SULPHUR, Okla. (OBV) – State, local and Chickasaw Nation officials met with the U.S. Small Business Administration to discuss rebuilding parts of Sulphur that were badly damaged by a tornado in April.
A tornado leveled multiple businesses and homes in Sulphur’s downtown area on April 27. Small Business Administration (SBA) Administrator Isabel Casillas Guzman recently spoke with officials, including Chickasaw Nation Governor Bill Anoatubby, about recovery efforts.
Anoatubby asserted the tribe’s willingness to help the Sulphur community recover.
“We thank Administrator Guzman for facilitating this dialogue and sharing of resources to benefit those we serve,” Anoatubby said. “In support of the many vital entrepreneurs and small business owners throughout the Chickasaw Nation, we will continue to strategically invest and offer programs and services to help the entrepreneurial spirit thrive and enjoy long-term success. We look forward to working with the SBA in these efforts.”
The Chickasaw Nation runs several businesses and programs in Sulphur, including the Chickasaw Cultural Center, Chickasaw Nation Head Start, Chickasaw Visitor Center, a youth center and senior center. The tribe employs over 400 people in Sulphur, according to Chickasaw Nation officials.
The tornado caused massive devastation, with 68 businesses and 140 homes either damaged or destroyed. The Chickasaw Nation businesses damaged by the tornado in the city’s downtown include the Artesian Hotel, ARTesian Gallery, Mahota Textiles and an administrative office, the latter two being destroyed, according to tribe officials.
The tribe is working with the SBA, Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and local organizations to help the Sulphur area with its recovery, according to Anoatubby.
“We are part of this community. We love this place, and we are going to do whatever we can to help. We are ready to do that,” Anoatubby said. “We have businesses here and it is in our heart, so we are going to work to help.”
Cooperation and collaboration are essential to recovering and rebuilding, Anoatubby said.
“Our teams have worked actively to collaborate with partners, locally and nationally, and with the emergency management agencies to find necessary resources for our citizens,” he said.
Small businesses are the community’s backbone of the community, according to Guzman. She said the SBA is dedicated to rebuilding Sulphur, offering businesses as much as $2 million in loans, as well as $500,000 for homeowners and up to $100,000 for renters.
“SBA is about the American dream of business ownership, but that business ownership is integral to community and when the communities are impacted by disaster, SBA steps in to not only help the small businesses but nonprofits and homeowners,” she said.
The SBA established a center to help businesses
“Here in Sulphur, we have a small business development center that’s actually supported by Chickasaw Nation,” Guzman said. “And that center has advisers who are able to help walk those new entrepreneurs through their business plans and help them strategize for the future.”
