Flight of the hummingbird Okimaw Community & HR Solutions is on a mission to help leaders build strong and thriving communities By: Aaron Epp Posted: 7:40 PM CST Thursday, Mar. 6, 2025

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This article was published 06/03/2025 (560 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Tears start rolling down Terry Brown’s cheeks as he tells the fable that inspired the hummingbird logo for his company, Okimaw Community & HR Solutions.

In the fable, frightened animals flee their homes as the forest they live in is engulfed by a raging wildfire. They stop at the edge of a stream to watch the fire, feeling discouraged and powerless, and grieving the destruction of their homes.

A hummingbird swoops into the stream, picks up a few drops of water, flies into the forest and drops them on the fire. It does this again and again and again as the other animals watch in disbelief.

Some of the animals discourage the hummingbird, telling the bird it’s too small to make a difference. “What do you think you are doing?” one of the animals shouts.

The hummingbird looks back and responds, “I am doing what I can.”

For Brown, who co-founded the company with Miranda Kennedy, the fable — first told by the late Kenyan activist and Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Wangarĩ Maathai — illustrates how the smallest contribution is important.

It makes him emotional, he says, because it reminds him that, like the hummingbird, we must do what we can.

Okimaw specializes in providing skills-based training, advisory services and secretariat support to First Nations.

Brown thinks of the fable whenever he gets a phone call from a client.

Often, it’s a First Nations leader looking for last-minute advice before a press conference or in the middle of a multimillion-dollar deal. Two minutes of Brown’s time can help shape the outcome.

“So often we’re that hummingbird that assists for that really difficult thing and, often, it’s a big fire that the nations are dealing with,” says the 45-year-old as he sits in the business centre at the Manitoba Club, where Okimaw often hosts meetings and training events.

In Cree, Okimaw means chief, leader or boss, and is defined as “someone who oversees the work of others.” Brown and Kennedy chose the name because they believe it’s their mission to help leaders build strong and thriving communities.

Since Okimaw’s founding in 2019, it has grown to include 15 employees who live and work across Canada.

The company, which works almost exclusively with First Nations and related Indigenous entities to assess, train and support their teams, has served 100 nations throughout North America.

The company’s areas of practice include professional and workforce development, including human resources training programs, workshops and seminars covering topics like recruitment, employee relations and workplace policies.

The customized training programs are designed to build local expertise and leadership within communities.

Okimaw also offers organizational development, assisting in strategic planning, organizational reviews, community planning and economic development support.

Additionally, Okimaw helps clients with law and policy development, collaborating with communities to develop HR and administrative policies that reflect Indigenous laws and values, supporting the reclamation of governance through decolonized structures.

Okimaw’s work providing Indigenous communities with the tools to foster economic reconciliation and grow their sovereign wealth is crucial, according to Damon Johnston, president and CEO of the Aboriginal Council of Winnipeg.

“The business sector is critically important to any group in the world and if you can’t carve out some kind of niche, you’re lost; you’re not going to have much of an impact,” says Johnston, who has known Brown for a dozen years. “He’s one of the sharpest minds I’ve ever met. He knows what’s going on economically for First Nations, for Métis (and) for Inuit.”

Brown has extensive business experience, including a 10-year stint at Arctic Beverages, a Winnipeg-based Pepsi product distributor.

In 2012, when he was the company’s vice president and general manager, he led a team of 70 employees to deliver a 39 per cent sales increase compared with 2011 figures ($32 million versus $23 million) and received the 2011 PepsiCo Canada “Bottler of the Year” award.

He started Okimaw as part of his desire to set a strong example for his 11-year-old daughter, Kinsley.

When Brown met Kennedy at a conference, he knew he had found someone he could partner with to create an organization that fosters self-determination and economic independence for First Nations.

With her background in human resources, social work and business management, Kennedy’s skills complement Brown’s, and he views her as a mentor, he says.

Kennedy, who lives in Edmonton, believes she was meant to cross paths with Brown.

“Two Indigenous people who went through commerce, got their degrees, different majors — we both decided we could do it (start the company), we just had to believe we could and support each other through it, which we did,” says Kennedy, 55.

“When we actually believed in ourselves, we couldn’t believe the amount of work we got. Day to day, week to week, we’re always busy now.”

For Brown, the most enjoyable aspect of the work he does with Okimaw is living according to the company’s core values: honesty, respect, sharing and kindness.

Kennedy most enjoys meeting people and leading workshops.

“I don’t try to come across as an expert,” she says. “I’m learning, too, and I tell them that. We’re sharing knowledge, we’re sharing information and as a group, we’re learning together.”

Okimaw recently launched a new website and membership program that offers subscribers one-on-one human resources support, online training workshops, and templates of letters and job descriptions, and more.

At the beginning of May, the company is hosting an Indigenous economic engagement workshop at the Manitoba Club.

Kennedy and Brown hope that by the end of the two-day event, participants will have gained insights into fostering economic growth in collaboration with First Nations.

Future plans include pursuing work with First Nations in the United States.

Brown wears numerous rings on his fingers, each of which signifies an achievement or represents his allegiance to a way of being or to a person in his life. The ring on his left pinky marks his commitment to expanding Okimaw’s business into the U.S.

As Kennedy notes, people are finding out about Okimaw, and that feels good.

“This is just the beginning,” she says. “It’s been five-and-a-half years, going on six, but we’re not done yet. There’s still so much work to do.”

aaron.epp@freepress.mb.ca