Indigenous Model of Traditional Wellness for Homeless American Indians/Alaska Natives in Seattle/King County

Grantee: Chief Seattle Club
Timeframe: July 2024 – June 2026 | Amount: $400,000

• Year 1: July 2024 – June 2025. Amount: $200,000
• Year 2: July 2025 – June 2026. Amount: $200,000

Chief Seattle Club (CSC) is implementing an Indigenous Model of Traditional Wellness to support homeless American Indians and Alaska Natives (AI/AN) in Seattle and King County. Native communities have faced systemic oppression leading to deep social and mental health challenges, with disproportionately high rates of substance use and mental illness despite their small population size. AI/AN individuals make up 32% of the chronically homeless and 15% of the overall homeless population in King County. CSC addresses this urgent need by providing culturally attuned services and housing tailored to Native peoples experiencing homelessness and behavioral health issues.

In 2023, CSC shifted its behavioral health approach to center traditional Indigenous healing methods rather than Eurocentric models. This resulted in forming a Traditional Wellness team, which includes Traditional Mental Health Workers (TMHWs), a Staff Wellness Manager, and an Art Coordinator. The team promotes cultural healing and member engagement through activities like one-on-one support, Talking Circles, sweat lodges, drum groups, Red Road to Wellbriety groups, memorials, smudging ceremonies, and hospital visits.

Led by a Chief Traditional Officer (CTO), the Traditional Wellness team employs full-time TMHWs at various Club sites. These workers bring expertise in traditional medicine and cultural practices and engage members through spontaneous, culturally grounded interactions rather than scheduled appointments. This approach has significantly increased member engagement, with encounters rising 288% since implementation.

In Year 1, CSC doubled the number of TMHWs from three to six, representing five tribes and diverse cultural traditions. The Club opened Tule Lodge, a ceremonial site in Tukwila, and established two sweat lodges, including a women-only lodge hosting three monthly ceremonies. During Domestic Violence Awareness Month, a learning lodge was launched at Tule Lodge for women from Red Road House, focusing on healing through traditional Ojibwe and Yakama stories.

Programming expanded to include Ojibwe and Lakota language revitalization, drum-making, and ribbon skirt workshops. CSC added a Mental Health Counselor at ʔálʔal and partnered with Evergreen Treatment Services/REACH to bring a Substance Use Disorder Professional to the Day Center. The gender-based violence team was integrated into the Traditional Wellness program to enhance tracking of services and outcomes, supported by a new administrative assistant who monitors emotional, physical, and spiritual wellness indicators.

CSC also launched a data sovereignty initiative, Where Directions Meet: Four Ways, One Path, using the Native Four Directions model to align wellness programming with the Club’s mission and values.

In Year 2, CSC will continue addressing substance use and the fentanyl crisis. With partial funding from Seattle King County Public Health, two new positions will be added:

• Wellbriety Coordinator (WC): Providing culturally appropriate recovery support through the Red Road to Wellbriety program. The WC will facilitate groups, assist members in triaging for treatment, and help navigate culturally relevant treatment options, with availability evenings and weekends for timely access.

• Staff Wellness Trainer (SWT): Enhancing staff understanding of harm reduction and trauma-informed care through ongoing culturally competent training. The SWT will focus on de-escalation techniques and indigenous motivational interviewing to improve staff retention, reduce burnout, and align practices with CSC’s core values.

ABOUT OUR GRANTEE

Chief Seattle Club

“Chief Seattle Club is a 501(c)(3) registered organization dedicated to physically and spiritually supporting American Indian and Alaska Native people. At our Day Center in the Pioneer Square district of downtown Seattle, we provide food, primary health care, housing assistance, legal services, a Native art job training program, and opportunities for members to engage in cultural community-building.

We are a housing and human service agency that provides basic needs for our members, many of whom are experiencing homelessness. Native people in urban areas face unique challenges, and Chief Seattle Club embraces the Indigenous cultures, languages, and traditions of our members as the primary method for healing and transformation.

We provide sacred space to nurture, affirm, and strengthen the spirit of urban Native people.”