"Sue Masten and Veronica Homer united with a group of women to fulfill a vision - to celebrate the lives of grandmothers, aunties, sisters, wives and warrior women leaders of today.

Masten and Homer, co-presidents of WEWIN, Women Empowering Women of Indian Nations, led a three-day conference last week to honor women working for their communities. The event attracted 160 national and grassroots leaders to the Wild Horse Pass Resort and Spa on the Gila River Reservation.

Masten and Homer - past presidents of the National Congress of American Indians, the country's largest and oldest advocacy group for tribes - know what it's like to put your heart into a leadership role.

It's not always an easy place to be.

�We all face the negative energy that comes to sidetrack our work at hand,� said Masten.

For those reasons, she and nine others founded WEWIN in 2004. Wilma Mankiller, also a founder, joined the women at the conference. As the first woman to lead the Cherokee Nation, one of the country's largest tribes, Mankiller emerged as a respected national leader."

Get the Story:
Jodi Rave: Gathering honors lives of Native warrior women (The Missoulian 7/17)

Relevant Links:
Jodi Rave - http://www.missoulian.com/jodirave

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