Since Time Immemorial is a recurring series featuring community members whose families have been here since time immemorial. The ancestral knowledge carried by Lhaq’temish, Nooksack, and other Coast Salish peoples is knowledge about how to live in our shared home in a good, life-sustaining way. We live in a time when we need to restore our relationship with Mother Earth and with one another. We are grateful for these stories, told in the words of each featured individual.
Barbara Lewis is a Lummi Tribal member with roots also in Lower Elwha, Nooksack, and Beecher Bay (British
Columbia). Since graduating from university, she has worked at Northwest Indian College and currently serves as the Executive Director of the Northwest Indian College Foundation.
Can you share a bit about what you do?
I think that finances should be the last thing that our students should have to worry about when they’re focusing on being scholars. At the Foundation, our main goal is to raise money for scholarships; we’re working on an endowment campaign to make sure that there is funding in perpetuity for students that want to attend Northwest Indian College. I like to call what I’m doing friend-raising because we have a lot of support from Tribes, alumni, corporations, and friends of Indian Country. It’s community building.
I know you work in the political space as well as the philanthropic space.
I’m passionate about getting people to vote, and ensuring that people have access to voting, and that it’s done in a fair and transparent way. And I love voting. It’s one of my favorite things to do.
Growing up, I’d heard lots of family stories, I’d listened to my uncle telling me about my grandpa not being allowed to fish in his ancestral homelands and not being able to move freely in the islands, having all that taken away from him. As I got into politics, I intentionally started delving into history and reading a lot. The more I learned, the more I realized that everything’s all about systems. And how, if you understand a system, you can work to change it.
I really believe that we can create a healthy, vibrant community for everybody, regardless of sex, race, ethnicity, religious background, you know, things like that. That’s what led me to politics. I’m currently a state committee member for the Whatcom Democrats, and am involved with the Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians and the National Congress of American Indians.
Is there a particular experience that has helped shape who you are today?
In 2016, I got invited as a youth delegate to the White House Tribal Nations Conference, hosted by President Obama. So I walk into the White House and there are hundreds of Native people. And they are beautiful. Everyone’s laughing and having a good time and chatting. I see ribbon skirts and moccasins, loafers and suits, bolo ties and beaded hats and cedar headbands. A beautiful blend of regalia and professional attire from all over the nation. Everyone is so proud. They’re so proud to represent who they are and where they come from.
Up until that point, I had joked around and told people that I was ambiguously ethnic. Part of that was being in spaces where I didn’t want to stand out and put a target on my back, right? But at the Conference everyone was asking where I was from, and I was telling them “Lummi,” and they’re saying, “Wow, I know your leaders. You guys fought the IRS; you guys fought the Cherry Point coal terminal and won. You guys have done a lot.” Going to the White House I think really was a pivot for me because I realized that I need to represent where I’m from and be proud of that.
What’s a typical day like for you?
I am always moving. Wake up, get my kid ready for school, feed the cat, make sure my mom has coffee brewing. Meetings, phone calls, a lot of social events, a lot of galas. And then one day out of every month, I try to get 12 hours of sleep. Honestly, it’s kind of ridiculous. But just that one day a month keeps me going.
How about fun?
I actually find politics fun! And hiking, snowboarding, movie night with my family, cleaning the house with the music blasting. Waking up and making a perfect cup of coffee. Finding those little moments of joy and peace.
Anything you’d like to add?
You know, a lot of people think that Native Americans are an ethnicity but we’re actually a political group. We have the opportunity to do things differently as sovereign nations. Northwest Indian College is such a special place because it blends mainstream knowledge and cultural knowledge. You can’t get that in very many places. Most of our students move back home after graduation, and they’re doing big things. Talk about systemic change! I really want to fully fund every single one of them.
Hy’shqe, Barbara.
Hy’shqe, Julie.
About the Writer:
Julie Trimingham is grateful to make her home on traditional Lhaq’temish territory, and to work for the Sacred Lands Conservancy (SacredSea.org), an Indigenous-led 501c3 nonprofit organization dedicated to protecting the life, culture, and sanctity of the Salish Sea.
About the Writer:
Julie Trimingham is grateful to make her home on traditional Lhaq’temish territory, and to work for the Sacred Lands Conservancy (SacredSea.org), an Indigenous-led 501c3 nonprofit organization dedicated to protecting the life, culture, and sanctity of the Salish Sea.
