Homer A. Mandoka, Tribal Council chairman of the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of the Potawatomi, recently announced FireKeepers Casino Hotel President R. Bruce McKee will retire at the end of the year. He will be succeeded by Brian Decorah, who recently was named chief operating officer. The property is located in Battle Creek, Michigan.
McKee, who has led FireKeepers since it opened in 2009, will remain through the end of 2015. He has been responsible for all facets related to the opening and operating of the facility, including managing the construction and grand opening in 2012 of a 243-room hotel and 2,000-seat event center. This year the hotel received AAA’s coveted Four Diamond Award.
“Bruce McKee ushered the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of the Potawatomi into the gaming industry with experience, poise and successful financial performance. His ability to navigate into the Native American gaming market from corporation casinos was remarkable. McKee’s ability to identify and attract talent for key leadership roles formed a winning team,” Mandoka said.
In his 35-year career in the casino industry, McKee held numerous executive positions, including chief operating officer and general manager at Harrington Raceway Casino in Harrington, Delaware, and a variety of positions over 10 years at Trump Hotels and Casino Resorts, Inc. McKee is a CPA and received an MBA from Golden Gate University in San Francisco. He served in Vietnam with the U.S. Army’s 1st Infantry Division, reaching the rank of captain before discharge.
Said McKee, “It’s been an honor and a privilege to be associated with FireKeepers Casino Hotel and the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of the Potawatomi. I will never forget the many milestones and accomplishments we have achieved at FireKeepers and the many memories established here in Battle Creek over the past seven years.”
A member of the Ho-Chunk Nation, Decorah joined FireKeepers as senior vice president and assistant general manager in 2013. Previously he served as general manager of North Star Mohican Casino Resort in Bowler, Wisconsin and general manager for two Ho-Chunk Gaming casinos in Wisconsin, and also held executive positions at Cliff Castle Casino in Camp Verde, Arizona and Seneca Gaming Corporation in Western, New York. Decorah has a bachelor’s degree and an MBA from the University of Wisconsin, and was named in the Global Gaming Business “40 under 40” in 2013.
Mandoka said, “Brian Decorah brings passion and dedication to the FireKeepers Team. He has a keen eye for an optimal guest experience and expects to treat others as they would treat him. He is skilled at earning respect from team members and is poised to continue our successful operating results.”
Added Decorah, “I am very humbled by the opportunity to carry out the vision that Mr. McKee and the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of Potawatomi have created. I look forward to leading the FireKeepers Team in our efforts to remain as the casino of choice for our guests and the employer of choice for our team members.”
Owned and operated by the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of the Potawatomi, FireKeepers features am 111,700 square foot gaming floor with 2,900 slot machines, 70 table games, a live poker room and bingo room. The resort-style hotel has 243 rooms, a multi-purpose, 2,000-seat event center, six dining destinations and multiple lounges and entertainment venues.
