Supporting Entrepreneurism: Microloan boosts Sturgeon Lake Cree Nation services company

Stepping up and working hard runs in the Chowace-Goodswimmer family, whether it’s keeping up with their 10 children aged 4 to 35, or running their new enterprise, Chowace Oilfield Services. Chowace Oilfield provides a variety of construction and operations support services to oil and natural gas companies operating near Valleyview, Alberta – traditional territory of the Sturgeon Lake Cree Nation and part of Treaty 8.

For Allen Chowace and Jamie-Lee Goodswimmer, Sturgeon Lake Cree Nation is home, but it’s also a small rural community where good jobs are hard to find. So, Allen and Jamie-Lee examined their skills and rather than wait for opportunities to find them, they made the bold decision to launch Chowace Oilfield and create those opportunities themselves.

“Jamie-Lee and I make a great team in many ways,” said Allen Chowace. “And starting a company together combines my industry skills with her business administration expertise to deliver valued services to our customers, which in turn allows us to better support our family and our community.”

Launching a business during the COVID-19 pandemic, like Jamie-Lee and Allen did, is certainly not for the faint of heart. The couple had saved enough cash to get the business launched despite the near-term risks, but like most businesses, they need access to additional capital to operate and grow. For many Indigenous entrepreneurs, traditional lending from banks is not an option given that people living on reserve cannot own their own home or land, a common source of business start-up funds. That’s where Indian Business Corporation’s (IBC) microloan program funded by Kiwetinohk Energy came in.

“When you are running a company every issue and problem starts and ends with us as business owners,” explained Jamie-Lee. “Paydays don’t just show up in your bank account. You are now responsible for finding the work, completing it, invoicing, and taking payment. Managing cash flow, especially when payment timelines vary, is key to success. The microloan program helps us do that.”

Helping service company entrepreneurs navigate the early years of business is key to Kiwetinohk too, according to Sue Kuethe , the company’s Executive Vice President of Land and Community Inclusion.

“Navigating the ups and downs of the oil and gas industry is difficult for big companies so volatility in finances and work can be a large problem for little companies just starting out,” Kuethe said. “Extended invoice payment timelines can be very long and hard too. Yet at the same time, having good choice of small, local entrepreneurial service companies has always been core to the industry’s success.

“That’s why we are glad to see Chowace Oilfield enter the marketplace. It gives Kiwetinohk another local, reliable company to call on. Supporting entrepreneurs like Allen and Jamie-Lee to become part of the energy sector is a big reason we funded the IBC’s microloan program in the first place.”

Today Chowace Oilfield has grown beyond a family affair. Allen and Jamie-Lee now employ three Sturgeon Lake Cree Nation members while also training the next generation of Chowace-Goodswimmer entrepreneurs whenever they get the chance.

I even have the kids learning to use the skid during our spare time,” Allen said proudly. “We want to show our family that the opportunities that in the past we’d have to leave the reserve for, are coming home through our own business.

“That’s a good part of why we started our company – to give back to the community,” emphasized Jamie-Lee.

Kiwetinohk’s and IBC’s goal is that as small business loans are repaid, the replenished $100,000-loan fund will continue to circulate and support multiple entrepreneurs, fostering prosperity, jobs and economic self-determination.

Kiwetinohk’s Kuethe said, “Local hiring and contracting is good community relations, but when you consider the essential role people like Allen and Jamie-Lee and companies like Chowace Oilfield play in the industry, it’s really just good business.”