David W. Anderson, also known as Famous Dave, is an Indigenous American entrepreneur, businessman, and former U.S. government official. Anderson is the founder, namesake, and former head of the barbecue restaurant chain and retail brand Famous Dave's. He also served as Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Indian Affairs from 2004 to 2005 as a member of the

George W. Bush administration George W. Bush's tenure as the 43rd president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 2001, and ended on January 20, 2009. Bush, a Republican from Texas, took office following his narrow electoral college vict ...

, overseeing the

Bureau of Indian Affairs The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), also known as Indian Affairs (IA), is a United States List of United States federal agencies, federal agency within the U.S. Department of the Interior, Department of the Interior. It is responsible for im ...

and the Office of Indian Education Programs. Anderson has since established a second restaurant chain – Old Southern BBQ – and a standalone winery and pizzeria. Anderson is a citizen of the Lac Courte Oreilles Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians and a descendant of the

Choctaw Nation The Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma (Choctaw: ''Chahta Okla'') is a Native American reservation occupying portions of southeastern Oklahoma in the United States. At roughly , it is the second-largest reservation in area after the Navajo, exceeding t ...

, and lives in

Edina, Minnesota Edina ( , ) is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States and a first-ring suburb of Minneapolis. The population was 53,494 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the 18th most populous ci ...

. He was born in Chicago, Illinois, and grew up there as well as on reservations in

Wisconsin Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...

. Famous Dave Anderson now travels the country speaking and is the author of several award-winning books.

Philanthropy

In 2001, Anderson and his family founded The LifeSkills Center for Leadership, a

501(c)(3) A 501(c)(3) organization is a United States corporation, Trust (business), trust, unincorporated association or other type of organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of Title 26 of the United States Code. It is one of ...

which provided leadership experiences to at-risk and underprivileged Native American youths.

Personal life

Dave Anderson lives in

with his wife, Kathy. He has two kids, James (married to Colleen, née Bubb) and Tim, both residing in Minneapolis. His family still owns and enjoys property in

Hayward, Wisconsin Hayward is a city in Sawyer County, Wisconsin, United States, and its county seat. Its population was 2,533 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The city was formally organized in 1883. It is near the Namekagon River and is surrounded ...

, beside the LCO Reservation.

References

Year of birth missing (living people) Living people American people of Choctaw descent Lac Courte Oreilles Band people Businesspeople from Chicago Harvard University alumni American restaurateurs George W. Bush administration personnel United States Bureau of Indian Affairs personnel People from Hayward, Wisconsin Minnesota Republicans Wisconsin Republicans {{US-business-bio-stub