Native Inc. staff push for change during Advocacy Day at North Dakota State Capitol

Native Inc. is an organization based in Bismarck and Fargo that serves North Dakota’s American Indian population. The group has been on the frontlines of a homelessness crisis in the Native community in North Dakota, where 23% of North Dakota’s Indigenous population faced homelessness in 2020 according to a North Dakota Interagency Council report, and the number has only continued to grow since then. Advocacy Day is an event held nationwide where community members engage with lawmakers on important issues.

There’s a lot of stigma thinking that [homelessness] it’s a choice. A lot of these people didn’t have a choice, but they have to choose to fight every day to survive.” -Angela Tochek, Native Inc. advocate

Massingill is the lead care coordinator at Native Inc., connecting clients with job services, transportation for job interviews and assistance with commuting to work.

“I felt called to start care coordination to help others, especially our community that’s in the homeless population and people who are walking through addiction,” she said.

Massingill helps clients secure housing — whether it’s their own place, sober living or treatment facilities. Her primary focus is ensuring that individuals are housed and off the streets.

“We’re here to bring more awareness to homelessness,” she said. “Legislators should care because this is real life.”

Angela Tochek has seen firsthand the impact that Native Inc. has had. A citizen of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, Tochek struggled with addiction and homelessness but has since overcome these challenges. Over the past year, she has worked hard to persevere, becoming a business major at United Tribes Technical College while volunteering regularly at Native Inc. The nonprofit was instrumental in her recovery, and she is now sober.

Tochek participated in Advocacy Day to share her personal experience and highlight how programs like Native Inc.’s recovery services are helping individuals — especially those battling addiction or working to escape poverty and homelessness — stay on their feet and move forward.

“We’re here for Advocacy Day because if it weren’t for people who advocated for me… I wouldn’t be here,” Tochek said.

Throughout the day, Tochek spoke with legislators and staff at the state capitol, sharing her personal story and advocating for more legislation to support individuals experiencing homelessness. She emphasized the need for increased funding for shelters and recovery programs to help people get off the streets and rebuild their lives.

“We don’t ever want anyone to go down the roads we did, that’s why it’s important to come and listen to the stories of these people and to figure out the best ways to help them,” Tochek said. “There’s a lot of stigma thinking that it’s a choice. A lot of these people didn’t have a choice, but they have to choose to fight every day to survive.”

In addition to advocating for legislative changes, Massingill said Native Inc. is working to secure funding for a Multicultural Center in Bismarck. The center would include a gym, a healing space and a sweat lodge, providing a safe and welcoming environment for all community members. The nonprofit is also seeking to purchase the building across from its Bismarck location to establish another homeless shelter.

Massingill said the goal is simple: to help people. She hopes legislators take that message to heart after today’s Advocacy Day.

“I can’t help but think that from the top down, where the people have most of the power and the say –– those people I think truly do want to help others because they’ve gotten to that point where they can make a difference,” Massingill said.