Governor Bill AnoatubbyOur tribal 'return' is measured in the fullness of Chickasaw lives
The Chickasaw Nation is structured as the United States government is structured. The U.S. Constitution and the Chickasaw Constitution both create executive, legislative and judicial branches with checks and balances that keep the power of government within the boundaries set by law.
This means each branch of government "checks and balances" the others to maintain proper government procedure and performance. No one branch can dominate the others based on the Constitutional guidelines.
And it is you - the citizen voter - who makes the decisions regarding the people who will hold office in the three branches of government. This democratic system ensures those of us who serve you in government are accountable to you and your fellow Chickasaw citizens.
It is incumbent on all of us who have been chosen by you to serve, to dedicate ourselves to fulfill the mission of the Chickasaw Nation - "To enhance the overall quality of life of the Chickasaw People."
As you probably know, the Chickasaw Nation is now the 13th largest federally-recognized tribe in the country. We are also recognized as one of the most progressive and forward-thinking tribes among all the 563 tribes. We are in this position because we have planned carefully, executed our plans thoroughly and stayed the course when challenges arose.
And always, we have remained true to our mission.
When we make a decision regarding a program, a service, an acquisition, an expansion, a building - whatever the purpose - we make sure the action makes sense and will serve the people well.
A good example is our new Chickasaw Nation Medical Center. This facility required a significant investment by the tribe. How do we calculate our return on this critically important investment? Certainly, we would not calculate our benefit in dollars. While it is obviously important we operate our Medical Center in a proper business fashion, the true benefit is obvious - the improved health and well-being of Chickasaw people.
Another good example is a Chickasaw senior site. We now have 11 senior sites throughout the Chickasaw Nation. Each serves a number of Chickasaw elders and others each weekday. Our elders receive a good meal, great fellowship and access to computers and other resources. We obviously have made major investments in our elder programs, and the return is a vibrant, joyful and healthy elder population.
The Chickasaw Nation is all about Chickasaw people - there's no other way to say it!
We are blessed to have developed successful tribal businesses that fund the lion's share of all our endeavors. In the case of our businesses, we operate to provide excellent experiences for our customers, and great financial returns for our tribe. It is a balance that requires tremendous employees, management and execution, and we do it with our own internal management, not an outside management company.
I'm happy to report our business team is producing growing returns that help propel our work to positively impact Chickasaw lives everywhere.
In my daily work, I talk with many Chickasaw people in many different walks of life. Unfailingly, the Chickasaws with whom I interact have a deep interest in the success of our tribe, and our people.
Our tribe is set up to be democratic, to encourage thought and to focus on service to Chickasaw people and families. By keeping our ideals clear and by working together, we will achieve new heights of success. The key, as always, is helping Chickasaw people everywhere, every day.
