Darius Coombs is a citizen of the Mashpee Wampanoag tribe and is the Cultural Outreach Coordinator for the Mashpee Wampanoag Education Department. Darius is the former Director of the Wampanoag Indigenous Program at Plimoth/ Patuxet Museums for over 30 years. Over his career Darius worked with Smithsonian, History Channel, National Geographic, and Scholastic. His teaching of Wampanoag and other Indigenous cultures in the history of the northeast is recognized throughout the country. He has presented at conferences, colleges, historical societies, museums, indigenous institutes, and all grades and levels of learning in North America. Darius is also the recipient of the 2016 NEMA (New England Museum Association) Award for Excellence and the 2021 Bay State Legacy ward.
Topics:
Wampanoag history from pre-colonial times to present day
Indigenous crafts/hands on activities
Contact
Email: dcoombscreations@gmail.com
“In my natural world I am at home where I take nothing for granted. It is an honor to work in a profession that features the protection of the earth.”
Paula is a socially, culturally and politically active citizen of the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe. A former journalist Paula is an independent scholar and writer of Wampanoag history and contemporary culture. She has been a vocal advocate for land and water concerns in Mashpee for many years and was among the founding board of directors for NLC. Paula lives with her family in Mashpee.
“I like the way that NLC aligns with my personal values. The land and waters deserve our commitment to ensure their health and well-being for generations to come.”
Jodi joined the NLC family as a full-time administrative assistant. She brings more than 30 years of professional experience in fundraising, development, and managing staff and programs in banking and nonprofits. A life-long resident of Cape Cod and an avid outdoors woman Jodi hopes her experience working at NLC will help make her a better caretaker of the land she loves. “I feel like the experience I bring will help to establish a foundation for the rapid growth that I anticipate will be the future of NLC.”
“We can strengthen the concept of land conservation by using our indigenous perspectives to help heal our human relationship with this planet.”
Ramona is a Bear Clan member of the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe and founder of the Native Land Conservancy. She has served her tribe as: Tribal Historic Preservation Officer, Museum Director, Indian Education Instructor, NAGPRA (Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, 1990) Director, researcher, and member of the Traditional Chief’s Circle. She believes that forming the Native Land Conservancy as a collective group of indigenous people we can resume purposeful loving care of the earth. Ramona has a bachelor's degree in education from the University of Arizona and a master's degree in Applied Human and Community Development from the California School of Professional Psychology. Ramona lives in Mashpee, MA in the home she was raised in.
“The preservation of our land, our waters, our ceremonies, and our way of life is vital for the remembrance/existence of our past, present and future generations.”
Marlene Lopez is a Tribal Elder and Rabbit Clan Mother of the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe. She is the daughter of the late tribal Chief Vernon “Silent Drum” Lopez. A socially and culturally engaged tribal citizen Marlene is also a skilled and renowned traditional finger weaver creating ceremonial sashes, and adornments in the fashion of 18th century Eastern woodlands and plains people. In the role of Clan Mother Marlene says, “I take on the privilege and responsibility of caring for, not only my immediate family, but in cooperation with other tribal clan mother's, our tribes’ spiritual needs, directions, guidance and welfare.” Marlene lives in Mashpee, MA.
“We are intrinsically intertwined with our natural world and I see the importance of helping to inspire human connection to our Earth Mother in ways that always honor and respect her.”
Leslie Jonas is an eel clan member of the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe who has served as an NLC board officer since the founding of the organization in 2012. She is socially, culturally, and politically engaged in her tribe and has served formerly as Tribal Administrator and Powwow Director. As a former student of the Wôpanâak Language Reclamation Project, and graduate of the 5 yr curriculum, Leslie participates in the ongoing work of our tribal language. Leslie is an avid gardener, and lives a "green" life daily, utilizing solar power, driving a hybrid vehicle, and reducing water waste. She became passionate about land conservation and the health and wellness of the environment as a teenager when she worked for the New Alchemy Institute in Falmouth. More recently Leslie has been researching and focusing on Climate Change from the Indigenous Perspective. She serves on the Advisory Board of the Conservation Law Foundation for the state of MA and is co- teaching and co-advising indigenous environmental planning courses in social/environmental justice at MIT. Leslie currently works as the Sea Grant Fiscal Officer for the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and lives in Falmouth, MA.
“It’s so important to make that connection to the natural world around us. I think if people spent more time outdoors, they would take better care of the earth.”
Kitty Hendricks-Miller (Nanaweetah) is a Mashpee Wampanoag tribal citizen and has served on the NLC board since 2012. She is the Indian Education Coordinator for the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe. For over twenty years, Kitty has managed and performed with the Wampanoag Nation Singers and Dancers, using her musical gifts to share traditional Eastern songs with audiences all over New England. She has extensive experience in the museum sector, helping to ensure accurate representation of Wampanoag traditions and culture. Kitty currently serves on the Boards of the Indigenous Resource Collaborative and the Wampanoag Language Reclamation Project. Kitty lives with her partner in Mashpee, MA where she is grateful to be in her ancestral homeland.
“Decolonizing thought and embracing an indigenous approach to the land and water is the only way these natural resources will be protected."
Sharman Brown is a member of the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe where she has worked in the Tribal Historic Preservation Office and was a cultural guide at the Mashpee Wampanoag Indian Museum. She is an award-winning media producer and has served as a development officer for non-profit companies. Sharman lives in Mashpee, MA where she is a teacher of the Wampanoag language and is also learning sign language.
“One day while looking up into the tops of several very tall white pines that the sun was streaming through, I became aware of how very small I am. I am not the center of the world.”
Gail is a member of the Herring Pond Wampanoag Tribe. A retired nurse, she serves on the board of the Cape Cod Climate Change Collaborative and is an NLC representative to Faith Communities Environmental Network, comprised of 42 faith communities on Cape Cod addressing Eco-Justice. Gail is a member of Sandwich Quaker Meeting and is co-clerk of Native Land Reparations. She is a co-facilitator of Towards Right Relationship (with Indigenous people), a presentation given nationally, and belongs to Quaker groups addressing decolonization. Gail lives in Santuit, a village of Barnstable County, MA, where she enjoys long walks on the Santuit River.
“As a Nipmuc the kind of work done by the NLC is essential to the preservation of Nipmuc land and lifeways. It is one of the few means for Nipmuc land to be conserved for Nipmuc people.”
An enrolled member of the Hassanamisco Nipmuc Indian Tribe, Pam is a graduate of Dartmouth College, and holds a JD and Certificate in Federal Indian Law from the Arizona State University College of Law where she was designated a Yates Fellow. She is retired from the practice of law in Massachusetts and was previously admitted to practice before the Mohegan Indian Nation. Ellis has served as a tribal council member to the Hassanamisco Nipmuc Indian Council, the Nipmuc Nation Tribal Council, and the Natick Nipmuc Indian Council where she also served as Tribal Historian and Genealogist. From 1992 to 2015, she served as the primary organizer for the Deer Island Memorial and Sacred Paddle, an annual event commemorating the forced removal and internment of Nipmuc and other Native peoples from South Natick in October 1675 during the resistance known as King Philip’s War. A traditional singer and dancer, she is a co-founder of The Nettukkusqk Singers, a group of southern New England Native women dedicated to the rematriation and reclamation of women’s drumming and singing traditions. She currently works as the Principal/Owner of Chágwas Cultural Resource Consulting, LLC. During her 2022-2023 Distinguished Artist and Scholar in Residence at Bunker Hill Community College in sponsorship with the Mary L. Fifield Art Gallery, she completed research on Mishawum, Indigenous Charlestown which informed the drafting of a subsequent land acknowledgment for BHCC. Her research included an examination of the life and leadership of the Saunkskwa of Mystic and her descendants. She is a 2023-2024 Distinguished Artist and Scholar in Residence. Pam lives in Barnstable.
“I’m so grateful to be a part of the Native Land Conservancy because it is important for the Herring Pond people and lands to be represented.”
Hazel Currence is an Elder and Clan Mother of the Herring Pond tribe and serves on the tribal Geneological Committee. Inspired by her father who was a hunter and an avid gardener she has always had a deep appreciation for nature. Hazel married a man in the Air Force and traveled nationally and internationally for 23 years raising her family on various military bases. Wherever they lived Hazel was involved in organizing recreational activities for young people and thrived on being outdoors. When her husband retired from the military the family moved to her homestead in the Herring Pond valley in Bourne. A part-time employee of the Bourne Public Library, she also serves on the board of the Wampanoag Consulting Alliance. Struck by the development of her ancestral homelands that occurred in her absence, and the harm done to the environment, Hazel was compelled to be active in land preservation. It is something she feels committed to for the next generation of Herring Pond people. Hazel has two sons and four grandchildren and lives in Bourne, MA with her husband Sam.
“We need to protect and preserve the indigenous ways of knowing… because of our connection to the land. It’s a beneficial knowledge base that is threatened.”
Miles Bernadette Peters is a member of the Mashpee Wampanoag tribe and has served on the NLC board since 2016.
Homeschooled as a child with the great outdoors as his original classroom, Miles is a born naturalist who finds his medicine, his sustenance, and his spirituality in the forest. Formally educated with a Bachelor of Science degree in architecture and a minor in indigenous nations studies, Miles is conscious of the impact manmade structures have on the environment. He seeks to achieve balance in this world. Miles brings his unique knowledge and his tool belt to NLC where he is a resident handyman. He lives in Mashpee where he is a single dad to two young children who are being raised to respect and nurture the land they live upon.
“I fell in love with the Cape as a summer kid,” he says. “I am lucky to have found a way as an adult to exercise my passion to preserve this place.”
Executive Director of The Compact of Cape Cod Conservation Trust since its founding in 1986, Mark has created a model of regional cooperation for land trusts. Mark provides technical assistance to 32 land trusts on Cape Cod including landowner negotiations, fundraising, land management and state/municipal coordination on open space projects. An elected Water Commissioner of the Cotuit Fire District, Mark has made a career of land and environmental preservation and has served in various positions, including Chairman of the Barnstable Conservation Commission, Vice-Chair and Treasurer of the Massachusetts Land Trust Coalition, Vice-President of the Association to Preserve Cape Cod, and the Governor’s appointee to the Cape Cod National Seashore Advisory Commission. An avid sailor and experienced nature guide, Mark lives in Cotuit and has two sons.
“The secret sauce to the NLC is that it is truly a Native run organization,” said Sam Carlson, who is an advisor to the NLC Finance Committee.
He said his goal is to be helpful without being imposing as he would not want to overstep the boundaries of being a non-Native. “I don’t want to impose my ideas. That is not my place.”
But his knowledge and experience are critical to the success of NLC investments. A former World Bank economist with more than 20 years of experience in finance in third world environments Sam introduced himself to NLC just as donations began to increase and so did the need to understand the broad and complicated world of finance. The Vermont based renewable energy developer was attracted to NLC as an organization rescuing and repairing land that stood out for its indigenous intellect. Sam provides critical advice for investments that will help the NLC thrive in the years ahead.
“Our survival in this world is directly connected to our land -we are one.”
Berta Giles Welch is a citizen of Aquinnah Wampanoag tribe and an advocate for tribal cultural and environmental concerns. She became an NLC board member in 2023. Berta is a celebrated contemporary Wampum and mixed media artist engaged in the historic tribal tradition of harvesting quahogs and scallops for market and tribal sustenance while preserving the shells for the production of beads and adornment for traditional regalia, craft and jewelry making purposes. She is co-owner of the Stony Creek Gift Shop in Aquinnah which has been in her family for nearly a century. Berta is President of the Aquinnah Cultural Center Board where she has served since 1991.
Berta serves the Aquinnah Wampanoag and larger Aquinnah community in many capacities, including as a member of the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head/Aquinnah Health Committee and Membership committee, and a Town of Aquinnah Arts District member, as an MV Museum Collection Member and an MV Mediation Board Member. She is a past member of the Town of Aquinnah Planning Board for more than 30 years. Berta is a proud grandmother of 3 and lives with her husband in Aquinnah, MA.
“Our survival in this world is directly connected to our land -we are one.”
Berta Giles Welch is a citizen of Aquinnah Wampanoag tribe and an advocate for tribal cultural and environmental concerns. She became an NLC board member in 2023. Berta is a celebrated contemporary Wampum and mixed media artist engaged in the historic tribal tradition of harvesting quahogs and scallops for market and tribal sustenance while preserving the shells for the production of beads and adornment for traditional regalia, craft and jewelry making purposes. She is co-owner of the Stony Creek Gift Shop in Aquinnah which has been in her family for nearly a century. Berta is President of the Aquinnah Cultural Center Board where she has served since 1991.
Berta serves the Aquinnah Wampanoag and larger Aquinnah community in many capacities, including as a member of the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head/Aquinnah Health Committee and Membership committee, and a Town of Aquinnah Arts District member, as an MV Museum Collection Member and an MV Mediation Board Member. She is a past member of the Town of Aquinnah Planning Board for more than 30 years. Berta is a proud grandmother of 3 and lives with her husband in Aquinnah, MA.