Long before there were nonprofits, our kinship networks moved knowledge and care across generations. We continue to move resources directly through our kinship networks to build healthy communities. Since 1993, our American Indian Family Empowerment Program has invested more than $5 million directly in over 2,000 American Indian people in the Twin Cities. Grantees have finished degrees, published books, started businesses and returned lost knowledge to their families and communities, creating profound ripple effects for generations to come.

Grants are only the start. Our relatives get coaching from staff and past grantees, honorings in community, and a network of people who show up when they are needed. For many, that belonging matters more than money. Our Oyate Leadership Network brings Native leaders together to apply traditional ways of knowing in every part of their lives. And we press philanthropy, government and nonprofits to trust and invest in Native people the way we do.

AIFEP grants are resourced exclusively from our small endowment, which grew from a Native community-led fundraising campaign. We continue to fundraise for all the other work that makes Tiwahe Foundation successful. By donating to Tiwahe, you are joining a circle of generosity with our staff, our community, and the many grantees who have gone on to become donors. As one grantee told us, “The support from this grant has helped me be that support for someone else.”