Governor Bill Anoatubby
Chickasaw Nation reflects the promise of Spring’s awakenings
By Bill Anoatubby, Governor, Chickasaw Nation
We will soon leave the cold of Winter and enter Spring, the time of new awakenings. A sense of renewal comes into people’s lives as cold winds begin their exit and Spring’s warm breezes invite us outside. Spring is a time for engagement with our natural surroundings. It is also a time when we open our minds to the great potential before us, and to the blessings God has bestowed on us.
Our tribe reflects the promise of Spring, this most energetic and dynamic of the four seasons. We are together empowered to open all our doors and allow new opportunities to enter our lives.
Chickasaws naturally welcome renewal and refreshment. Our history reflects that fact.
When our people were removed to our new lands, they were faced with an array of challenges. They were starting new lives with very little. They were persistent and workmanlike, and dedicated to each other. But life was hard. Despite the harsh circumstances, they survived and even prospered, and we are justly proud of that ancestral history.
During the mid- to late-1800s, Chickasaws successfully built new lives and new communities. The end of the 19th Century ushered in more challenges in the forms of allotment and attempted termination of the tribe. After surviving those times of want and uncertainty, the 1950s brought about another era of termination attempts. It is a testament to those who came before us that there seemed to be no “quit” in the Chickasaw Nation or its people.
The modern era of the Chickasaw Nation has seen us break out into new and exciting territory. Our ancestors would no doubt be shocked at our tribe’ progress! Never in history has our tribe experienced the opportunity, the great reawakening, that we are experiencing today.
We have built our own infrastructure to produce the resources that make our tribe a powerful, focused, nurturing entity. Together we have planned and executed a commercial framework that produces tremendous benefits to Chickasaw families everywhere.
We are always on track to help Chickasaws achieve their greatest dreams and aspirations.
We are proud of our Chickasaw Nation health care. From the ground up, we have together built a large health care operation dedicated to serving Chickasaws and other Indian patients. Chickasaws for generations ranked health care their top priority, and our tribe has responded positively.
We now have an exceptional medical center and health care clinics, all offering the professional care and treatment that produces healthier, happier, blessed lives.
We honor our history, our culture and our traditions through many forms of outreach. The Chickasaw Cultural Center is the premier facility of its type in the country, and our language is making a dramatic comeback through our cultural efforts.
In business, we stay on top of the changing needs and desires of our customers, and we invest in the elements that make our facilities favorite destinations.
All these things are important as we continue to build our businesses, our services and our outreach. But it is the Chickasaw people who are the source of our most significant accomplishments.
With the essential building blocks of quality education, health care, culture, housing, nutrition, family support and opportunity, Chickasaws have made tremendous strides in just a single generation.
When it comes to real results, our greatest investment – and the investment that produces by far the greatest return – is the Chickasaw people! All the efforts of the Chickasaw Nation are directed toward improving the lives of the people we serve, and Chickasaws are grabbing the opportunities and building great lives, great families.
Spring is on its way and we are thankful for this annual time of growth, refreshment and reawakening. Let’s also be thankful for our tribe, our families and our friends.
We have achieved so much together – and there is so much more ahead for all Chickasaws!