Our Advisory Board Members
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Linda M. Woods, MSW, USAF Veteran
Honorary Board Member A Tribal Member of the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa Chippewa Indians, Linda Woods came from an Ottawa Indian village in Leelanau County, Michigan. After serving in the United States Air Force during the Vietnam Era, she became a substance abuse counselor in the 1970’s then later earned her Master of Social Work from San Jose State University. Though she retired in 2008, with over 30 years of experience in social work, she continues to serve Native American communities who suffer with addiction by promoting recovery and healthy lifestyles. She also partners with nDigiDreams to create digital stories to promote education and healing through sharing of their personal stories in Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota. Ms Woods is the first woman veteran to create and carry an Eagle Staff, an esteemed symbol in Native American culture generally carried by male veterans. She carries this healing Eagle Staff on behalf of all women, especially her fellow women veterans who have served our nation. She is an Elder of her tribe, a mother, a Nokomis ~ grandmother and recently a great-grandmother furthering her interest in promoting Mino Bimaadziwin ~ Good Life on behalf of the future Seven Generations. |
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Carol Banquer, MD
Carol is a retired physician who now invests in biotechnology start-ups and is gratified to advance prevention and treatment of disease. Carol donates to the Women's Foundation of California which supports women and children locally. Globally, her philanthropy flows through Search for Common Ground ("Search"), the world’s largest nongovernment organization dedicated to building peace; she serves as an ad hoc advisor and source of feedback to the President on the President's Leadership Council. Since 2012, Carol has participated in the Ecology of Leadership, a leadership training program based on principles of permaculture, a self-sustaining ecosystem. This program blends deep connection with nature; personal growth; practices of gratitude, intention, and envisioning; and community building. Serving on the facilitation team, Carol has put down roots in diverse relationships, mentored many, and learned the power sourced from the healthy interdependence of community. Since 2017 Carol has been a member of the Women Donors Network, a group of women philanthropists who are committed to progressive social change and to building a just, equitable, and sustainable world. United by a shared vision of justice and equity for all, the Women Donors Network respond to leaders and movements fighting injustice, move funds quickly, and foster creative strategies that advance systemic change. The Women Donors Network is changing the face of American politics, incubating new ideas, investing in women’s leadership, and mobilizing resources to support work that builds women’s power—especially that of women of color. Carol obtained her M.D. from the University of California, Irvine and her M.S. in Organic Chemistry from MIT. |
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Peter Cassidy, CPA
Peter is a Navy Veteran, accountant, auditor, and an alumnus of the George C. Marshall Center for European Security Studies in Garmisch, Germany. |
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Daniel Brown, Esq
Daniel is currently working at the Reynolds Law Firm, which he joined in 2020. He specializes in Family Law, with a focus on domestic violence. He also dedicates a portion of his time to providing services to individuals from disadvantaged communities. Prior to joining The Reynolds Law Firm, Daniel’s legal experience included working at The Domestic Violence Clinic at the University of Oregon School of Law, where he represented low-income clients in domestic violence and sexual assault cases. Daniel attended the University of Oregon School of Law, where he graduated in 2017 and was admitted to the Oregon State Bar the same year Before attending law school, Daniel had a successful, 10-year career in the United States Air Force as Korean Cryptologic Linguist. He served over-seas in Korea for 4 years of his career. He worked with international government officials on joint projects throughout his career. Daniel was born in Central Oregon, and grew up in Sisters, Bend, and Southwest Michigan. He attended Michigan State University, where he earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Telecommunications and Information Studies, with a focus on Digital Media, Arts, and Technology. |
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Ciel Downing, US Army Veteran
Ciel is an army veteran with many years of tribal work both formal and informal. She was the sole tutor at Lewis and Clark College for Cherokee Nation men and 1 Blackfeet man. Prior to that, she lived briefly on the Salt River Pima Reservation and was relatively recognized in Phoenix, Arizona for her painted depictions of Native tradition and lore. Post degree, she served five plus years as the Indian Child Welfare Act Liaison to the nine Tribes of Oregon. In that time, she spent time on each reservation and Nation of seven of those tribes (missing Burns Paiute and Klamath due to fires and schedules). She completed her career as a counselor at the men's prison in Tillamook, Oregon, focusing on the neurobiology of substance use and how it impacts identity and relationships.
Ciel is part Nez Perce, but on her visit to the Blackfeet Nation, they took her in and gave her a Native name. She counts both tribes as her tribes of origin. |