Samuel Alex Riffel

A Bit About Me

My tribal lineage goes back to original allottees and figures present when the tribes’ government was established. My maternal grandmother is the late Inez Vance, the first secretary of the Tribe. My great grandfather was original allottee George May, brother to Arthur Punley and Katy May Lorentz. My great great grandfather was Stanley Punley. With 10 years of experience working for tribes, I have a good understanding of the operations and inner workings of a tribal government. I have an extensive background in construction planning and project management with involvement in numerous multi-million dollar projects.  My experience as Project Manager for the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes has afforded me a wide variety of opportunities to coordinate with federal, state, and privately owned businesses in the construction and economic development community.  Understanding how these relationships assist in tribal development will help in making decisions on future endeavors the tribe may pursue.  I have served as a board member of the Wichita Tribal Industrial Development Commission for the last 6 years and have been supportive of the expansions achieved by the commission’s company Quivera Enterprises and other asset acquisition.

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As a graduate of Anadarko High School, I have a keen understanding of the needs of the local community and understand the importance of developing a working relationship with the community at large.  My work experience has allowed me to gain specialized skills such as grant management and proficiency in Code of Federal Regulation (CFR) and Office of Management and Budget (OMB) requirements.  I also understand the importance of community involvement in the planning and development of successful projects.

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Key Issues/Goals

If elected to the Executive committee, I would like to restore the Wichita Tribal council as the supreme governing body of the Tribe. The failure to follow our Governing Resolution has resulted in tribal members not having input into important issues.  There is also a need to address the working environment at the Tribe.  The high turnover and vacant positions indicate issues that need to be addressed. There is a need for more transparency at the Tribe to promote more involvement from Tribal members.

I feel the tribes’ future depends on the success of its economic development endeavors and the ability to give opportunities to the next generation of Tribal members. Whether it’s through the Tribes education, cultural, or other programs, I’d like to see more of our younger tribal members take advantage of the program benefits and excel in fields that have been relatively absent of tribal representation, especially positions in our 8a businesses.