Dreams, hopes, needs and programs at Swinomish

Dear Friends and Neighbors –

I am pleased to be able to share a few thoughts about the current activities of the Swinomish Tribe.

Swinomish has grown in the past 20 years from approximately 500 to 1,000 tribal citizens. Our governing body, the Swinomish Senate, continues to be committed to improving the lives and well-being of our tribal members by providing the very best governmental services we can, including health and social programs, affordable housing, financial services, cultural programs, education (from early childhood through higher education), job placement, economic development, environmental programs and natural resource protection. Our economic ventures support much of this work, while the jobs we create make us one of the largest employers in the Skagit Valley.

At this time, I want to focus on just one area of considerable attention for the Swinomish Tribe in 2020: housing. Like other governments, Swinomish continues to invest in housing options for our growing population. For over 45 years federal government housing programs required materials and architectural designs that do not fit our environmental conditions or way of life. For instance, a few years ago our tribal environmental air program discovered that much of our tribal housing had a serious black mold problem, causing dangerous health conditions for our community members. Our Senators responded quickly to ensure the health of our citizens.

With the growth of our community and limitations on federal funding, we have had to take it upon ourselves to fill the housing needs of our tribal community. We built necessary infrastructure and assessed our diverse housing needs. Over the past few years the Senate has invested tribal revenues into drug and alcohol-free, single-family homes. The Swinomish Housing Authority is developing affordable housing intended to accommodate more individual family units, people with physical disabilities, recovery homes and housing for single adults. The Swinomish Tribe is deeply committed to providing safe, affordable and local housing for all of its members.

Swinomish is a small tribe, but even so we are responsible for all government services, just as the local, county, state and federal governments are. We must invest our limited resources prudently. We have invested to build long term financial stability and have partnered with other governments and organizations to address situations that range from the opioid and addiction epidemic, early education and higher education, infrastructure expansion and jobs, as well as health and dental care for tribal and non-tribal citizens.

Our Tribal Senate is mindful that our tribal citizens have the same needs, hopes and dreams as all communities throughout the world. We want our families and our homes to be healthy. We want high-quality education for our children and loving care for our elders. We want safe neighborhoods and a clean environment. We want to preserve our traditions, culture, language and our way of life. As a community we work together to sustain our values and further our hopes and dreams for generations to come.

Thank you for taking a few minutes to learn more about the Swinomish Tribe and the work of our government. We look forward to working together with all of our friends and neighbors to ensure that this beautiful place we call home continues to thrive.

Brian Cladoosby

Kel Kahlt Soot

Chairman