TULSA, Okla. – Principal Chief Geoffrey Standing Bear, Principal Chief David Hill of the Muscogee Nation and Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr. gathered for the Tulsa Regional Chamber meeting April 15 and discussed the partnerships, economic impact and the tribal nations’ health care industry at the annual Tulsa Regional Chamber meeting.
The Regional Chamber also held panels about leadership, economic development and the arts in Tulsa.
Osage citizens participated in all three panels. Tulsa Mayor Monroe Nichols did not attend the meeting due to a scheduling conflict. Phil Lakin, the chair of the Tulsa City Council, did attend.
This is the second year in a row the regional chamber hosted a “State of the Tribal Nations” event.
Trent Shores, the former U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Oklahoma and Choctaw citizen, emceed the event for the Chamber. He’s a shareholder of the law firm GableGotwals.
He said both years have drawn a lot of interest, with more than 800 people visiting both years.
“When we gathered here in the room, we talked about how the story of our tribal nations is not just their story. It is the story of Tulsa,” Shores told the crowd.
“Today’s story is not about Indians and non-Indians, Native Americans and non-Native Americans. Today is a story of us.”
The first panel focused on tribal leadership and was moderated by Bill Knight, President of Knight Automotive Group. Knight is also the chair of the regional chamber.
The conversation centered on the importance of partnerships, healthcare and financial growth.
The head of the Tulsa Regional Chamber of Commerce acknowledged that no deal on tourism or economic development has been done without consultation from the three largest tribal nations that share land within the city of Tulsa.
Chief Hoskin Jr. highlighted the more than $3 billion impact tribes have had on the state of Oklahoma.
“That number doesn’t happen by accident,” Hoskin Jr. said. “…It happens because of a strategy that I think is the model of how governments ought to approach government, which is investing in people, investing in communities, trying to build a foundation for what really has proven to build a great society.”
Chief Standing Bear spoke about reaching out to the Muscogee Nation while the Nation builds a new health care facility in Pawhuska. He said when he first took office, he came across a study that said the life expectancy for Osages living in Pawhuska was 10 years less than what it was for Osages living in Tulsa. It was an eye-opener, he said.
The Muscogee Nation is in the process of building a robotic surgery unit at its Council Oak Health Care facility.
“We have been working hard to develop a health system that is comparable to the larger tribes, Muscogee and Cherokee,” Standing Bear said. He said the Osage’s new clinic’s success depends on stability in the economy, particularly when it comes to the availability of Medicaid.
“We need the Medicare income, the Medicaid income, which is really under threat,” he said, referring to the Department of Government Efficiency’s pledge to cut government programs, including Medicare and Medicaid. He said if those government systems break down, the Osage Nation will have to divert money from their reserves to meet their financial obligations.
“So, just like we did with gaming a few years ago, we have to show the same commitment to health that we did to gaming,” he said.
All three tribal leaders talked about their healthcare systems and the importance of hiring qualified Native doctors and staff to fill the new facilities like Council Oak Health Care in Tulsa on the Muscogee Nation and new mental health facilities in Tahlequah on the Cherokee Nation reservation.
Chief Hill said Council Oak in South Tulsa sees Native and non-Native patients.
“We have to help our community, especially in rural areas. And Chief Standing Bear mentioned that is our goal – to be good partners,” he said.
Jeremy Wright, the Chief Operating Officer for the Osage LLC spoke on a panel about economic development, the importance of partnerships and touted the Osage Nation’s drone program Skyway 36.
The Osage Nation has partnered with Oklahoma State University and Tulsa Innovation Labs on the Skyway 36 Drone Port and Technology Innovation Center. Wright talked about what that project is and how it benefits the Nation.
Wright explained the concept came about when they realized there was an old airfield near downtown Tulsa. Through grants, they have built out what used to be an old complex into a state-of-the-art drone testing facility. The drones can fly indoors in weather that ranges from monsoon to minus 40 degrees, testing drone capabilities with high winds, moisture and water.
“We’re looking at a design that is $500 million worth of facilities just to take care of the people that are calling us on the phone and knocking down our door because they want to be a part of it,” Wright told moderator Kim Wilmes.
“So, you can imagine what that does for the local economic growth and the types of jobs. These are really high-tech jobs. So we love seeing that stuff. Again, me as an engineer, I love seeing that stuff coming here,” Wright said.
Chief Standing Bear acknowledged their challenges at the federal and state levels, but he draws strength from his Osage teachings.
“The important thing, I think, is seeing how the people are taking care of the elders, taking care of the children with our language, our culture, and our health. How we’re trying to do all of that and protect each other and take care of each other, which is what our elders always used to tell us. In that generation, ancestors would say, be good to one another. They say about sayings of the Osage, they always say you remember them. So that’s what’s important.”
