Like many others, Bill Lance Jr. never intended to pursue a career in gaming. He was working as an administrator for the Chickasaw Nation’s health system and had just overseen construction of a medical center in Ada, Oklahoma.
Bill Anoatubby, then Chickasaw Nation governor, appointed him the Secretary of Commerce. Lance became responsible for the nation’s commercial enterprises, including its gaming operations.
“Gaming was not something I initially set out to pursue as a career, but I quickly came to understand its strategic importance,” Lance says. “It was much more than an entertainment business. Gaming had become an important economic engine that could strengthen the Chickasaw Nation’s self-determination and provide resources to improve the lives of our citizens.”
Lance recently was named to the American Gaming Association’s Gaming Hall of Fame. He will be inducted with the Class of 2026, including Holly Gagnon, Scott Olive, and Timothy Wilmott at an invitation-only ceremony during the Global Gaming Expo in Las Vegas this fall.
“Through his innovative leadership, Bill Lance has consistently achieved and raised the standard for success,” said Chickasaw Nation Governor Emeritus Anoatubby. “His induction into the American Gaming Association’s Gaming Hall of Fame is a fitting recognition of what his leadership has meant to tribal gaming and to the Chickasaw people. Congratulations for this honor.”
Once installed as Secretary of Commerce, Lance realized he was in a unique position to create opportunities for the tribe.
“What attracted me very quickly was the complexity of the (gaming) industry and, more importantly, the opportunity it presented for the Chickasaw Nation,” Lance says. “I could see that if we operated our gaming businesses effectively, invested strategically and continued to innovate, the resulting economic success could support healthcare, education, housing, cultural preservation and many other services for our citizens.”
Perhaps nothing embodies Lance’s career more than his attention to tribal healthcare. The Chickasaw Nation’s Carl Albert Indian Health facility in Ada, Oklahoma, was built in 1985 to accommodate roughly 20,000 patient visits a year. But by the 2000s, visits were 10 times that number.
Lance used revenue from gaming to spearhead efforts for construction of a new facility.
“The Chickasaw Nation made the decision to invest approximately $150 million of its own resources to construct a new, state-of-the-art medical center,” Lance says. “At the same time, we competed nationally for a Joint Venture Construction Grant through the Indian Health Service and the Department of the Interior. Our application scored number one in the country, which was an extraordinary accomplishment for our health system and the Nation.
“That successful application did more than support the construction partnership. It also qualified the Chickasaw Nation for tens of millions of dollars in additional federal operational funding to help operate and sustain the new state-of-the-art hospital.”
Gaming was the lever that enabled the Chickasaw Nation to provide money for the hospital and many other initiatives. Lance helped bolster tribal gaming in Oklahoma and on other Chickasaw properties.
“On a personal level, having spent a significant portion of my career helping build and advance tribal gaming, it is deeply meaningful to be counted among the leaders who have helped shape this industry,” he says.
“Gaming has been an extraordinarily important part of our economic success and has provided the foundation for much of the progress we have made. What makes that success especially meaningful is the way it has enabled us to strengthen self-determination, expand opportunities and invest in the long-term well-being of our people. To have played even a small role in the growth and advancement of this industry, and to be recognized by the American Gaming Association for it, is something for which I am extremely grateful.”
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