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Save the Date! Saturday, April 27, 2013

Choctaw Chief Gregory E. Pyle, 2013 Honorary Chair of the Dance of the Two Moons

Southeastern Oklahoma State University and being named an Honorary Member of the Oklahoma State Troopers Association. He was selected as a 2007 honoree inducted into the Oklahoma Hall of Fame. Chief Pyle is very proud that the Choctaw Nation was named as a recipient of the Pro Patria Award and the 2008 Freedom Award.

Other appointments and awards for Chief Pyle include receiving the SBA Region VI Minority Small Business Advocate of the Year, several terms as a member on the National Indian Health Board and a year as the elected President of the Oklahoma City Area Indian Health Board. He was appointed by the Secretary of Interior to serve on a Task Force created to reorganize the Bureau of Indian Affairs and reappointed two years later, heading up several subcommittees on the Task Force.

Congressional hearings during the past few years have featured the testimony of Chief Pyle on various subjects, including Code Talkers, sovereignty, Arkansas River bed and health care.

Under the positive leadership of Chief Pyle, the Choctaw Nation has put families first, with priorities on education, health and jobs. Deep involvement in economic development has resulted in profitable tribal businesses such as gaming centers, manufacturing plants and travel plazas, creating numerous jobs and funding tribal programs. The recent opening of the huge Choctaw Resort and Casino in Durant this year has added several hundred employees to the tribe, bringing the total number to 6,400. Accomplishments as Chief of the Choctaw Nation have been numerous for Greg Pyle. Under his leadership, a new hospital and a Diabetes Wellness Center have been constructed in Talihina, as well as clinics in Stigler, McAlester, Atoka, Broken Bow and Idabel, a new Hospitality House, new Recovery Center and a new Women's Treatment Center. The Poteau Clinic has been expanded to include additional health care professionals and a mail-pharmacy refill center.

During his tenure as Chief, Independent Living Communities for elderly have been constructed in six towns, several new community centers have been built and the older centers have received additional space and improvements. Five Child Development Centers have been built and tribal businesses have been created. Education milestones include the Choctaw Language Program and increasing the scholarship program to serve over 5,000 students annually. A new academic building has been built at Jones Academy for the elementary school. A career development program for Choctaws has been initiated.

Chief Pyle's dedication to the Choctaw people is evident through the many services that are now available to the tribal members.

2013 Dance of the Two Moons Sponsorship Form