Mel Pervais
Encyclopedia
Melvin "Mel" Pervais is a Canadian-American
business executive
, entrepreneur
, engineer
and member of the Ojibwa Nation.
near Thunder Bay, Ontario
, the eldest son of eight children. At age five he began his academic studies in a one-room schoolhouse, housing eight grades, on the reserve. At age twelve he was sent to a Jesuit-run boarding school for Indian boys, the Garnier Residential School, 500 miles (804.7 km) away in Spanish, Ontario
, and graduated at sixteen.
. Two months later, he took the opportunity to begin an apprenticeship as an instrument technician with Noranda Mines in Cutler, Ontario. Over the next seventeen years, he held various positions in the power generation industry before joining Johnson Controls
in 1973 as the manager of a newly formed calibration engineering department. Pervais redirected the department's focus to nuclear power, boosting sales from $100,000 to $5 million over three years.
Pervais sold Cataract Inc. through an employee stock ownership program for $20 million. At the time, Cataract had 500 engineers and technicians and reported annual sales of $50 million. He retired at age 45 to focus on a horse breeding and cattle operation on the Chief Joseph Ranch near Darby, Montana
. The Los Angeles Times reported in 1984 that Pervais was one of the wealthiest Native Americans in the United States.
Rhodium 2001's extraction process is notable for being environmentally friendly, requiring no smelter nor airborne emissions, and for being a closely guarded secret. It took two years of research and development by Dickey, who claimed it involved temperature and pressure. Neither Pervais, nor Dickey, were willing to reveal more about the process than that, for fear that other competitors might adopt it, rendering their company irrelevant. Said Pervais, "If you're an environmentalist, it's probably the greatest invention. I don't need a polluting process. I'd stay retired if that was the case."
In 1982 Pervais was invited by President Ronald Reagan
to serve on a private sector task force that encouraged support of community projects including homes for the elderly and day care centers.
Pervais received honorary Doctorates of Engineering from Montana State University in 1995 and Lakehead University
in 1996. Pervais is a former member of the United Indian Development Association, a Los Angeles organization that provides consulting services to Indian businesses. He is on the council of trustees with United National Indian Tribal Youth Inc. (UNITY), a national organization promoting personal development, citizenship and leadership among Native American youth.
. After the Fords sold it in 1952, it traded hands several times. When Pervais took it over, the ranch was in poor shape; the barns were falling apart and its perimeter was unfenced. Pervais improved the property and extensively renovated the lodge to its Ford-era conditions over a ten-year period. At the time, he owned a pet bobcat, Toma, named for one of Chief Joseph's wives. Pervais sold the ranch in 2004. Today it is a bed and breakfast
.
, a former Navajo Tribal Chairman, served as Bailey's adopted Navajo "father" and offered twelve wild horses, a traditional dowry to the groom and a Navajo medicine man. In accordance with Pervais' Ojibwa heritage, a second ceremony took place at sundown the day after the wedding on the night of a new moon. Pervais is the father of seven children.
Canadian-American
A Canadian American is someone who was born or someone who grew up in Canada then moved to the United States. The term is particularly apt when applied or self-applied to people with strong ties to Canada, such as those who have lived a significant portion of their lives in, or were educated in,...
business executive
Executive officer
An executive officer is generally a person responsible for running an organization, although the exact nature of the role varies depending on the organization.-Administrative law:...
, entrepreneur
Entrepreneur
An entrepreneur is an owner or manager of a business enterprise who makes money through risk and initiative.The term was originally a loanword from French and was first defined by the Irish-French economist Richard Cantillon. Entrepreneur in English is a term applied to a person who is willing to...
, engineer
Engineer
An engineer is a professional practitioner of engineering, concerned with applying scientific knowledge, mathematics and ingenuity to develop solutions for technical problems. Engineers design materials, structures, machines and systems while considering the limitations imposed by practicality,...
and member of the Ojibwa Nation.
Early life and education
Pervais was born and raised on the Fort William ReserveFort William First Nation
Fort William First Nation is an Ojibway First Nation south of and adjacent to Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada. As of January 2008, the First Nation had a registered population of 1,798 people, of which their on-Reserve population was 832 people....
near Thunder Bay, Ontario
Thunder Bay, Ontario
Thunder Bay is a city in and the seat of Thunder Bay District, Ontario, Canada. It is the most populous municipality in Northwestern Ontario, and the second most populous in Northern Ontario after Greater Sudbury...
, the eldest son of eight children. At age five he began his academic studies in a one-room schoolhouse, housing eight grades, on the reserve. At age twelve he was sent to a Jesuit-run boarding school for Indian boys, the Garnier Residential School, 500 miles (804.7 km) away in Spanish, Ontario
Spanish, Ontario
Spanish is a town in the Canadian province of Ontario, located on Trans-Canada Highway 17 in the Algoma District near the border of the Sudbury District...
, and graduated at sixteen.
Early career
At age sixteen, Pervais started work as a night watchman for the Jones Construction CompanyJ.A. Jones Construction
J.A. Jones Construction was a heavy construction company headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. Operating internationally since the 1950s, it merged with Germany's Philipp Holzmann AG in 1979....
. Two months later, he took the opportunity to begin an apprenticeship as an instrument technician with Noranda Mines in Cutler, Ontario. Over the next seventeen years, he held various positions in the power generation industry before joining Johnson Controls
Johnson Controls
Johnson Controls, Inc. is a company, based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA. It was founded in 1885 by professor Warren S. Johnson, inventor of the first electric room thermostat....
in 1973 as the manager of a newly formed calibration engineering department. Pervais redirected the department's focus to nuclear power, boosting sales from $100,000 to $5 million over three years.
Cataract Inc.
Pervais left Johnson Controls in 1976 and, with his expertise and $10,000, started Amalgamated Services in Philadelphia with a business partner, providing engineering services to nuclear power plants. In 1979 the company merged with Cataract Engineering and Construction and Pervais became president. Never shy about his Indian heritage, Cataract's logo had an Indian motif and the company strived to hire Indian employees. Cataract also used a unique bonus and salary system to discourage sick days and draw talent from other companies; it was not uncommon for workers to out-earn their bosses, with some field technicians earning $90,000 a year.Pervais sold Cataract Inc. through an employee stock ownership program for $20 million. At the time, Cataract had 500 engineers and technicians and reported annual sales of $50 million. He retired at age 45 to focus on a horse breeding and cattle operation on the Chief Joseph Ranch near Darby, Montana
Darby, Montana
Darby is a town in Ravalli County, Montana, United States. The population was 710 at the 2000 census. Darby is located near the southwestern border of Montana and Idaho, along the Continental Divide...
. The Los Angeles Times reported in 1984 that Pervais was one of the wealthiest Native Americans in the United States.
Rhodium 2001
In 1991, Pervais returned from retirement to found Rhodium 2001, dedicated to recycling materials from scrapped catalytic converters. Pervais put more than $2 million of his own money into the new company, originally housed in a remodeled calving barn on his ranch. Pervais and partner Don Golbeck bought a license to a process developed by metallurgist inventor and chemical engineer C.A. Dickey to refine precious group metals from automotive catalytic converters, a process they used to retrieve a number of materials, including fine sand for the asphalt industry and platinum, palladium and rhodium compounds to sell to refiners.Rhodium 2001's extraction process is notable for being environmentally friendly, requiring no smelter nor airborne emissions, and for being a closely guarded secret. It took two years of research and development by Dickey, who claimed it involved temperature and pressure. Neither Pervais, nor Dickey, were willing to reveal more about the process than that, for fear that other competitors might adopt it, rendering their company irrelevant. Said Pervais, "If you're an environmentalist, it's probably the greatest invention. I don't need a polluting process. I'd stay retired if that was the case."
Service and distinctions
Pervais, whose grandfather was a tribal chief, has said his father pushed him into the non-Native American world at an early age. "It was the most traumatic thing he ever did," he says. "But it was the best thing he ever did for me." Pervais is an advocate for self-sufficiency in the Native American community and has spoken before students and other groups arguing that Native Americans must stop relying on federal aid and begin supporting themselves in the free-enterprise system.In 1982 Pervais was invited by President Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
to serve on a private sector task force that encouraged support of community projects including homes for the elderly and day care centers.
Pervais received honorary Doctorates of Engineering from Montana State University in 1995 and Lakehead University
Lakehead University
Lakehead University is a public research university in Thunder Bay, and Orillia, Ontario, Canada.Lakehead University, shortened to 'Lakehead U', or 'LU', is non-denominational and provincially supported. It has undergraduate and graduate programs and a medical school.The school has more than 45,000...
in 1996. Pervais is a former member of the United Indian Development Association, a Los Angeles organization that provides consulting services to Indian businesses. He is on the council of trustees with United National Indian Tribal Youth Inc. (UNITY), a national organization promoting personal development, citizenship and leadership among Native American youth.
Chief Joseph Ranch
IIn 1987, Pervais bought the 1400 acres (5.7 km²) Chief Joseph Ranch, including a 5000 square feet (464.5 m²) lodge built in 1917, a summer home for the family of William FordWilliam Ford
William Ford was an Irish-born American businessman. He was the father of Ford Motor Company founder Henry Ford.-Biography:...
. After the Fords sold it in 1952, it traded hands several times. When Pervais took it over, the ranch was in poor shape; the barns were falling apart and its perimeter was unfenced. Pervais improved the property and extensively renovated the lodge to its Ford-era conditions over a ten-year period. At the time, he owned a pet bobcat, Toma, named for one of Chief Joseph's wives. Pervais sold the ranch in 2004. Today it is a bed and breakfast
Bed and breakfast
A bed and breakfast is a small lodging establishment that offers overnight accommodation and breakfast, but usually does not offer other meals. Since the 1980s, the meaning of the term has also extended to include accommodations that are also known as "self-catering" establishments...
.
Personal
Pervais married Lynda Hart Bailey, former wife of lawyer F. Lee Bailey, in 1985. Peter MacDonaldPeter MacDonald (Navajo leader)
Peter MacDonald is a Native American politician and the only four term Chairman of the Navajo Tribe. He was born in Arizona, U.S.A., served the U.S...
, a former Navajo Tribal Chairman, served as Bailey's adopted Navajo "father" and offered twelve wild horses, a traditional dowry to the groom and a Navajo medicine man. In accordance with Pervais' Ojibwa heritage, a second ceremony took place at sundown the day after the wedding on the night of a new moon. Pervais is the father of seven children.
External links
- Mel Pervais profile
- Rhodium 2001 company profile