American Indian Chamber Names Keetoowah Cherokee Casino “Company of the Year”

The American Indian Chamber of Commerce of Oklahoma (AICCO) honored the Keetoowah Cherokee Casino as the “2007 Eastern Oklahoma Chapter Company of the Year”. This award is based upon the overall accomplishments as a successful business and role model for other Indian-owned businesses. The award was presented to Rodney Fourkiller, General Manager for the Keetoowah Cherokee Casino, December 6, at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Tulsa in recognition of the Keetoowah Cherokee Casino’s outstanding achievements. Mr. Fourkiller also received the "Chapter of the Year" award for the Eastern District for the state of Oklahoma from the AICCO.

"It is a great honor on behalf of our Keetoowah Cherokee Casino and the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians in Oklahoma to be recognized in this capacity as a Native American business," stated Mr. Fourkiller. "This award is a reflection of the hard work and dedication of the staff and employees of our casino."

Mr. Fourkiller was recently inducted as Vice President of the Eastern Chapter of the American Indian Chamber of Commerce. He was inducted during the Federal Meeting at the Creek Nation. The previous year Mr. Fourkiller served as Public Relations Officer for the Eastern Chapter. His duties as Vice President will be primarily to recruit other tribes from the northeast area into the AICCO. "As of now we have a lot of participation from the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians in Oklahoma, Creek Nation and Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma. Our goal is to recruit nine tribes within the northeast area of Oklahoma. We would like to see more involvement from the nine tribes with activities, meetings and acquaint ourselves with their economic development goals and to provide the tribes the opportunity to network with other private or Indian Owned businesses with any economic ventures they might be involved in," said Fourkiller.

The purpose of the American Indian Chamber of Commerce of Oklahoma is to assist American Indian businesses to expand and grow their business. The Chamber actively supports and nurtures well-planned, long-term business opportunities for members by providing organized access to public sector agencies and private industry.

The American Indian Chamber of Commerce provides an opportunity for Native American business owners to network among themselves to enhance business opportunities and to extend their venues to state and federal levels. The Chamber also acts as a collective voice for American Indian businesses on important issues. Each tribes’ support is important to a vital and vibrant American Indian Chamber of Commerce of Oklahoma.