News Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Dec. 29, 2017
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASECONTACT Neely Tsoodle
PR Manager
P.O. Box 580
Okmulgee, OK 74447
(918) 758-6599
NTsoodle@muscogeenation.com
Muscogee (Creek) Nation Principal Chief Ringing in the New Year on Top
Okmulgee, Okla. – Each year Oklahoma Magazine select its top 5 Oklahomans, Principal Chief James R. Floyd is among the elite list. According to Vida Schuman, Publisher and Editor or OK Mag, “the recognition honors Oklahomans who have enriched the state’s fabric through contributions to business, policy, arts, and entertainment, public service, cultural preservation and more,” Schuman said.
This is Floyd’s second year of his first term as Principal Chief of the Fourth Largest Tribe in the Nation. “This is such a great honor and a pleasant surprise. I came into office not trying to make a name for myself, but to put the tribe back on top. So this is a very humbling accolade,” said Floyd.
OK Mag said its staff, which includes the publisher and editors, research carefully to choose our Oklahomans of the Year, “the people we feel have accomplished a great deal in the last year for the state of Oklahoma and its people,” said Schuman.
OK Mag was particularly impressed with Floyd’s leadership and tribe’s business interests.
In 2015 Floyd took office and inherited a 70 million dollar deficit. In the magazine article Floyd pointed out the tribe’s financial instability. Just nearing the halfway point, he’s since turned the “red” into a profit. Floyd is also credited for the completion of the 365 million dollar River Spirit/Margaritaville Casino and Resort. The expansion created more than 1,000 new jobs with an ongoing impact of 135 million annually.
Floyd also completed the renovation of the Historic Council House in Okmulgee, Okla., while opening a new health facility in Okemah, Okla. The fully equipped hospital will house 35 exam rooms and four procedure rooms.
Oklahoma Magazine is the largest circulated and most widely read, monthly, complimentary magazine in the state, with 117,500 subscribers. “Oklahomans of the Year,” edition is online now at www.okmag.com.
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