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About Spilyay tymoo. (Warm Springs, Or.) 1976-current | View Entire Issue (March 16, 2006)
'» '"V * - » - v " * T ■ V ' - V » The tribes hired Je ff Anspach in October 2005 as the chief financial officer of Warm Springs Ventures. Anspach has been busy re structuring Ventures’ existing and newly acquired tribal enter prises, which include Cort Soft ware, Kibak Tile, Warm Springs Construction, Warm Springs Property Management, GeoVisions, tribal Engineering, and Eagle-Tech Systems. Anspach is also an enrolled member of the M innesota Chippewa-Net Lake tribe. He comes to Warm Springs with strong credentials. After serving time as a paratrooper with the 82nd Airborne Division in the U.S. Army, he received his B.S. in accounting in 1988, and has worked ever since in various fi nancial capacities. Most recently, he was a con sultant with Glass & Associates, an international turnaround management firm. Anspach’s mother is Chippewa, and Anspech grew up on the reservation in northern Minnesota. “Ever since I got out of college she’s been recruiting me to move back there to work,” he said. “I haven’t quite made it to Minnesota, but now that I’m working at Warm Springs she feels that all her years of encouragement have finally paid off. “I’ve always wanted to give something back to Indian Coun try,” he says. “When this job opportunity came along, I got the chance to do that. My being here is a way of honoring my mother.” Those who work with him appreciate his understanding of ■ ìj : j UiLT. 4 seems to have more meaning here than it did in Corporate America.” Anspach expresses profound respect for what he’s encoun tered so far on the reservation. “So many people have really great ideas for what Ventures and the tribes could be doing,” he says. “I didn’t expect that when I first arrived. On the other hand I haven’t seen a lot of examples of those ideas be ing turned into results.” That’s where he thinks he can find his niche and make a difference for the tribes. “It’s what I’m really good at,” he says. “I know how to get things done. I can talk about my philosophies and other big pic ture stuff, but that’s not why I’m needed— the reservation al ready has the talent in place to build for the future. What is needed is someone to sit down and analyze budgets and costs and plan everything out logisti- cally to get from the idea stage to the reality. “I know that once we get our accounting systems set up we’ll be successful. I think we’re go ing to have a great year. And if we don’t? Then we’ll figure out what’s wrong and we’ll fix it.” In mentioning the need for better accounting systems, Anspach is addressing one of his most pressing tasks. An impor tant element of Ventures’ role lies in accumulating and measur ing data in order to see what’s really going on in the various entities it oversees. Anspach expects that bringing those tracking systems up to speed will fill his daily calendar for some time. Better financial data and analysis is a long-standing need n ifc iig Fo q B - T T ;rr v - ''V '.••• 'T Page 5 Ventures CFO brings enthusiasm, experience reservation life. “With his turn around background, he’s an ideal fit for Ventures and what we’re trying to accomplish,” says ad m inistrative officer Sandra Danzuka. “With the restructur ing we’re going through, things can get chaotic. Jeff is relaxed and he handles everything well. Most importantly he under stands how things work — the reservation is not a new world to him.” Anspach approaches his fi nancial duties in an unpreten tious and down-to-earth manner. He likes to jump straight into his work and get things done. “I’m very hands-on,” he says, “and very goal-oriented. I was a distance-runner through high school and college, so I’ve spent quite a bit of time chasing fin ish lines. Sometimes I feel like that’s still what I do.” Focused on getting results in the quickest and most efficient way possible, he would rather crunch numbers and solve prob lems in the background than shepherd proposals through bureaucratic and political pro cesses. But he’s enjoyed work ing with the Ventures board and Tribal Council. “I’ve been very impressed with the thoughtfulness and tal ent of the people that I’ve met on the reservation,” he says. “I also enjoy interacting with the Tribal Council. It reminds me of the time that I spent talking to my mom and my grandpa up in Minnesota. When I watch the Council interact it’s like I can see a thousand years into the past and a thousand years into the future. I never felt that way in big-city boardroom meetings with bankers, lawyers and stock brokers. My work product just -•; - M^rcb 16, 2006 Spilyay Tymoo, W ^m Springs, Oregon M aren Cohn Warm Springs Ventures - V - ■ t - that is well-recognized by the Tribal Council. Satisfying that need is one of the reasons Anspach will be good for the organization, according to Ven tures board member and tribal secretary-treasurer Jody Calica. “He brings us a solid set of experience and qualifications. We believe Jeff will be able to establish standards and bench marks for the different enter prises, including Ventures itself, so* that the Tribal Council can more effectively gauge their performance. He will help to give us a better performance basis to make judgments in the future.” Over the long term, Anspach has high aspirations. “I’ve felt like I’ve made a difference in all my professional endeavors and I’d like to do the same here. I want tribal mejnbers, if they so choose, to feel that they can go get an education or training and come back to the reserva tion to live and work. I don’t want people to say, ‘Hey, who was that guy who came through so many years ago and didn’t get anything done?’ I care about ac complishing something — I want to reach that finish line.” Young Achiever Aldo Antunez Sponsored by Les Schwab Aldo Antunez ju st moved to Warm Springs in December, but he has already caught up to his third-grade class mates at Warm Springs Elementdty School in each o f the tested subjects that are counted through the schoolyear. The subjects include MathFacts, Acclerated Reader and Accelerated Math. Aldo said his favorite subject is math, and he said he likes going to school in Warm Springs. “It’s pretty fun here, ” he said. Aldo, who is 8, and his family live in Sidwalter. When he goes home, he said he likes do his homework, go outside and play, and watch TV. Ralph's TV & Furniture 15% OFF Sofas, loveseats, ■fona p:*n ? More letters to the editor Missed In sympathy A valuable member of the Warm Springs community left us last month. I only wonder how many of the community members appre ciated how much Bob Smith gave of himself. You will be missed, Bob. D onna L. Smith. To the Roscoe Thompson Sr. family, I am sorry I couldn’t make it. I send my sympathy to fam ily and relatives and friends. My sincerest love. Love, Merda Charley. Dear Squiemphen family, I Ralphs TV, Furniture & Appliance am sorry I couldn’t make it to the funeral for Louella. I feel really bad. She was a good mother to her kids. I take my time to give you sympathy and loss. I am still thinking of your kids and cry ing. I feel your sorrow and loss. You guys are in my heart. 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