AMMSA - The Beginning

On February 21, 1983, after months of planning and negotiations on the part of some of the old staff from the defunct Alberta Native Communications Society (ANCS), Bert Crowfoot was made the acting director of the Aboriginal Multi-Media Society of Alberta (AMMSA).

It was the beginning of an organization whose primary goal was to strive towards self-sufficiency as a leading Native Newspaper.

The newspaper took off from a little office supplied by Secretary of State, and from their building, a group of people began to work towards that goal.

In May of the same year, Crowfoot applied for the position as executive director of AMMSA, and was accepted.

Crowfoot believes that it was the Nation's Ensign newspaper that provided the testing ground and necessary groundwork "had been done by the Nation's Ensign. It served a function in that it proved a Native newspaper did not have to rely on government funding and could become self-sufficient." Says Crowfoot while explaining the Ensign proved that Native newspapers could make money . . . when given seed money to operate with.

The Nation's Ensign ceased to exist in 1983, the same year that ANCS folded.

When Crowfoot took over, his dream was to see a Native newspaper that would become totally independent and self-sufficient, and "that is still my dream today."

His dream, along with others who feel the same way within the organization, is fast becoming a reality. Crowfoot says that he always felt, with the proper financial management and "if the organization was run like a business, it could generate money."

"I found that advertising is basically a license for printing money, which means a lot of money can be made."

AMMSA has gone though many growing pains since its beginning four years ago. There has been staff turnover, board members who have resigned and been replaced by others.

"We progressed a lot faster than anticipated. There have been sacrifices and growing pains, but growth can only be achieved through learning and sometimes learning means, the hard way."

Crowfoot has learned about newspapers over the years and sometimes he learned the "hard way".

An established photographer, he once put together a magazine full of photographs and information on Indian people and traditional powwows.

Along with another newspaper enthusiast, Dae Anders, the two of them began the Native Ensign Newspaper, which later renamed the Nation's Ensign.

Crowfoot also worked as a photographer and editor of the Native People newspaper under the Alberta Native Communication Society and was a part of the staff when the society went under in 1982.

Crowfoot, along with other past employees from ANCSA, then formed the new society which eventually became AMMSA.

A lot of credit must be given to the first board of directors, people such as Elmer Ghostkeeper, Gordon Williams and Joe Couture, and credit also lies with people who managed AMMSA affairs as Bert Crowfoot, Laurent Roy and Jeff Bear.

"The direction of AMMSA and ARTS was predetermined by the management team which in turn endorsed by the board, so credit must go to management," said past editor of Windspeaker paper, Laurent Roy.

According to Roy, he believes that Crowfoot has the necessary skills to take AMMSA in the direction of self-sufficiency.

"I know he has a good business background. He knows how to invest and how to get a return that I have no qualms with," commented Roy.

Crowfoot believes that the first step to self-sufficiency is a solid base, a foundation, something he says AMMSA now has.

"We found a base when we purchased this building. It is a foundation that we can spring more projects from."

The AMMSA building was purchased in March, 1986, for approximately $240,000. Although some people felt that the building should have been bought on a long-term payment plan, Crowfoot maintained that it could be paid for and out of the way quicker. "And we will be making our final payment in July of this year," Crowfoot smiles.

Crowfoot tated that thanks must go to the federal government and Secretary of State, who contributed $80,000.

"We paid the rest for the building through generated revenue."

Future plans for AMMSA is to see the newspaper delivered nationally.

"We envision publishing a national newspaper. That is the goal we are striving for. Another goal is other publications produced by AMMSA," says Crowfoot.

Indeed, the vision does not stop there. A graphic shop, print shop, and a video production house are some of the visions Crowfoot talked of.

"We hope to have our AM radio station that the society would own. And of course a recording studio is another possibility."

By doing this Crowfoot believes responsible team effort will make it happen.

"We have an excellent staff who are dedicated. Management has come a long ways. We have an excellent board that is a volunteer board and without that combination of staff, management and board all sharing the same dream, these dreams would probably not be accomplished."