I first experienced the powerful land of the North Coast visiting as a young child. I remember amazement at the Redwood Forest, the feeling of comfort on the beaches in Trinidad, and power of the rivers. At the time I had no Idea I would return as an adult to further my education and become an extended community member for the rest of my life. I graduated Cal Poly Humboldt as a Native student supported by the Indian Natural Resource Science and Engineering Program (INRSEP) and the Indian Teacher and Education Personnel Program (ITEPP) and began my “graduate cultural studies” with Native cultural practitioners and advocates of the North Coast.

My careers as a Natural Resource professional, Social Worker, California Credentialed Educator, and Cultural Practitioner centers on the perpetuation of Native Cultures through intensive relationship building. My choices for the last twenty-plus years within the California Native community, and broader collaborative work, are rooted in and guided by honoring traditional knowledge and nurturing children and youth in their role as the caretakers of big dreams and radical re-imagination. I am so excited to work with the NCF and HAF team, as a Senior Program Officer for the Native Cultures Fund, to bring resources to the communities that have been underserved for so long.