We honor the life of Laura Waterman Wittstock, Seneca, who passed on January 16th. She was 83. Waterman Wittstock was an award-winning journalist, an author and a Matriarch to the Native journalism community across the country.
She was a founder of Minneapolis based Migizi communications and long-time host of the First Person Radio program that ran until 2018 on Minneapolis based community radio station KFAI
Minnesota Lieutenant Governor, Peggy Flanagan, White Earth Ojibwe, says Waterman Wittstock was a mentor to many.
“She spent so much time working with young women, in particular, to make sure they had a path to success and to reach their full potential. When I was just a baby organizer coming up in the community, she really saw me. She encouraged me to run and be a delegate to the Democratic National Convention when I was just 24 years old and she helped fundraise to get me there. I know that my story of being seen and heard and valued and encouraged is just one of hundreds or thousands of stories of Native women and men who she just pushed to take risks and reach our full potential,” said Flanagan
Flanagan says she honors Laura Waterman Wittstock in her work as the first Native woman serving in statewide office in Minnesota.
Melissa Townsend reporting for Minnesota Native News. This post is an excerpt from the full show in the audio player above, audio of this story begins at 3:12
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