NACA Board of Directors
Annette Hamilton, Chairman
Chief Operating Officer, Ho-Chunk, Inc.
Annette Hamilton joined Ho-Chunk, Inc. in 2001 as Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and was promoted to Chief Operations Officer in 2004. Hamilton oversees the daily operations of all 30 Ho-Chunk subsidiary companies, making visits to all operations. Hamilton is responsible for strategic planning, budgeting, forecasting and corporate business plans. She also appraises and makes executive decisions on prospective corporate acquisitions and expansion. Hamilton advocates and makes numerous political contacts regionally and nationally on behalf of corporate and subsidiary interests. Her previous experience includes a position as Financial Analyst and Manager of Financial Reporting for Gateway, Inc., an international computer manufacturer and finance positions in both private industry and certified public accounting. She serves on the Board of Directors for the following: Mercy Medical Center-Sioux City, Siouxland Human Investment Partnership, and ONSI Ponca. Hamilton holds a Bachelors Degree in Business Administration from Washburn University of Topeka, Kansas and a Master’s Degree in Business Administration from the University of Minnesota. She is an enrolled member of the Kickapoo Tribe of Kansas.
Kristina Woolston, Vice Chair
Vice President of Government Relations, Chenega Corporation
Kristina Woolston was born in Anchorage and raised in Naknek, and is an Alaska Native Shareholder with Bristol Bay Native Regional Corporation and Paug-Vik Village Corporation.
Upon graduating high school from Bristol Bay Borough School, she studied at Dartmouth College in Hanover, NH, where she degreed in Political Science, with a minor in Native American Studies. Woolston then worked in Washington, D.C. before accepting a position as the Assistant Director for the World Trade Center Alaska where she led trade missions to Europe and Asia to assist Alaskan businesses in entering the global marketplace.
Woolston then went on to join a consulting firm representing Shell Oil Company and ExxonMobil in the Russian Far East oil and gas projects. One of the firms’ other clients, NovaGold Resources, recruited her to join their company full-time as the Communications Director for their world-class gold projects in Alaska and Western Canada. After three years with NovaGold, Kristina accepted a position to lead the International Mentoring Program for Menttium Corporation. Based in Minneapolis, Menttium is the recognized global leader in corporate mentoring for Fortune ranked firms.
Woolston is now the Vice President of Government Relations for Chenega Corporation, an Alaska Native Village Corporation, ranked number 4 on the Top 49ers list of Alaskan companies, and annually ranked in the Top 100 of the most successful small government contractors. Woolston oversees Government Relations, focusing on government contracting education and advocacy as it relates to Native contractors, as well as social and economic issues facing Native communities. Today, Woolston splits her time between Anchorage, DC, and the 43 other states where Chenega performs government contracts. Overall, this unique role affords her the opportunity to work with diverse topics and people in and outside of Alaska.
Janice Hotch, Secretary
Manager, Office of Diversity Solutions, Sealaska Corporation
Janice Hotch came to Sealaska in 1998 and joined the Office of Diversity Solutions at the end of 2003. Her areas of responsibility include marketing, sales and business development for Sealaska Corporation and its subsidiaries with a focus on federal contracting. Hotch is also responsible for federal and minority business enterprise certifications for the Sealaska family of companies. Sealaska Corporation serves over 19,000 shareholders.
In addition to serving on the board of NACA, Hotch serves as an elected member of the board of directors for the ANCSA village corporation, Klukwan, Inc., and is involved in the Juneau Lions Club. She holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Washington. A Sealaska shareholder, and member of the Tlingit and Tsimshian tribes, Hotch resides in Juneau, Alaska and works at Sealaska’s corporate headquarters.
Dave Kimelberg, Treasurer
Chief Executive Officer, Seneca Holdings, LLC
Dave Kimelberg is the founding Chief Executive Officer of Seneca Holdings LLC, the investment and business operations holding company owned by the Seneca Nation of Indians. Kimelberg leads Seneca Holdings in fulfilling its mission to diversify the Seneca Nation’s economic base beyond its existing successful gaming enterprises through investments and ventures that leverage the advantages inherent in a sovereign nation. He is also the Chief Executive Officer of Seneca Broadcasting LLC, the operator of WGWE 105.9FM, a commercial FM radio station located and run on Seneca Nation territory, and Seneca Imports LLC, an importing and exporting company located on Seneca Nation territory; he also serves as Chairman of Seneca Telecommunications LLC, an IT and telecommunications services company. Seneca Holdings’ portfolio of companies includes Seneca Construction, LLC, a construction company that recently received Tribal 8(a) and HUBZone certifications.
Kimelberg is an enrolled citizen of the Seneca Nation of Indians (Bear clan), where his mother served as a founding teacher in the Seneca Nation’s head start program located on its Cattaraugus territory. He lives and works on Seneca Nation territory.
Kimelberg has worked in the private equity and venture capital industries as a leading business and legal executive for over a decade. Before joining Seneca Holdings, he served as Vice President and General Counsel for SoftBank Capital and SoftBank Holdings, multi-billion dollar venture capital and investment companies located in Boston and New York City. In his roles at SoftBank, he was a principal executive in an investment group responsible for billions of dollars of successful U.S. and foreign company investments, M&A activity, public offerings and complex monetization transactions, including one of the largest debt and collar monetization transactions executed worldwide. Dave has served as a director on the boards of multiple successful U.S. and foreign companies.
Sheri Buretta, Director
Chairman, Chugach Alaska Corporation
Sheri Buretta was born in Anchorage, her family is from the village of Tatitlek located in Prince William Sound.
Buretta graduated from the University of Alaska with an Accounting degree, and Gulf Coast Community College in Florida with
a Business degree. Buretta and her husband Gary have two beautiful children, Anastasia 14 years old, and Bo 11 years old.
Buretta is on the following Board of Directors: Alaska Federation of Natives, Director, October 1997 to present ; Prince William Sound Regional Citizens Advisory Council, Director 1999 to 2012 ; ANCSA Regional Association Director, 1999 to present; Alaskans Standing Together Director 2010 to present ; ROSSIA Russian Orthodox Sacred Sites in Alaska, Inc., President, 2002 to present ; Foraker Group Governance Board, Director 2007 to present ; Tatitlek Corporation Board, Board Treasurer 2005 to present; Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Public Advisory Group, 1996 to 2000; and Mayor Mark Begich Transition Team, Co-Chair, 2003.
Robin Danner, Director
President & Chief Executive Officer, Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement
Robin Danner is native Hawaiian from the island of Kauai. She is the founding President and CEO of the Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement (CNHA), a non-profit dedicated to supporting Native Hawaiian communities and the organizations that serve them. Robin was raised on the Navajo, Hopi and Apache reservations of Arizona and lived 25 years among the Inupiat Eskimo of Alaska.
Danner has extensive management experience in the not-for-profit, business and government sectors, including 13 years as Vice President of the National Bank of Alaska; three years as Executive Director of an Indian Housing Authority that served 8 federally recognized tribal governments; and three years as the Director of Housing for one of the largest municipal governments in Alaska. She is the Vice Chairman of the State Council of Hawaiian Homestead Associations, a Director on the Board of the Inter-Tribal Economic Alliance, a member of the Waianae Hawaiian Civic Club, serves on the Hawaii Advisory Committee of the Human Rights Commission, and oversees the operation of the Native Hawaiian Economic Alliance. She has received the Alaska Governor's Volunteer of the Year Award and the Small Business Minority Business Advocate of the Year from the state of Hawaii. Her expertise is in public and private administration, business and community development with a specialized focus on rural and Native American populations.
The Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement employs 34 Native Hawaiians and operates a public policy center on Native Hawaiian issues, conducts resource development and organizational capacity training, a homeownership call center and owns and operates an information technology company in partnership with 11 Indian Tribes and Alaska Native firms. Danner is married with four children and lives on Hawaiian Home Lands in Hawaii.
Janice Dearman, Director
Senior Director Diversified Businesses, Cherokee Nation Businesses
Janice Dearman, an enrolled member of the Cherokee Nation, serves as the Sr. Director of Diversified Business Programs for Cherokee Nation Businesses, LLC, and is responsible for management oversight of CNB business entities in various Federal and commercial Diversity Programs. Cherokee Nation Businesses is the economic engine of the Cherokee Nation, one of the nation's largest Indian tribes with over 300,000 members. CNB owns companies in the gaming, hospitality, personnel services, distribution, manufacturing, telecommunications and environmental services industries. Dearman worked for several Cherokee Nation Industries’ managed companies before transitioning to the parent company, serving as Proposal Coordinator, Director of Contract Administration and VP of Military Services. Prior to working for CNB and CNI, she served for two decades in public education. Dearman holds a Juris Doctorate from the University of Nevada-Las Vegas, a Master’s degree in Administration and a Bachelor’s degree in Secondary Education from Northeastern State University, Tahlequah, Oklahoma.
Sarah Lukin, Director
Senior Vice President, Corporate Affairs, Afognak Native Corporation
Sarah Lukin is Alutiiq from the Native Village of Port Lions, a rural community of 200 people on Kodiak Island in the Gulf of Alaska. Lukin is a shareholder of Afognak Native Corporation and Koniag, Inc. and is a Tribal member of the Native Village of Afognak and Native Village of Port Lions. She is the Senior Vice President, Corporate Affairs of Afognak Native Corporation. Lukin oversees the Afognak family of companies legislative and media affairs, facilitates joint village economic development initiatives between Afognak and the Native Village of Port Lions, and supports the development of strategic partnerships between Afognak and Tribal businesses.
Prior to joining Afognak, Lukin was the Executive Director of the Native American Contractors Association (NACA), a national Native organization that advocates for Tribes, Alaska Native Corporations and Native Hawaiian Organizations regarding economic development, federal procurement, and Native participation in the 8(a) program. Today she serves on the NACA Board of Directors.
Prior to joining NACA, Lukin served on the NACA Board of Directors and was the Vice President of External Relations for Afognak and their wholly owned government contracting subsidiary, Alutiiq, LLC. Through her position, Sarah was responsible for external relations, including: legislative/government, media, and community relations.
Before joining the Afognak team, Lukin was the Community Development Director for Chugach Regional Resources Commission, a regional Tribal non-profit, advocating for Tribal/community involvement in the restoration efforts from the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill and providing Tribes technical assistance with various natural resource management and economic development projects.
Lukin has served on numerous community boards and committees focused on social and cultural programs, language revitalization, and economic advocacy.
Lukin holds a Bachelors and Masters degree from the University of Alaska and lives in Anchorage, Alaska with her husband and two children.
Kip Ritchie, Director
Chief Operating Officer, Potawatomi Business Development Corporation
Forest County Potawatomi tribal member, Kip Ritchie, serves as COO, for the Potawatomi Business Development Corporation. He is a founding member and served on its Board of Directors from 2003-2008. Prior to his appointment as COO in 2009, Kip served as Senior VP for the PBDC since 2005. Through the organization, Ritchie promotes the importance of investing in the tribe’s future by diversifying resources beyond gaming.
Ritchie began his career in Indian Gaming in 1997 when he joined Potawatomi Bingo Casino as Director of Marketing and was promoted to Assistant General Manager in 2003.
Ritchie is a graduate of University of Wisconsin-Madison with a bachelor’s degree in Communication Arts. In addition to the NACA Board, Kip serves on the Children’s Health Alliance Board of Directors, Menomonee Valley Partners Board of Directors, Froedtert Hospital Foundation Board of Directors, the National Center for American Indian Enterprise Development Board of Directors, Native American Contractors Association Board, Tribal Financial Advisors and the New Mexico Community Capital Board. Since 2000, Kip has served as the Chairman of the Forest County Potawatomi Community Foundation’s Board of Directors.
Kip resides in Pewaukee, Wisconsin with his wife and two children.
Helvi Sandvik, Director
President, NANA Development Corporation
Helvi Sandvik is the President of NANA Development Corporation, a wholly-owned subsidiary of NANA Regional Corporation. NANA has over 50 subsidiaries and partnerships that serve clientele in a variety of sectors, including government contracting, professional and management services, oil development, mining, hospitality, and tourism.
Sandvik came to NANA in 1995 after twelve years with the State of Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities where her career took her from Transportation Planner to Director of Statewide Aviation and finally to the position of Deputy Commissioner.
Sandvik is a shareholder of NANA and is originally from the village of Kiana. She received her Bachelor’s Degree in Economics from Kalamazoo College in Michigan and a Masters Degree in Business Administration from the University of Alaska Fairbanks.
Gail Schubert, Director
President & CEO, Bering Straits Native Corporation
Gail R. Schubert has served as CEO of Bering Straits Native Corporation since November 2009. Born and raised in Unalakleet, Alaska, Schubert served as the Executive Vice President and General Counsel for BSNC from 2003 to 2009. She has served on the BSNC board of directors since 1992 in various executive board positions.
Schubert serves on the Board of the Alaska Federation of Natives (Treasurer), the ANCSA Regional Association (Vice President), the Alaska Native Heritage Center (Chair), the Alaska Retirement Management Board (Chair), the Alaska Native Justice Center (Vice Chair), and she Chairs the board of Akeela Treatment Services (a substance abuse prevention and treatment program).
Schubert earned a law degree from Cornell Law School, a Masters Degree in Business Administration from the Johnson School of Management at Cornell, and an undergraduate degree in political science from Stanford University. She is married and has three stepchildren.
Burton Warrington, Director
Chief Executive Officer, Prairie Band, LLC
Burton W. Warrington, Menominee, Prairie Band Potawatomi and Ho-Chunk, was born and raised in the Land of the Menominee, in northern Wisconsin. He now resides within the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation where he serves as the President and Chief Executive Officer of Prairie Band, LLC the holding company owned by the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation.
Warrington’s career has involved a unique blend of legal, policy and business experience. Prior to his current position he served as Counselor to the Assistant Secretary of Indian Affairs at the United States Department of Interior. In that capacity he advised the Assistant Secretary on legal, policy and management matters, including Indian Gaming, Fee to Trust, Economic and Energy Development, Indian Water Settlements and the Indian Affairs Budget. Warrington also previously practiced law and served the Prairie Band Potawatomi Entertainment Corporation which includes the Prairie Band Casino and Resort.
Warrington holds a law degree from the University of Kansas School of Law and a Bachelors of Science in Business Administration from Haskell Indian Nations University.