"What experiences made you become a public servant?

I didn’t set out to become a tribal leader. I came for a temporary visit [to Oklahoma], and then I got more involved. The issues were a desire to learn more about my heritage and to get involved to improve things within the tribal government. Because I didn’t grow up here, I wanted to understand more about our background, particularly the imprisonment. We’re probably the only tribe that [had] the entire tribe in prison for 28 years.

What do you consider Apache values?

I’ve been told we’re pragmatic people. My experience is that we care a lot about fairness and cooperation. There’s a certain amount of persistence and dedication. Our people have wanted to return to New Mexico since our removal in 1886. We’re still working on that. It’s something our people were working on before I came here. After I’m gone—if we’re not done—I’m sure they’ll still be working on it.

What is your strategy for economic diversification?

We have a contracting business called Fort Sill Apache Industries. We have performed construction on a number of military installations. Our biggest project was in Virginia at Fort Lee. It was a $50 million base. We cleared trees on the 300-acre site and then built sidewalks, roads, sewers and bridges for a logistics center campus. We’re currently working at Altus Air Force Base, Fort Sill and Tinker [Air Force Base]."

Get the Story:
Fort Sill Apache Tribal Chairman Jeff Houser Talks About Past and Future Challenges (Indian Country Today 8/16)