Sun'aq Tribe - Council Members’ Bios

Our council is comprised of seven dedicated tribal members who each donate 16 hours per month to governing Sun’aq Tribe. At Council meetings and special sessions, these individuals demonstrate that they possess the vision and commitment to guide the tribe’s development.

Madelyn Brown, Tribal Council Member, was born and raised in the villae of Karluk to Gust & Frieda Reft. Due to the lack of education in the village, we were sent off the island to attend high school. She went to Chemawa Indian School located in Salem, OR for four years. After graduating high school in 1969, she continued her education at Haskell Jr. College in Lawrence, KS where she received Certification for Dental Assistant. Being offered a job in Nome or Anchorage, she went to Nome for a year waiting as her goal was to work for a native clinic when the time came for one to start in Kodiak. She met her husband Edward Brown when she came home for the holidays and they were married two weeks later and have been married now for 34 years. Together they raised 2 wonderful daughters. Today, Sabrina Sutton is a teacher at East and Deborah Hales is a home maker and daycare provider. Madelyn and Edward have four grandchildren (2 girls/2 boys) which they adore and enjoy being able to spend mounds of time with. Madelyn worked in the private sector for 7 years and when KANA opened, went to work in the dental clinic there. Madelyn's career at KANA started as a Certified Dental Assistant, then the Dental receptionist/billing/office manager/dental insurance billing for medical/dental/pharmacy. She then went to accounts receivable and during that time recieved her Chef License through a cooking course on line. After 25 years of devotion to her job at KANA she left with great sadness. Madelyn now fills in as a cafeteria cook in the Kodiak School District, which she enjoys as she get to spend time with the young children. She also volunteers for the Kodiak Women's Resource Center. She is excited to be working with the Sun'aq Tribal Council.

Iver Malutin, Tribal Council Member, is a life-long resident of Kodiak. He is currently employed at KANA as the Elder Public Relations Advocate. He is a member of the Alaska Commission of Aging, the Alaska Native Advisory Health Board, the Elks, and a representative for the Alaska Consumer Direct Elders Assisted Living Program. He is the KANA rep. for protection of traditional foods, lifestyle, culture and land. He strives to promote a healthy native lifestyle.

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Olga M. Malutin, Tribal Council Member, was born and raised in Kodiak. After high school, she worked as a political intern for Governor William Egan, serving with the Commissioner of the Department of Fish and Game. Since then, she has worked for Afognak Native Corporation in shareholder relations and as the Larsen Bay tribal council manager. She has served on the Koniag Kodiak Shareholder Committee, on the Kodiak Tribal Council, and on the Kodiak Island Convention and Visitor’s Bureau Board. Olga currently occupies the Sun’aq Tribal seat on the Kodiak Area Native Association (KANA) board of directors.

Thomas Jr. Johnson, Tribal Council Member, is a life-long resident of Kodiak. He is a local fisherman and a self-employed laborer. He is involved with the local youth and has been the assistant coach for the Native Youth Olympics since 1999. Tom enjoys bowling, city league basketball, 4-wheeling and sport fishing. He likes to continue to learn about his native heritage. Tom has a great understanding of a traditional subsistence way of life and its hardships.

Brenda Schwantes, Tribal Council Chair, Brenda was raised in Kodiak until the age of 6 when her family relocated to California for a brief time. After returning to Kodiak at the age of 7, she also lived in Anchorage, Naknek, Wrangell, Ketchikan and then returned to attend her last two years of high school in Kodiak. Brenda attended Brigham Young University and graduated with a B.S. degree in Family Sciences, then obtained her teaching certificate. From 1991-1993, she attended UAA in Anchorage and obtained a Special Education teaching credential and returned to Kodiak. Brenda began a lengthy career at KANA after being hired to work as a Health Educator after the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill. After administering various BIA and EPA IGAP grant programs, she was appointed by the Secretary of the Interior to serve on the Public Advisory Group for the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Trustee Council where she served approximately four years. In 2003, Brenda was hired by the State of Alaska Dept. of Labor and Workforce Development to work under the Trade Adjustment Act to specifically identify training options for dislocated fishermen or other individuals who had suffered economic shifts in the local labor market. Brenda was born to Lila Schwantes (Olsen), the daughter of Laura Olsen (Larsen), the daughter of Anton Larsen and Olga Larsen (Naumoff). Olga was the daughter of Evdokiia Nekrasoff, daughter of Tatiana Petrovna. Brenda is married to Franke Brown who has been in the Kodiak fishing industry for 20+ years. She has two children, Eric and Wesley. Brenda is currently a homemaker and a self-employeed esthetician. She is excited to be serving as a Sun'aq Tribal Council representative and working on behalf of its members.

Gary Watson, Tribal Council Secretary/Treasurer, lives in Kodiak with his wife, Geraldine. His varied background includes a degree in culinary arts and a certificate in heating and plumbing. Gary has great respect for the tribe’s elders and is committed to making himself available to listen to members’ ideas and concerns. He has three children and five grandchildren.