and an overall sense of direction. The most important thing we can do to ensure our economic and cultural survival is properly educate alla moma.

It is more important than ever in this new economy where jobs are scarce and can be easily moved that all our children learn so that they can compete.

And while I have insisted on a renewed emphasis on cultural education it has been slow in coming. I want to create a school system that all of Indian Country will want to replicate. It won’t be easy but I am committed to it. I have demonstrated in other areas that I am willing to make tough choices to ensure we reach our goals and education is no different.

Healthcare [12.31.09]

After years of neglect, our Health Center’s infrastructure deteriorated to a point that was unsatisfactory. The Joint Commission, which regulates hospital care, placed our hospital on conditional accreditation and endangered the ability of the Tribe to be reimbursed by Medicaid and Medicare. This put us in a bad spot. Upgrades to the facility should have been made in the 1990s when capital improvements were easily funded. It took a lot of hard work and money to repair, but I am proud to report that our facility has regained full accreditation.

Like the Resort, Tribal government and our enterprises, the Choctaw Health Center has been streamlined and reorganized. In May, it was projected to be over $4 million dollars in debt. Changes had to be made. We reviewed personnel, services, practices, and budgets and have successfully turned the operation around. We will have a projected $1.4M surplus this year – the first surplus we have seen in a long time.

Though it is not where we want it to be, health care on the Reservation is moving in the right direction. There are still many challenges we face at the Health Center but I am confident we will overcome them just as we have these. Yakoki to Josh Breedlove and the Health Center staff for their great work.

We want to encourage Tribal members to help improve our Health Center. Be sure to enroll in Medicare and/or Medicaid if you are eligible. Health Center staff can assist you in making this determination and completing the necessary paper work. When Tribal members sing up for these programs we are able to utilize these federal dollars to pay for care and it helps to stretch our limited Tribal resources.

Providing free health care to tribal members is a difficult task. The Federal government does not provide adequate funding for our operations and any assistance you can provide by enrolling in those programs will help better the quality of care we can provide.

Housing [12.31.09]

I’m especially proud of our progress in the area of housing. As of November 2009, eighteen families have moved into new houses throughout the communities. By the end of December, we will have completed six more houses in Red Water, construction will have started on a new subdivision in Tucker and plans for a new subdivision for our elders, the disabled and Choctaw veterans will be well underway.

We plan to break ground on the thirty-two unit subdivision in mid 2010. It’s being built with federal funds – about $4.4 million – which is a good return on the housing meetings I had in D.C. with our Senators Cochran and Wicker at the end of last year.

In 2010 we will see a great deal of activity on the housing front. We have a plan and funding to build 74 more houses in 2010. I will convene another Housing Summit to work with Tribal Members to identify the best financing options and continue the important work of making sure affordable, quality housing is available in each of our communities.

My goal is to reduce the housing backlog, build a middle class housing market on the Reservation and provide the necessary support for neighborhoods to thrive. We will continue to make steady progress and, where housing emergencies appear, we will take action to help those families.

Chahta First [12.31.09]

Chahta first is the guiding principal of my administration. The evidence is easy to see. Tribal members are in the highest positions in Tribal Government and are moving up into positions of authority. There are more Tribal members as CEOs or managers of our enterprises than ever before and there has never been a higher percentage of Tribal members working at Pearl River Resort.

This didn’t happen by accident. Last year I issued a directive on Indian preference and created the position of Administrative Assistant for Employment within my administration. This was to ensure that in all instances in which a qualified Tribal member can be placed in a Tribal job, it happens.

There are still many positions where we need the help of non-tribal members and there will probably never be a day when every position at every enterprise and in Tribal government is filled by a Choctaw, but we have come a long way and 2010 will see even more Chahta in management roles.

Tribal Members were less dependent on Tribal Government in 2009 than they were just a few years ago. As a Tribe, the Mississippi Choctaw have always valued self-determination. Self determination means that we are culturally and economically independent and self-reliant. Just as our Resort and government are moving away from control by the banks, Tribal members are moving away from the purchase order system.

For years, Tribal politics and economics were such that Tribal members often found themselves relying on purchase orders, not just in emergencies, but for everyday expenses and necessities. Like paying distributions from borrowed money, this practice is not sustainable or healthy for our Tribe. Purchase orders will always be available in the event of emergency or special circumstances, but Chahta are moving toward self sufficiency and the strength that comes from it.

Culture [12.31.09]

Amid all the turmoil and uncertainty off the Reservation, one thing never changes. No matter what outsiders say about us or how others may try to define us, who we are is clear. There is only one Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians and it is our history, art, language, dancing, dress, stories – all of these things combined – that make us who we are and tie us together as a Tribe and as a Family.

We are the descendants of those who would not relocate to Oklahoma. Our forefathers and mothers would not leave the Tribe and this land to which we belong. The Mississippi Choctaw are strong and resilient and this strength we receive from each other. It is a renewable resource and is another thing I am thankful for.

There were some sad moments for our Tribe over the last year. We lost some very special brothers and sisters. Some played important roles in the continuance of culture and traditions like Bessie Allen, Bradley Williams, Wilbert Smith and Esterline Isaac. Rev. Wilburn Williamson Sr. and Rev. Eugene Tubby helped guide us spiritually.

Others were our coaches, mentors and teachers like Wilber Johnson, Glenn Bell (who loved Elvis more than anyone I have ever known) and Darwin Jim. And others did important work in our communities and government like Ted York, Andy “Catfish” Wilson, Lester Willis, Captain Mike White, Slick Thompson, Victor Morris, Adair King and Dennis Jim.

All of them, and the rest of the Chahta who passed in 2009, were loved by the Tribe. We will miss them all and the end of the year is a good time to remember these friends who left the Reservation to go to a better place.

The year 2009 marked the 40th anniversary of USET. I was so proud of our performance at the celebration in Seminole and I’m glad we had an opportunity to honor and thank the founders of USET, in particular our own Emmitt York and Phillip Martin. Our Tribe made a lasting impression and I was extremely proud of the way we represented Choctaw culture to the other tribes in attendance.

In 2009 we reclaimed Nanih Waiya in a beautiful ceremony and replaced Columbus Day with Nanih Waiya Day. Nanih Waiya Day will be celebrated on the 2nd Friday of August each year to commemorate our Mother Mound, the cultural and religious center of our Tribe.

Mississippi Choctaw will not celebrate the genocide, disease, destruction and loss of land that Columbus brought to Indian Country. We will celebrate our culture and our sacred mound.

Future Challenges [12.31.09]

There are a lot of challenges we have faced as a Tribe and a lot still to face. I am confident we will get past them. The Wellness Center still sits unused. It is costing us a lot of money in upkeep but I look at it as a challenge for us to unite around and solve as a team and we will do it in 2010.

Today there are over 10,000 illegal, unregulated slot machines in operation next door in Alabama. There were none three years ago. Even though I personally think you would have to be foolish to trust that they pay out fairly, people who would normally come to our Resort are visiting these halls and playing these machines.

The state of Alabama is trying to enforce its constitutional ban on gambling, but hasn’t been entirely successful so we have launched an aggressive and, so far, very effective ad campaign aimed at educating those patrons and winning them back.

I feel very good about what we have accomplished so far and the situation we will be in when the economy rebounds. Tribal Government has been re-organized and streamlined, our enterprises are re-structured for greater efficiency and oversight, expenses at Pearl River Resort have been cut and the plan to turn it around is working. The struggle to rid ourselves of the debt we incurred to build the Golden Moon is another ongoing challenge, but we have made progress and will win that fight too.

I know that there are those who won’t agree with every decision I make as Miko. And I know that as Miko, I will not be able to make every Tribal member or Council member happy. But I will always be honest with you about the challenges we face and, above all, I will always put Chahta First.

The decisions I have to make are hard, but I welcome them. And I welcome your input. I am always looking for ways to improve our operations and provide better services to Tribal members. That is why in 2009 I visited every community listening to Tribal members and staying connected to each community. I will do the same in 2010.

Finally, let me say how thankful I am for my family – my wife, Lena, our children and grandchildren. I am thankful for all my good friends in all the communities. I am thankful to be a Mississippi Choctaw. I am thankful that this Tribe has given me an opportunity to lead and put my thirty years of experience in business and government to its best use.

Our Tribe will succeed or fail as one and our energies should be directed toward finding ways to come together, bridging our differences, eliminating the debt we were left, creating new revenues, protecting our culture and, most importantly, leaving to our children and grandchildren a stronger Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians. Yakoki!