Phoenix Indian Center raises funds for the Navajo Nation
The Phoenix Indian Center raises funds for the Navajo Nation.
Republic of Arizona
The Phoenix Indian Center, the oldest urban center of its kind in the country, moved into a new building at Central Avenue and Indian School Road on Friday with a grand opening, indigenous food and a community meeting.
Jolyana Begay-Kroupa, the center’s executive director, called the move from the old building at North Central and Campbell Avenue to the new building, just a quarter-mile away, a “journey.”
The offices opened nearly four months later than planned due to construction delays, which meant employees had to provide their services remotely.
Moving an entire organization with 38 employees and decades of records and memories was also a challenge, but one that was manageable, according to Navajo resident Begay-Kroupa.
The new facility at the Indian center offers significantly more space, said Begay-Kroupa.
“Our last building was about 1,200 square feet,” she said. “This building is 2,000 square feet.”
The increased filming will allow the center to expand its programs to reach Maricopa County’s Native American community of more than 130,000 people, she said.
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The center was founded in 1947 by Leon Grant, a member of the Omaha tribe in Nebraska who moved to Phoenix in the mid-20th century, the so-called “relocation era.”
The federal government encouraged Native Americans to leave their tribal lands and move to cities, depopulating communities and eventually ending tribal status. This policy, like other federal Indian policies, did not work as intended, but it did result in thousands of Native Americans making far-flung cities their home.
Grant realized that Native Americans newly moved to cities needed a place to gather and find information about jobs, education, housing and other services. The new center in Phoenix was the first of many such facilities to open over the next two decades.
The fledgling center’s first building was located at the corner of Central Avenue and Fillmore Street. The modest storefront offered residents and visitors from more remote reservations a place to store their belongings, use the restroom—many Phoenix businesses had “whites only” policies that prohibited Native Americans from using their facilities—or find services.
Over the years, the Phoenix Indian Center has expanded to incorporate additional programs into its mission, including job training and youth leadership services, Navajo language classes, and courses in other areas of Native American culture, such as beadwork.
In 2005, the center partnered with Native American Connections, a wellness and residential services provider, and Native Health, Phoenix’s municipal health care provider for Native Americans, to purchase a building and established the Native American Community Service Center on North Central Avenue, adjacent to the Phoenix Union High School district office.
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Growing services, overcapacity in the building
The six-story building had its problems, including a catastrophic air conditioning failure that forced employees to work from home for months. It also proved too small for the three agencies as they added more programs and initiatives.
Native Health outgrew its building space and moved next door to the new Phoenix Indian Center headquarters in 2013, while Native American Connections moved to larger premises in 2023. The PIC board sold the building to Phoenix Union, which wanted to expand its own office space.
Over the years, the Phoenix Indian Center has served thousands of Native American people with programs ranging from internships and job training to mentoring for seniors and youth, youth development programs, prevention and wellness initiatives, community engagement and other services. It also partners with Tohono O’odham Community College to offer college courses.
Jason Coochwytewa, who is a member of the Hopi Tribe and Isleta Pueblo, said his own career began when he participated in the center’s youth programs. Coochwytewa is now president of a Phoenix-area multicultural marketing and public relations firm.
Crystalyne Curley, spokeswoman for the Navajo Nation Council, traveled to Phoenix to share her own experiences with the Native American Center as a young college student.
“I always came to the center to help Mr. Freddie Johnson, who is now retired, with his language and culture classes,” she said. Curley volunteered to help young and old Navajos living far from their homeland learn or preserve their ancestral language.
“We have 110 chapters, but I’ve always considered the Phoenix Indian Center our 111th chapter,” Curley said. “We will always be here on our native land and we make the best use of it and make it feel like home no matter where we go.”
Debra Krol covers indigenous communities at the intersection of climate, culture and commerce in Arizona and the Intermountain West. Reach Krol at [email protected] or follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter, @debkrol.
Reporting on indigenous issues at the intersection of climate, culture and trade is supported by the Catena Foundation..
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