{"id":13,"date":"2026-04-09T07:20:45","date_gmt":"2026-04-09T15:20:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/empowernativetribes.com\/?page_id=13"},"modified":"2026-04-17T09:34:02","modified_gmt":"2026-04-17T17:34:02","slug":"about","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/empowernativetribes.com\/?page_id=13","title":{"rendered":"About Us"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<style>\n\/* Remove gap between nav and hero *\/\nmain.wp-block-group { margin-top: 0 !important; }\nmain.wp-block-group > .wp-block-group.alignfull:first-child { padding-top: 0 !important; }\n.entry-content { margin-top: 0 !important; }\n.wp-block-post-title { display: none !important; }\n\/* Hide page title on front page *\/\n.wp-block-post-title { display: none !important; }\n\n\/* Constrain full-width images *\/\n.entry-content > .wp-block-image.aligncenter img,\n.entry-content > figure.wp-block-image.aligncenter img {\n    max-height: 400px;\n    width: auto;\n    object-fit: contain;\n    display: block;\n    margin: 0 auto;\n}\n\n\/* Cover block \u2014 tighter *\/\n.wp-block-cover.alignfull { margin-top: 0 !important; }\n\n\/* Better blockquote *\/\n.wp-block-quote {\n    border-left: 4px solid #8B4513 !important;\n    padding: 1em 1.5em;\n    background: #faf8f5;\n}\n\n\/* Earthy buttons *\/\n.wp-block-button__link {\n    background-color: #8B4513 !important;\n    border-radius: 4px !important;\n}\n.wp-block-button.is-style-outline .wp-block-button__link {\n    background-color: transparent !important;\n    color: #8B4513 !important;\n    border: 2px solid #8B4513 !important;\n}\n\n\/* Gallery refinement *\/\n.wp-block-gallery .wp-block-image img { border-radius: 4px; }\n\n\/* Captions *\/\n.wp-element-caption { font-size: 0.85em; color: #666; font-style: italic; }\n\n\/* Three-column images consistent height *\/\n.wp-block-columns .wp-block-image img { \n    height: 200px; \n    object-fit: cover; \n    width: 100%;\n    border-radius: 6px;\n}\n<\/style>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-cover alignfull\" style=\"min-height:280px;aspect-ratio:unset;\"><span aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-cover__background has-black-background-color has-background-dim-50 has-background-dim\"><\/span><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-block-cover__image-background\" alt=\"Youth teamwork\" src=\"http:\/\/empowernativetribes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/youth-teamwork.jpg\" data-object-fit=\"cover\"\/><div class=\"wp-block-cover__inner-container is-layout-flow wp-block-cover-is-layout-flow\">\n\n\n<h1 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\" style=\"color:#ffffff\">About Us<\/h1>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\" style=\"color:#eeeeee;font-size:clamp(14px, 0.875rem + ((1vw - 3.2px) * 0.392), 18px);\"><em>Two sisters. One mission. A deep commitment to Indigenous communities.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-medium\" style=\"max-width:420px\"><img decoding=\"async\" style=\"max-height:400px;object-fit:contain\" src=\"http:\/\/empowernativetribes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/vivian-cindy-founders.jpg\" alt=\"Vivian and Cindy Wan, co-founders of Empower Native Tribes, volunteering at the Nanticoke Indian PowWow\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Vivian (left, wearing her VOLUNTEER badge) and Cindy at the annual Nanticoke Indian PowWow. Behind them: the Nanticoke History booth.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Vivian Wan \u2014 Co-Founder<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Vivian is a junior at Tower Hill School in Wilmington, Delaware. Her journey with the Nanticoke Indian Tribe began in 2023 when she first volunteered at the annual Nanticoke PowWow \u2014 and it changed her perspective entirely.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>What started as community service quickly grew into a deep academic and personal commitment. Vivian now conducts independent research on the economic impact of cultural tourism in Native American communities, working with faculty at Texas A&amp;M University. Her research examines how events like PowWows and tribal museums contribute to local economies while preserving cultural heritage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Vivian has organized Girl Scout troops to volunteer at tribal events, contributed to National History Day projects exploring Indigenous history, and written extensively about Indigenous identity and belonging. She is a Scholastic Writing Gold Key winner and was named a First Prize winner in the America&#8217;s Field Trip national essay contest, where her essay &#8220;The American Mosaic&#8221; explored the diverse threads that make up American identity \u2014 including Indigenous ones.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Cindy Wan \u2014 Co-Founder<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Cindy is a freshman at Tower Hill School and brings energy, creativity, and a fresh perspective to the team. She works alongside Vivian in community outreach, event coordination, and content creation for Empower Native Tribes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Together with Vivian, Cindy also co-founded <a href=\"https:\/\/fundsforchildpoverty.org\">Funds for Child Poverty<\/a>, a nonprofit that has raised over $32,000 for children&#8217;s education in Nepal \u2014 demonstrating the sisters&#8217; broader commitment to social impact beyond their local community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Why We Do This<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-medium\" style=\"max-width:600px\"><img decoding=\"async\" style=\"max-height:380px;object-fit:cover;width:100%;border-radius:6px\" src=\"http:\/\/empowernativetribes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/museum-library-exhibits.jpg\" alt=\"Our team exploring the museum library and cultural exhibits\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Growing up in Delaware, we walk on land that has been home to the Nanticoke people for thousands of years \u2014 yet most residents know almost nothing about them. We believe that living on someone&#8217;s ancestral land comes with a responsibility to learn, to listen, and to act.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Empower Native Tribes is our way of bridging that gap: connecting young people with Indigenous communities, amplifying voices that have been historically silenced, and conducting research that can drive real change.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We&#8217;re not experts \u2014 we&#8217;re learners. And we believe that&#8217;s exactly where meaningful work begins.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Vivian Wan \u2014 Co-Founder Vivian is a junior at Tower Hill School in Wilmington, Delaware. Her journey with the Nanticoke Indian Tribe began in 2023 when she first volunteered at the annual Nanticoke PowWow \u2014 and it changed her perspective entirely. What started as community service quickly grew into a deep academic and personal commitment. [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-13","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/empowernativetribes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/13","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/empowernativetribes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/empowernativetribes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/empowernativetribes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/empowernativetribes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=13"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"http:\/\/empowernativetribes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/13\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":147,"href":"http:\/\/empowernativetribes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/13\/revisions\/147"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/empowernativetribes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=13"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}