[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 105 (Wednesday, September 8, 2004)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1559]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     TRIBUTE TO MR. STEVEN R. HEAPE

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. EDWARD R. ROYCE

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, September 8, 2004

  Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I rise to pay tribute to Mr. Steven R. Heape, 
a proud member of the Cherokee Nation. He was born in Long Beach, 
California on March 25, 1951. His family eventually moved to Fullerton, 
where Steven graduated from Fullerton Union High School. Steven also 
attended Fullerton Junior College as a Business Administration Major, 
while working as a Major Account Representative for Armor Food Company.
  His interest in motion picture production eventually led him to 
produce the film titled, ``Location to Recovery,'' one of the first 
education docudramas to be released from 16mm film to VHS videotape.
  In 1994, Mr. Heape and business partner Chip Ritchie formed Rich-
Heape Films, Inc., certified by the Cherokee Nation to focus on the 
history and preservation of the American Indian culture. Today, Rich-
Heape Films is an internationally recognized firm with several award-
winning films to its credit. The American Indian Chamber of Commerce 
awarded it the 2003 American Indian Business of the Year.
  In August, Mr. Heape was one of five Native American filmmakers 
invited to participate in the strategic film and video content planning 
for the new Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian in 
Washington, D.C. In March 2004, Mr. Heape began the most challenging 
project of his career, producing a two-hour PBS documentary on the 
Indian Removal Act of 1830, better known as the Cherokee Trail of Tears 
scheduled for release in 2005.
  On September 12, Mr. Heape is being recognized by the Little Eagle 
Free Foundation for his contribution and philanthropy in preserving the 
languages, history and cultures of Native Americans.
  It is only fitting that Mr. Heape is to be commended for his 
extraordinary efforts to document and preserve Native American culture 
and the part played in American History.

                          ____________________