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Stacy D. Stumbo The Roseburg News-Review May 19, 2003
Bruce ‘Boomer’ Schoneboom settles in as new general manager of Seven Feathers ResortIt’s fitting that a guy named Boomer should work so close to Boomer Hill.
But apart from their nicknames, the rare mountain beaver that reside atop Boomer Hill and Bruce “Boomer” Schoneboom have nothing in common.
Schoneboom is the new general manager of the Seven Feathers Hotel & Casino Resort in Canyonville. He is responsible for every aspect of the facility — from the Camas Room restaurant to the craps table.
General manager
Bruce ‘Boomer’ Schoneboom has been the general manager of Seven Feathers Hotel & Casino Resort in Canyonville since January.
STEPHEN BRASHEAR / The News-Review
At 52, Schoneboom has spent the past four years working for the Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Tribe of Indians. He started his tenure as food and beverage director at the resort, and was promoted to general manager after the chief executive officer’s exit in January.
He supervises the roughly 900 employees at the facility and tries to approach the job with a hands-on attitude.
“I spend a lot of time on the floor,” he said. “My biggest responsibility is to make sure the guests are happy.”
Sue Shaffer, tribal chairwoman, said the Cow Creek were pleased to be able to promote from within. The tribe has often hired highly skilled personnel who just can’t get a grip on the needs of the Cow Creek or the community, Shaffer said. But Boomer gets it.
“I have yet to find anybody who doesn’t like him,” she said. “As general manager he’s nice to every level of employee, and treats them all with respect.”
‘I spend a lot of time on the floor.
My biggest responsibility is to make sure the guests are happy.’Schoneboom hails from Nebraska, where as a young man he waited tables. He segued into the food and beverage industry in Omaha and parlayed it into a successful career that has led him to Reno, Colorado and Las Vegas, where he spent five years.
He got the nickname Boomer during his first job. His boss was also named Bruce, so to differentiate between the two, he was resigned to being called Boomer.
Schoneboom is a widowed father of two. One daughter is 27 and living in Omaha, the other is a 20-year-old Umpqua Community College dental hygiene student. He adopted his second child when she was 6, and moved out of the Las Vegas area as soon as was feasible.
“It’s extremely busy there,” he said. “At one time, it was the fastest-growing city in the world. I just thought, ‘I can’t raise a child in an environment like this. It’s just no good.’”
Schoneboom came to Oregon sight unseen, but wasn’t disappointed by what he found.
“Canyonville is a great town,” he said. “The area is clean, there’s no smog and I’m not as stressed as I was. I really like being able to go to the bank and not have to stand in line.”
With recent expansion efforts at the resort, Schoneboom said even days off are occupied by thoughts of the casino. He expects the improvements, including a nonsmoking gaming area, to be complete by the end of the summer.
“Day-to-day operations are very important,” he said. “Even with so much change, the tribe is always looking down the road to the future. I’m definitely not ever bored.”
