The results are in from the first ever pitch competition for Indigenous-led startups in Michigan.
It was hosted last week at the Odawa Casino near Petoskey, and the top prize went to a startup called Nokomis Everstory.
The company produces high-quality video interviews documenting the stories of people's lives for later generations, inspired by the tradition of Indigenous storykeepers.
Nokomis means "grandmother" in Ojibwe. The startup's founder, Joshua Paul, says part of the inspiration came from his own grandparents.
Paul says when his grandfather died, "I realized that I had no video recording of him whatsoever. So his voice, and his humor, and all the stories that he had only live in my memories now."
Now the videographer from Charlevoix, who is a member of the Grand Traverse Band of Odawa and Chippewa Indians, is offering his filmmaking services to any family hoping to preserve a loved one's story.
He plans to use his $7,000 award to buy himself some new camera equipment.
The event was hosted by 20Fathoms, a Traverse City-based business accelerator organization, and was supported by various community donors.
The judges were Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians Vice Chairperson Eva Oldman, Paul Bussey with Gun Lake Investments, Florence Ludka with Oweesta Corp, Shanna Shananaquet with Northern Shores Community Development, and Leroy Shenoskey, who runs a traditional fishery business.
Judges handed out more than $14,500 in cash prizes to four Indigenous entrepreneurs. The other finalists were:
- Little Agate, led by Leah Johnson from Marquette, which aims to bring cloth diapering to more Michigan families to keep diapers out of landfills
- Magnuson Design Studio, led by Ana Magnuson, an interior design and furniture company inspired by Native artistic traditions
- Rain & Revelry, a Petoskey-based event planning company led by Amber Kilgore, Yarrow Young, and Gina Stegehuis, all members of the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians.
Shiloh Slomsky, tribal liason at 20Fathoms, said that despite some harsh winter weather, around 150 people attended the inaugural event, traveling all the way from the Upper Peninsula as well as downstate.
It featured drumming and song from the Bear River Singers, an opening prayer, and a speech by Little Traverse Bay Band of Odawa Indians Chairperson Winnay Wemigwase on the role of trade and entrepreneurialism in their culture.
"To have the opportunity to not only have a pitch event on tribal sovereign land, but to have culture and community at the helm and share both with tribal and non-tribal community members was a night to remember," Slomsky wrote in an email to IPR.
"Tribally owned businesses have a deep desire to give back, make a impact on the next generations, or find solutions to help solve some of the problems we face."
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