Tulalip News

By Kalvin Valdillez, Tulalip News; Photo courtesy of the Tulalip Problem Gambling Program

“This project is important because we have nowhere for our people who are sober and clean, or want to get sober and clean, to gather,” expressed Tulalip Recovery Liaison, Helen Gobin-Henson. “We have so many people who are homeless, who are hungry, they could come to the café and enjoy a meal. And the people who are sober and clean can get together as a group and connect there at the café – a safe and supportive place to gather.”

Nearly two years ago, a group of Tulalip and Marysville community members met at the Tulalip Administration Building to attend a four-day training, spanning over the course of two weekends. By successfully completing the training, hosted by the Tulalip Problem Gambling Program, each participant earned certification and the official title of a recovery coach. 

In a nation where opioid overdose related deaths continue to climb, the support of a recovery coach can be an effective tool for those on the road to recovery. According to the CDC, more than 93,000 people died of drug overdose in the U.S. during 2020. A near 30% increase from 2019. Last July, the Washington State Department of Health reported that there were 40 more drug overdose deaths in the first three months of 2021 than the first three months of 2020, and that the state’s overdose rates were ‘on pace to break another record in 2021’, based on that preliminary study.

“Our philosophy is to help the community heal from within,” said Problem Gambling Counselor, Robin Johnson. “The more people that we can teach to be recovery coaches, and have them in the community and available to others, that is just going to snowball. A recovery coach is someone in-between a sponsor and a counselor. They’re there to help, depending on the individual’s needs – finding out what those needs are, and meeting them there. This is not the first recovery coach training that we’ve had, but it was the most successful and we’ve had a better response and incorporated not only chemical addiction, but also gambling addiction.”

Throughout the pandemic, the recovery coaches stayed in-touch with each other, with a shared focus and passion of helping their fellow community members, who are battling addiction, attain and maintain a sober and healthy lifestyle. While brainstorming ways on how to reach more people and better service the local recovery community with their newly acquired knowledge and skills, the coaches landed on the idea of opening a Recovery Café in the Tulalip-Marysville area.

Since 2004, Recovery Cafés have been popping up throughout the country, after the first café was established in Seattle. The cafés provide a positive environment for those struggling with addiction, and offer an opportunity for addicts to interact with others who share the same goal of getting clean. Participants can also attend group sessions at the café, which ultimately helps individuals create a strong support system for their recovery journey while also assisting others who are on a similar path. Recovery Cafés have also been a safe space for the homeless populations in multiple cities, as they offer warm and dry shelter and a place for people to grab a bite to eat. 

With a desire to open up a Recovery Café as soon as possible, the group instantly began planning by scouting locations, designing a logo, raising funds and establishing a dedicated team of professionals to help navigate the process of opening up the café. 

Currently, the team consists of those six recovery coaches, as well as Tulalip Tribal Prosecutor Brian Kilgore, Tulalip Recovery Liaison Helen Gobin-Henson, Tulalip ODMAP Social Worker Jackson Nahpi, and Robin Johnson and Sarah Sense-Wilson of the Problem Gambling program. The Tulalip Foundation has also lent their expertise to the project, helping the Recovery Café become a non-profit organization, as well as apply for and obtain grants. 

Shortly after announcing the plans to open a Recovery Café locally, the group received a generous anonymous donation to help kick the project off. 

“It was a nice surprise, we got a $25,000 donation, and it showed up in the mail actually,” said Nicole Sieminski, Tulalip Foundation Executive Director. “It came with a nice letter from a company that manages private donations. It was a pleasant surprise and I think it will get the Recovery Café off to a good start as we are looking for funding sources and funding opportunities. There’s actually funding available through the Recovery Café Network, but part of that funding is contingent on raising other funds. By receiving this anonymous donation, it will allow us to access other additional funding in the near future. All around it is a great benefit and a great help.”

While the team continues searching for a space for the Recovery Café, they are also working to establish a board of directors, recruit additional volunteers, finalize the Recovery Café logo and raise more funds. The recovery coaches will also be doing community outreach in the coming months. 

If you are interested in helping get this project started and helping people maintain a clean and healthy lifestyle, please contact the Problem Gambling program at (360) 716-4304 for more information. 

Said Brian, “I think that the power of having a physical place, around which to build services, is going to be really transformative for all the work we’re doing. Government, non-government, volunteers, we’re all working the same problem – we’re trying to save lives, trying to get parents back to their kids and rebuild families and communities and stop people from dying, but we just haven’t had a physical place to do it. I’m really excited about this group of people. I think that they’re going to go out into the community and they’re going to create a physical space where people can come in and get wraparound support and services.”

By Micheal Rios, Tulalip News

We’ve officially entered the season of giving and holiday cheer. In that spirit, the Tulalip Boys & Girls Club is thrilled to announce a whopping $50,000 donation received from Atlas Genomics, a diagnostic molecular laboratory based in Seattle. It’s the largest single donation from outside the Tribe the Club has ever received.

“This money will be used for necessary upgrades to the building, expanding programs, and continuing our ability to offer a variety of sports and after school activities for our kids,” said Club Director, Shawn Sanchey. “This donation by Atlas creates even more opportunities for our kids to grow in all aspects. 

“One way to look at is not all our kids play sports, so being able to purchase new kitchen supplies, upgrade playground equipment, or develop new education programs are all pivotal to us helping them grow as young individuals,” Shawn continued. “I grew up here in the Club, so it means so much to be able to continue creating partnerships outside the Tribe that continue to provide opportunities for our kids that I had growing up. Grandma Diane was here when I was a kid, and now that I’m Director of the Club I’m able to create a lasting impact on our kids just like she does. We have kids who come here daily that say they want to work at the Club when they’re grownups. That’s a great feeling knowing we are setting that positive example.”

‘The Club’, as it’s affectionately been nicknamed by hundreds of regularly attending children, is a safe place where kids can just be kids. While there, children are routinely exposed to healthy food choices, create an abundance of happy memories, and make relationships that last a lifetime.

The Club is the first of its kind to be built on tribal land in Washington State. Established in 1995, 2021 marks twenty-six years of commitment to the community. Through before and after school programs, it aims to help young people improve their lives by building self-esteem, developing values, and teaching skills during critical periods of growth.

Serving as a model for those working to improve the lives of young people in the surrounding communities, the Club is the primary beneficiary of an annual fundraising auction. With each auction building off the success of previous years, the Club has not only been able to sustain services, but to complete much needed campus expansions that add additional learning and activity space. 

It was actually at the auction earlier this year that the seeds were planted for Atlas Genomic to become the title sponsor for next year’s 24^th annual auction. Teri Nelson, executive director of tribal services, hosted a table and one of her invitees had an amazing experience. So much so that when Teri’s friend came across a company looking to make a large financial donation to a local organization, she recommended the Tulalip Boys & Girls club for all the great work they do. The rest, as they say, is history.

“I think giving back to our kids is so important because they have to recover from this pandemic, too,” said Teri. “If we can continue to offer them after school programs and extracurricular activities and all the things that make it so much fun to be a kid, then what a true difference that makes for all kids who attend the Club every day. I’m just thankful that a friendship could evolve into making something as impactful as this being able to happen and truly benefit the Tulalip community.”

On December 10, representatives from Atlas Genomics arrived in Tulalip to meet with tribal leadership before getting an in-person tour of the Club. They marveled at all there was to offer on a reservation bound boys and girls club. They were warmly welcomed by Club kids in the gymnasium prior to writing the $50,000 check.

Shawn and Grandma Diane blanketed the group for their donation and commitment to helping Tulalip’s kids, while Natosha Gobin and her partner Thomas Williams offered a song and prayer of gratitude. 

“It’s an honor and a privilege to be here today to meet such a tremendous group of people working to support the Boys and Girls Club organization,” said Chris Destro, President of Atlas Genomics. “When this opportunity to give back was presented to us, there was zero hesitation; it was an immediate yes. A huge shout-out to Diane and Shawn for what they are doing here. As a company, we’re humbled for being given the opportunity to help out and add to what’s already been built here.”

By Kalvin Valdillez, Tulalip News

“Next,” rang out the unmistakeable, highly recognizable voice of a hip hop legend, whose work spans across the past three decades. A steady line of fans, the majority of whom did their best impression of the famous lyricist and actor while they waited, extended out of the doors of the Tulalip Remedy retail cannabis boutique. The 2x Grammy nominated artist shared conversation and posed for photos with each of his fans on the morning of December 11. However, this wasn’t your typical meet-and-greet, once fans received their photos and autographs, the rapper then asked, “now what type of bud you smoking today?”

“I come here all the time, I am a regular,” shared starstruck fan, Jordan Brown. “But when I heard about Redman, I had to come down and check him out. From ‘How High’ to ‘Power’, I’ve watched him in all that.”

It was a dream come true for many lifelong fans of Redman when they learned that he would be assisting them with their purchases, and that they would receive top-tier strain recommendations from a living icon in the cannabis culture. If you aren’t familiar with Redman (also known as Funk Doctor Spock), he is not only Grammy nominated, but he also has multiple platinum, gold, and silver albums under his belt including ‘Muddy Waters’, ‘Whut Thee Album’, ‘Doc’s Da Name’ and’ Blackout!’. And that’s not to mention his work as an actor. His voice could be heard as both cartoon and video game characters in numerous projects throughout the years, and of course he is known by many for his role as Jamal King in the stoner cult classic movie, ‘How High’. 

After the experience of meeting one of her heroes, Mara Brown excitedly exclaimed, “It is cool to see that he is really just one of us. He likes a lot of the same stuff as us and shares a lot of our opinions. It shows that he cares about us and enjoys making all of us feel good through his art and music. It makes you want to keep supporting him. Redman is a real person, someone you can look up to and support his message.”

Throughout the day, Redman signed a variety of memorabilia that his fans held close to their heart, including a VHS copy of ‘How High’, which prompted him to ask the fan, “Do you still got a VCR?” His comedic personality that he is famously known for did not disappoint during the appearance, and his presence uplifted the spirits of both the fans and employees during the two-and-a-half-hour event. One fan dressed in a nun’s habit and sunglasses, because Redman’s character in ‘How High’ also dressed in the religious get-up when he attended a Halloween costume party as Deloris from the movie Sister Act. Another fan and local community member, Alex Jimenez, did not wish to purchase anything from the store (and would’ve forgone the photo as well if Redman didn’t insist on flicking-it-up together), but simply attended to meet the rapper and gift him with t-shirts and hoodies that he designed himself through his business.

Alex stated, “I just came to meet Redman and give him some clothing that we made at Picture That Printing. We gifted him with an Every Child Matters shirt and an MMIW shirt and our ‘Tradish’ sweater. I felt like it would be nice to give him something that represented our culture.”

As one of the very first tribal owned cannabis retail shops, Tulalip Remedy has flourished since first opening its doors three years ago. The shop is known for their great customer service, and the friendly and knowledgeable staff at Remedy have helped change the overall perception of marijuana in the community. More and more people are learning about the benefits the plant has to offer while simultaneously becoming loyal Tulalip Remedy customers. 

For many, marijuana serves as an actual remedy, helping individuals manage diabetes, Alzheimer’s disease, anxiety, depression, insomnia, PTSD, multiple sclerosis, fibromyalgia, arthritis, epilepsy, cancer, among many other diagnoses. The medicinal aspect is something that caught the attention of Redman over a decade ago. Learning how the plant, which he has such an affinity for, is helping people in their everyday lives has strengthened his love for cannabis all the more.  

“It’s a blessing to see how far the cannabis culture has come since I first entered the game in ’92,” Redman shared. “The part I like most about it is that it’s not just for recreational use, it’s also medicinal. It helps save the lives of kids, and of many people – any kind of person with a disorder, internal or external. I actually did a crash course on cannabis at Oaksterdam University out in Oakland. After I did that course, in maybe 2005 or ‘06, I was like wow I didn’t know about all these components involved in the cannabis plant. There are over 400 components that haven’t been discovered yet, we won’t even be here in this lifetime by the time 30 of them are explored. I find that very interesting.”

He continued, “When I look back at how people used to look at cannabis, like we were just smoking for fun, and seeing what it is doing now, what it’s doing today, it has come a long way tremendously. I gotta thank the people and the scientists for bringing this awareness medically. Let’s keep going with it.”

Redman is the third celebrity cannabis connoisseur to make an appearance at Tulalip’s recreational shop this year thanks to a partnership between Tulalip Remedy and local YouTube show, The Dab Roast. Whenever the show brings celebrity guests to the Pacific Northwest, they make sure to line up an appearance at Tulalip Remedy. Previously, The Dab Roast and Tulalip Remedy brought out both Tommy Chong and Ken Shamrock to the reservation to meet the people of the community. 

“Our show, The Dab Roast, is ten dabs and ten questions with celebrities,” explained Jimmy Bako, Sales and Marketing Manager for The Dab Roast. “Obviously there’s a great tie between cannabis and music, so when we bring these stars in, Tulalip Remedy benefits greatly for bringing the name into the store and amplifying their imagery. It’s turned into quite a great marketing partnership. We have our cannabis line out during the events, but our main goal is to amplify the show. Getting the opportunity to come out here and participate in the cannabis industry and really be about the culture is a huge lesson. What Tulalip does for us is amazing.”

Although he was nothing short of astonished when reflecting on the progress the cannabis culture has made over the years, Redman was also quick to note that there is still a lot of progress to be made going forward. As more states around the country are beginning to decriminalize marijuana, he feels that what is needed most amongst the culture is organization, access to resources and empowerment, and he also stresses the importance of working together. For this reason, Redman co-founded the National Cannabis Party, the first-of-it’s-kind non-partisan political party.

He said, “I wanted to be behind the responsibility of the cannabis industry, that’s why you’ve never seen a Redman grow, a Redman vape pen, a Redman anything up to this point. I was saving my brand for the bigger picture. Now I’m the co-founder of the first FEC National Cannabis Party. Meaning, you have the Democratic Party, you have the Republican Party, and now you have the first FEC approved National Cannabis Party. We’re about the stability and structure of the cannabis industry. The Democratic Party has people as a unit to state their claims and issues to better their community, in order to create change and opportunity. So does the Republican Party. The cannabis industry is a billion-dollar industry, moving up to a trillion; do we have an umbrella where we can state claims and issues about this cannabis industry? No. 

“The cannabis industry is going to make the profit regardless, but we need more purpose. We need to unite more. We need to get involved with expungements and getting everybody out that’s been incarcerated because of cannabis. We need to worry about those areas and communities that have been affected by WOD, the war on drugs. We’re the guys that’s getting our hands dirty to implement these programs and help other dispensaries and other cannabis brands implement more programs for their communities. We were just founded this year, so hopefully we’re on the right track. If you want to find out more and do research please hit us up at www.NationalCannabisParty.org and find out what we’re doing.”

Redman’s Remedy appearance was a fun experience for everyone involved and his larger than life personality brought laughter and smiles to all of the local cannabis enthusiasts and hip hop heads alike. In fact, the event was such a success that both parties expressed a desire to build upon this newfound relationship and continue collaborating in the future.

“This was my first time hearing about Tulalip and Remedy, I loved the energy,” Redman said. “I loved the attitude of the people. I like helping people and I got the chance to do something different today and service some cannabis to the people, talk to the people and take some pictures and meet the people of the Tribe and community. I want to thank the Tulalip Remedy spot for showing me love. I am going through a transformation with myself and needed to surround myself with good energy and good people, so I am so happy I came here today, it fed my soul.”

Tulalip Remedy Manager Jennifer Ashman added, “Redman was an amazing addition to our staff that day. I definitely look forward to working with him on some upcoming projects at our store and in the community. Remedy definitely considers him a part of our family now.”