Notah Begay III

Pueblos of San Felipe and Isleta/Diné

Founder and Board Member

Notah Begay III is a four-time PGA Tour winner and current golf analyst for NBC Sports and The Golf Channel. As the only full-blooded Native American to play on the PGA Tour and in addition to winning four PGA Tour tournaments, Mr. Begay became the third player in the history of professional golf to shoot a 59 in a professional event, and partnered with good friend Tiger Woods in the 2000 President’s Cup.

Born and raised in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Mr. Begay attended Stanford University earning a degree in Economics receiving All-American Honors three times and leading the golf team to a National Championship in 1994.

When Mr. Begay is not on the golf course, he dedicates his time to positively impacting Native American communities. In 2005, Mr. Begay launched the Notah Begay III (NB3) Foundation. The Foundation works to reduce childhood obesity and type 2 diabetes among Native American youth. In addition, Mr. Begay owns a golf course development firm and works exclusively with Native communities to develop world-class golf properties. Mr. Begay is also Founder and Chief Executive Officer of KivaSun Foods.

Mr. Begay was named one of Golf Magazine’s Innovators of the Year in 2009 for his philanthropic work through the NB3 Foundation and was named one of the Top 100 Sports Educators in the world by the Institute for International Sport. In 2012, he received the Charlie Bartlett Award from the Golf Writers Association of America for his contributions to philanthropy and his community work through the NB3 Foundation. In August 2012, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation honored Mr. Begay and the NB3 Foundation with the Steve Patterson Award for Excellence in Sports Philanthropy.

Cathy Newby

Dine

Board Chair

Cathy Newby is the Manager of Tribal Affairs for the PNM Governmental Affairs Department where she is responsible for developing long term, effective working relationships with American Indian leaders and communities in New Mexico and implement and assesses programs to meet their community needs and concerns consistent with PNM’s mission and vision. Ms. Newby has served in this capacity since 2003. PNM is New Mexico’s largest electricity provider, serving more than 500,000 New Mexico residential and business customers.

Ms. Newby has a Bachelor of Science degree in Communications and Journalism from Eastern New Mexico University in Portales, New Mexico. A member of the Diné (Navajo) Nation, Ms. Newby grew up on the reservation in Tohatchi, New Mexico. She is born for the Bitter Water Clan.

Derek Valdo

Pueblo of Acoma

Board Member

Derek Valdo, Pueblo of Acoma, is the Chief Executive Officer of AMERIND Risk. In 2012, Mr. Valdo became the CEO of AMERIND Risk, the only 100 percent tribally-owned and operated insurance company, that provides property, liability, workers compensation, auto and employee benefits for Tribes. Mr. Valdo has led AMERIND Risk to its best years of financial performance with annual growth of 12% and expansion of products and services.

Mr. Valdo’s recognitions include: Indian Country Media Network’s esteemed list of 50 Faces of Indian Country, the National Center for American Indian Enterprise Development’s 40 Under 40 and among Albuquerque Business First’s Top 10 CEOs. He has a Bachelor’s degree in Economics from the University of New Mexico. Mr. Valdo served fourteen years as a tribal councilman for his tribe.

Jon Greendeer

Ho-Chunk Nation

Board Member

Jon Greendeer (Ma\a\s`u\sga (Mah-shoo-skah – White Feather) is the former President of the Ho-Chunk Nation having prior served as the Chair of the Grievance Review Board, Certified Mediator and Executive Administrative Officer.

Mr. Greendeer has an Associate’s degree from the University of Wisconsin Marathon County and a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from the University of Wisconsin Stevens Point. Both degrees helped Mr. Greendeer develop his interest in state and federal relations with tribes.

Mr. Greendeer is a member of the Ho-Chunk Nation and a student of the Ho-Chunk language and traditional way of life. Building a life around activity and the outdoors, he is also a musician, cyclist, woodworker, drone pilot and bowhunter.

Mr. Greendeer resides in Stevens Point, Wisconsin with his wife, Chris. They have two daughters: Brittany and Rio.

George Hiller, Jr.

Board Member

George M. Hiller Jr. is the Vice President and a shareholder in the George M. Hiller Companies, LLC, a full-service investment management and financial planning firm based in Atlanta, Georgia. He is financial advisor to elite professional athletes, business owners and executives, and foundations and non-profit corporations.

He is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ Practitioner, graduate of Samford University, and earned an MBA from the Goizueta Business School of Emory University.  Mr. Hiller is a 4th generation native of Atlanta where he resides with his wife Terri.

Audrey Martinez

San Manuel Band of Mission Indians

Board Member

Since 1995, Audrey Martinez served as an elected officer for the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians and a member of the San Manuel Business Committee until 2011, including several terms as Tribal Treasurer. In 2014, Martinez was appointed to the office of Vice President of San Manuel Digital, a new entity of the Tribe established to guide the development of the new digital gaming enterprise.

With a dedicated career in public service, Ms. Martinez was instrumental in building diverse experiences and opportunities for tribe, including San Manuel’s delegation to the National Congress of American Indians, National Indian Gaming Association, Indian Child and Family Services, National Indian Child Welfare Association and the Tribal Alliance of Sovereign Indian Nations. She was able to effect policies, programs and other measures that continue to contribute significantly to the advancement of Native Americans and tribal communities across the country.

Ms. Martinez also serves as San Manuel’s representative to the board of directors of the Riverside-San Bernardino County Indian Health, Inc., and the Operating Committee for First Nations Experience (FNX), the nation’s first Native American and World Indigenous Peoples television network. In addition, she served on the board of the Highland Area Chamber of Commerce and the San Bernardino Chamber of Commerce, and has maintained her position for 15 years on the Highland Senior Center board.

Ms. Martinez was nominated for the Women of Distinction Award by former Congressman Joe Baca. She received the California American Indian Chamber Warrior Award and the Safety Employees Benefit Association Benefactor Award.

With a focus on long-term benefits of opportunities and education in film, Ms. Martinez founded Tribal Alliance Productions, which focuses on Native Americans and their accomplishments in film, where she remains a partner continually promoting the company’s feature film “Older than America.”

Dr. Richard Luarkie

Pueblo of Laguna

Treasurer

Thought leader, visionary, strategic thinker, values based and driven by principle are key identifiers of Dr. Richard Luarkie.  With over 20 years of professional experience, Dr. Luarkie is a contributor of solutions.  His passion for economic advancement, his mastery of the art to articulate a vision, and his willingness to work through constructive negotiations are value-adds that are second to none.  A business approach and his personality that is based on core values are Dr. Luarkie’s strongest assets.   Dr. Luarkie has a B.A. in economics from the University of New Mexico, an MBA from New Mexico State University, and a Ph.D. from Arizona State University.  Dr. Luarkie is a former two-term governor from the Pueblo of Laguna, and currently resides in Laguna.

Katie Morgan-Brossy

Ponca Tribe of Nebraska

Board Secretary

Katie Brossy is an attorney at Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld, LLP where she advises clients regarding American Indian law and policy. Ms. Brossy’s legal practice focuses on representation of Indian tribes, tribal governmental instrumentalities and tribally owned enterprises. She has worked on a number of highly significant tribal issues, including one of largest Indian water rights settlements in U.S. history and the largest tribal trust claim settlement. She has also represented tribal clients on a variety of matters, including issues regarding federal, state and tribal tax laws; Indian gaming law; land into trust matters; economic development initiatives; environmental regulation; tribal college accreditation; contract support costs under the Indian Self-Determination Education and Assistance Act; tribal sovereignty; and sovereign immunity.

Ms. Brossy is a member of the Ponca Tribe of Nebraska and is also Santee Sioux. Ms. Brossy grew up in Nebraska where she received her undergraduate degree at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She received her J.D. in 2005 from Columbia Law School, where she was a staff editor of the Columbia Human Rights Law Review and co-chair of the Native American Law Student Association. She has served as the President of the Native American Bar Association of D.C. and currently serves on her law firm’s Diversity Committee. Ms. Brossy currently resides in Alexandria, Virginia with her husband and two sons.

Maxine Velasquez

Pueblo of Laguna

Board Member

Chief Counsel and Chief Government Relations Officer for the Laguna Development Corporation, a multi-billion dollar diversified corporation, to the Foundation’s Board of Directors. Ms. Velasquez, from the Pueblo of Laguna and has vast experience in law, policy, tribal gaming and economic development.

She holds a Bachelors of Arts in Criminal Justice, Master’s in Public Administration and a Juris Doctor, all from the University of New Mexico. She is an alumna of Leadership New Mexico, a program to enhance leadership skills and deepen the knowledge of the challenges and opportunities facing New Mexico.

Ms. Velasquez is strong advocate for Native American youth, an avid golfer, outdoors person and currently enjoys training for her 3rd degree black belt in martial arts.