VIII Acknowledgements (cont’d) special gratitude for their contribution. In particular, David Sloan of Sloan Architects of Albuquerque and David Garce of GBSBArchitects of Salt Lake City were instrumental in making that profile possible. No list of influential non-profits in Indian country would be complete without two that have set the standard for more than 40 year -- Americans for Indian Opportunity (AIO), and the NativeAmerican Rights Fund (NARF). These two organizations are known, respected, admired, and admired far beyond Indian Country, in the halls of Congress, throughout the Executive reaches of government, in boardrooms, courtrooms, and tribal council chambers from one end of the country to the other. I count it an honor an d a privilege to have enjoyed the friendship and support of these organizations and their leadership, as well as their unflagging support for Tiller's Guide. I thank John Echohawk, Donald Ragona, and Morgan O'Brien of NARF for their help. My heartfelt gratitude goes to LaDonna Harris, my dear friend , founder ofAIO, and 'Grand Lady for All Seasons' in Indian Country for the Foreword to this edition, and for her consistent and long-standing support of Tiller's Guide. Laura Harris, executive director of AIO has my thanks for always giving and sharing her support. One individual who stands in a category by herself for her generosity and support is Patricia Parker, (Choctaw fromOklahoma) of Reston Virginia, a successful business woman who simply finds ways to help NativeAmericans in business. I will never forget her graciousness and confidence in me. Veronica E. Velarde Tiller, Ph.D. (Jicarilla Apache) Editor & Compiler Tiller Research, Inc. Albuquerque, New Mexico Tiller's Guide is well illustrated with photographs because of the generosity and good will of various individuals, Indian tribes, non-profit organizations, and private companies. I greatly appreciation their generous consent for the use of these photographs, and these contributors are credited throughout the text with their works. There is a special group of supporters that I owe my utmost gratitude. Without the financial support of their companies and non-profit organizations, this 3rd edition of Tiller's Guide would not have been possible. The original idea for off- setting the cost of publication was given to me by Frank Sims, my friend and general manager of my tribe's The Lodge at Chama. When invitations went out to select firms and enterprises who have either made or are making a major contribution to Indian Country's economic development, one of Indian country's leading lawyers, Charles A. Hobbs of the Hobbs, Straus, Dean & Walker law firm was the first to lend the prestige of his name and his firm to our efforts. Dan Rey- Bear, Deidre Lujan, Thomas Peckham, and Donald H. Grove of the Nordhaus Law Firm are individuals I admire for their legal work in behalf of my tribe, the Jicarilla Apache Nation, and I cannot thank them enough for their contributions. Three other Washington, D.C.- based law firms accepted our invitation to showcase their contributions to Indian Country here. I am grateful to Ezra Crawford, Public Relations Manager at BuckleySandler for providing his firm's profile. Our long-time and good friend Paul Moorehead provided the profile for his firm of Powers Pyles, Sutter & Verville. I was especially pleased that my Osage sister Elizabeth Homer agreed to allow us to feature her firm, Homer Law, Chartered as well. These firms deserve an enormous amount of credit for the economic success stories profiled throughout this book. Since this book is devoted to profiling the economies of Indian reservations throughout the country, I am particularly pleased as well to profile a few of the tribal enterprises that are shaping those economies. I am grateful to Michael Chapman for bringing us the profile of his tribe's Menominee Tribal Enterprises. Cherie Gordon of the Burlington Northern-Santa Fe Railway has been extremely supportive and helpful with suggestions from her business background we well as for the profile of her company's work with the tribes on the Fort Peck reservation. Fred Vigil, CEO of the Jicarilla Apache Energy Company (JAECO), was very gracious in providing a profile of our own tribe's venture into the entrepreneurial world of oil and gas production. RonAllen, long-time chairman of the Jamestown S'Klallam Tribe, has been a long-time supporter and champion of Tiller's Guide. I am particularly grateful to him for his national leadership in Indian Country and to Ann Sargent and Bette Oppenheimer at Jamestown S'Klallam for sharing their success story here. The NOVA Corporation, a wholly owned enterprise of the Navajo Nation, is also profiled here thanks to the assistance and cooperation of Senior Vice President Clara Pratt and Marketing Director Oscencio Tom. Finally, I am thoroughly pleased to have the opportunity to profile here a slice of the non-profit sector of Indian Country that has made monumental and lasting contribution over their many decades of service to Indian Country. Ted Pedro, Director, and Russell Pedro, economic specialist at theAmerican Indian Chamber of Commerce of New Mexico have a special place in my line- up of contributors with their pledge of publicity and networking opportunities. My appreciation goes out to them. A special group of entrepreneurs, who make up the American Indian Council ofArchitects and Engineers, (AICAE) have my
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