B. Cheryl Smith, the chief of the Jena Band of Choctaw Indians, has witnessed the tribe change and expand over the decades in ways she only dreamed for her people, and as she was asked to reflect on the tribe’s journey and her upcoming retirement as chief later this month, she said she is first and foremost a proud tribal member and that anything she has worked for all these years was for the betterment of the people and the community. “Being chief is a difficult job that many tribal members don’t fully comprehend, but it’s also rewarding,” she said regarding her combined total of sixteen years as chief. “I’ve always had what was best for the tribe at heart of everything I have done and I strived to represent as a leader the good qualities someone would want in a spokesperson for the tribe. For over 40 years, I have worked for the tribe in different capacities. It has been my whole life.”