Native and Tribal Partnerships Update: Food Access, Community Connection and What’s Ahead
SWACH’s Native and Tribal Partnerships work continues to grow through relationships, community events, and projects designed to respond to needs identified by Native communities and the organizations that serve them.
One recent example came through a partnership between SWACH, One Community Health, and the Washington State Department of Agriculture. On Sept. 25, One Community Health hosted a resource day in Stevenson through its Native and Wellness program, bringing its mobile clinic on site and connecting community members with health services and other resources.
As part of the event, SWACH supported the distribution of food boxes designed with accessibility in mind. Mercedes White Calf, SWACH’s Native and Tribal Partnerships Manager, said food access had emerged as an important need among Native community members served by One Community Health. That need can become especially difficult during gaps in food assistance or while people are waiting for benefits to be restored.
Rather than assuming everyone receiving a box had a fully equipped kitchen, White Calf looked at ways to make the food as low-barrier as possible. The boxes included a mix of items such as beef, chicken, bread, peanut butter and jelly, tuna, and other foods that could work for people with different levels of access to electricity, cookware, utensils, and kitchen space.
The work is connected to a broader Washington State Department of Agriculture effort focused on understanding food access and the food safety net. SWACH is helping bring Native and Tribal perspectives into that work while respecting Tribal sovereignty and data protections. Rather than seeking information directly from Tribal governments, SWACH is working with Tribal-serving organizations and creating opportunities for Native community members to participate voluntarily. A future listening session is also being considered to better understand barriers, gaps, and how people currently access food resources.
For White Calf, the partnership also provided a closer look at how One Community Health builds trust with Native communities through its mobile services.
Creating space for community and celebration
That relationship-building continues beyond formal programs.
This fall, SWACH’s Native and Tribal Partnerships work will also include participation in community Trunk or Treat events. White Calf described the events as an important opportunity for Native children and families who may live far apart from one another and may not have the same access to traditional neighborhood trick-or-treating. Cars are decorated around different themes, creating a central place for children and families to gather, celebrate, and participate together.
White Calf plans to decorate a car and participate in the festivities, with the possibility of other staff joining to help decorate, dress up, and hand out treats.
Looking ahead to Native advocacy work
SWACH is also beginning early planning for future Native advocacy activities connected to the 2027 Washington legislative session.
White Calf is exploring opportunities to help Native community members better understand the legislative process, including how bills move forward, how to communicate with legislators, how to write testimony, and how to sign up to testify. She emphasized the importance of making that information understandable and avoiding insider language that can itself become a barrier to participation.
The work is still in the planning stage, and dates and details have not yet been finalized. As plans develop, SWACH expects to share more information about opportunities for Native community members and partners to learn about the legislative process and participate in advocacy.
Across each of these efforts, the approach is similar: build relationships first, listen to what communities and partners are identifying as needs, and look for practical ways SWACH can support the work already happening across the region.