Adventist Elected National Native Leader

Brian Cladoosby was elected Oct. 17 as the first Seventh-day Adventist president of the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI). Cladoosby is an elder in the Ferndale, Wash., district and a member of the Lummi Adventist Company.

Cladoosby is now the 21st elected president of the NCAI and the first person from his tribe to head up the organization. He has served as the chairman of the Swinomish Indian Senate — the official governing body of the Swinomish Indian Tribal Community — since 1985. In 2012 he was the top honoree for Ecotrust’s Indigenous Leadership Award.

“[God] chooses leaders," says Cladoosby. "I’m a firm believer in that. I give Him the credit for allowing me to have an opportunity to do this.”

Jesse Sacdalan, Ferndale/Everson/Lummi District pastor

Featured in: December 2013

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