LoRae Homana Pawiki previously worked for the Northern Arizona VA Health Care System (NAVAHCS) in Prescott, Arizona where she continues to be based. Ms. Pawiki is Hopi-Navajo. She uses her middle name – HoMana, a Hopi Indian name. She is our Southwest Region tribal government relations specialist responsible for managing a portfolio of relationships between the VA and tribal governments located in the states of New Mexico, Arizona, Utah and Colorado. During her tenure with the Prescott VA, she served for eight years as the American Indian Services Coordinator (AISC). She assisted with the establishment of a VA Mental Health program that places VA PTSD Social Workers in tribal communities on the Hopi and Navajo Reservations. She also worked as the Executive Assistant to the Director.
Prior to her career with VA, she worked as a tribal affairs specialist with the U.S. Census Bureau. She served fourteen years at the U.S. Census Bureau in national, regional, and local Census offices. She currently studies part time in a Master’s program in Rural Geography and Planning at Northern Arizona University and received a B.A. in Planning at Occidental College.
