One Man, One Dream
Ten years ago, Lummi Nation elder and business visionary Henry James knew he had a mission, a purpose to fulfill for his people. Given the Indian name Sukadem, which means “to help the people,” Henry’s lifelong dream was to bring prosperity to tribal families.

Growing up on the Lummi reservation near Bellingham, Henry saw his proud native traditions erode under the weight of dependency and economic helplessness common to many tribal reservations. But at 15, Henry’s path took a turn when he moved off the “res” and later served his country in the military. While stationed with the U.S. Air Force in Panama, he met his wife, Flor. Through many years of marriage together, they worked hard to raise 12 children off the reservation. All of his children were instilled with the same values he learned through his own life experience: the worthiness of hard work, the importance of education, and the power of an enterprising spirit.

Henry knew that these values, the foundation of his own success, somehow needed to be brought home to his beloved Lummi lands, where the unemployment rate had skyrocketed to an alarming 47%. Over time, he developed a vision for the future that included thriving businesses, sustainable living-wage jobs, and real economic vitality. “It all starts with a dream,” he says. “I dream of the day when products are Lummi made and we contribute value to the economic community.”

The key? Build a truly groundbreaking business model that leverages both the unique status of a tribal reservation as a sovereign nation with free-trade zone perks such as tax, tariff, and duty incentives, and Henry’s own special designation as a service-disabled veteran, American Indian, and minority business owner. Because of his status with the government (he's one of only a few in the U.S. to possess unique special category designations) and the fact that his businesses are associated with or located in a HUB Zone (Historically Underutilized Business Zone), Henry and companies partnering with him receive priority consideration when bidding on U.S. Government contracts. That’s what Trading Gateways, Shuksan Business Park, and Mt. Baker Design Development are all about-attracting businesses and investors into an area with the unique advantages he and the Lummi lands can offer.

Henry’s business model is the first of its kind in the country; he hopes others will follow his lead and implement it across the nation. He sees it as an innovative way to transform the reservation’s culture of dependency into one of opportunity and hope. “I want to give people a hand up, not a hand-out,” he says.

His ideas may be revolutionary but as Henry sees it, he is simply returning to his roots and to the principles of community and cooperation established through centuries of tribal tradition. People are the priority, he says, and by working hard and helping one another, he believes it’s possible to build a more prosperous future for everyone.

“We each have our own paddle, but when we all pull together, we can go much farther faster,”
— Henry James