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manufacturer or dealer recommends, but they have to back up their prod‐ ucts and deliver on their promises," he said. "I need solutions, not finger pointing. KPI‐JCI and its dealer are willing to work with any issues and find the solutions. I look for equip‐ ment that is best for the guys who run it. That means greater productivity and better night's sleep." Fort McDowell Yavapai Materials pro‐ vides employment for up to 75 peo‐ ple, 75 percent of whom are members of the Native American community. In addition to its production of construc‐ tion and concrete aggregate, the oper‐ ation provides materials for residential and commercial landscap‐ ing, and for the development of the nation's most revered golf courses. E Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation History Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation is located within Maricopa County, Ariz., about 23 miles northeast of Phoenix. The desert landscape is contrasted by the Verde River, which flows north to south through the reservation. Thirty miles east of Fort McDowell, the Four Peaks rise from the desert floor to an el- evation of more than 7,000 ft. The community was created by Executive Order on Sept. 15, 1903. The 40-square-mile reservation is now home to 600 community members, while another 300 live off reservation. The reservation is a small parcel of land that formerly was the ancestral territory of the once nomadic Yavapai people, who hunted and gathered food in a vast area of Arizona's desert lowlands and mountainous Mogollon Rim country. The reservation is governed by a Tribal Council elected by tribal members pursuant to the Tribe's Constitution. In recent years, Fort McDowell won two victories that made history and reaffirmed its tribal sovereignty. In the early 1970s, construction of the Orme Dam was proposed at the confluence of the Verde and Salt rivers, a short distance from the reservation's southern border. The project would have flooded the reservation and forced the community from what remained of its ancestral homeland. With lim- ited financial resources, individuals from the community spearheaded an opposition movement that rallied the support of fellow tribal members. By referendum in 1976, the community members voted 144 to 57 against selling their land to the federal government for the dam site. Then on Nov. 12, 1981, after consulting with the Fort McDowell Tribal Council and the Governor's Advisory Committee, Interior Secretary James Watt announced that Orme Dam would not be built. During the early 1990s, several tribal casinos, including Fort McDowell, were in operation in Arizona. At the time, however, the governor opposed Indian gaming and called upon the U.S. Attorney's office for support. At the first light of day on May 12, 1992, FBI agents invaded the Fort McDowell casino seizing the community's 349 gaming machines and loading them into moving trucks. Community members witnessing the raid took immediate action. Soon, using every available car, truck and piece of heavy machinery, a blockade of the casino's access road was organized. A three-week standoff be- tween tribe and government ensued. The Arizona governor ultimately was persuaded to sign a gam- ing compact with the tribe, thus paving the way for Indian gaming in Arizona. From left, Bill Jondahl, operations manager; Don Moler, plant maintenance foreman and Gary Curtis, assistant general manager/director of sales. www.rockproducts.com ROCKproducts • OCTOBER 2011 17 Sour ce: Fort McDowell Y avapai Nation