Sahmie Sunshine Wytewa
Small Business Owner, Consultant, and Strategist in Arizona
Sahmie Sunshine Wytewa, Piikayasngyam, is Hopi from the village of Misongnovi in northern Arizona. Ms. Wytewa owns and operates Nrgi-1 Consulting with the mission to nurture, restore, guide and inspire 1 cause, effort or idea that strengthens organizations, communities and people across Indian country.
Sahmie has served as an Arizona k-8 educator and school administrator in public, tribal grant and Bureau of Indian Education operated schools from Tucson to the Hopi reservation. She maintains Arizona certification as a k-8 teacher and k-12 school administrator. Sahmie is a trained facilitator of Restorative Justice Practices from the International Institute of Restorative Practices (IIRP). In her professional capacity as a consultant, Sahmie has had unique opportunities to support tribal, state and public to non-profit sectors through climate action adaptation plans as a cultural liaison, strategic planning for non-profit & community organizations, project manager-coordinator, facilitator for leadership cohorts and conference speaker-presenter.
Sahmie continues to maintain strong connections to her people and culture in advocacy for areas that impact Hopi and Native people including; grassroots-community organizing, child & family welfare, water resources, law & order, domestic violence, wellbriety, facilitating community conversations, and serving to support ongoing efforts rooted in social and restorative justice. Ms. Wytewa has served on non-profit boards that include the Tucson Alliance for Autism, Hopi Education Endowment Fund, and Coconino County’s Victim Witness Services. At large, the work that Sahmie contributes to is a daily pursuit to remove systemic barriers, heal historical trauma and create equity & access to resources for Native and Indigenous people, communities and cultures to thrive. Last updated December 2020.
"Every society needs educated people, but the primary responsibility of educated people is to bring wisdom back into the community and make it available to others so that the lives they are leading make sense."
- Vine Deloria, Jr.