Martin Saniga

Executive Director & President

Sappony Tribe

Martin Saniga is a citizen of Sappony tribe based in Person county, North Carolina and Halifax county, Virginia. He has been actively involved in language revitalization since 2017. Martin has a background in public education working in museums for the past 12 years as a native interpreter. Martin has also been active in the Virginia and North Carolina Native communities for over two decades.

Teresa R. Pollak

Board Member

Monacan Indian Nation

Enrolled Citizen of the Monacan Nation and is currently the Secretary to the Tribal Council.

She has supported her nation as a council member and appointed to represent the nation on various commissions and boards:  VITAL – Virginia Indian Tribal Alliance for Life, VINSHE – Virginia Indian Nations Summit on Higher Education, UVA NIRC – Native Indigenous Relations Committee, and many others.

Her passion is to serve her people, help revitalize the language and revitalize the culture of the Monacan people.

Shaheen Aki Hedgepeth

Board Member

Saponi Nation of Ohio

Shaheen Hedgepeth is one of the inaugural board members of Yesa:sahį́ Language Project. She grew up in rural North Carolina where she was raised in Indigenous communities and lifeways. She holds degrees in fine art, advertising, and graphic design from Campbell University, and she applies her talent and experience in design and visual storytelling to facilitate the reconnection of her people to the Indigenous language and culture of the ancestors. She is also a certified practicing genealogist, with a focus on the interconnections of NC and VA tribal communities. The work of remembering Yesa:sahį́ has been a passion for Shaheen since childhood, and she intends in her lifetime to see the language return to fluency among her Yesáh relatives. 

Desirée Shelley Flores

Board Member

Monacan Indian Nation

Desiree has a background in environmental science, forestry, agriculture, community organizing and education and is currently pursuing a PhD at Virginia Tech. Her academic research has centered on the nexus between Indigenous language revitalization and traditional foodways, as well as historical Indigenous land use and food forests practices in Appalachia and the applications of Indigenous knowledge in modern agroecology conservation and restoration efforts. Desiree has a passion for seedkeeping and native plants. Most importantly, Desiree is a mom of three kids and lives on a small farm in the Roanoke, VA  area.

Vickie Jeffries

Board Member

Occaneechi Band of the Saponi Nation

Vickie Jeffries is an enrolled member of the Occaneechi Band of the Saponi Nation. She has held the position of Tribal Administrator for over 10 years. She is a bearer of Occaneechi tradition and culture, carrying forward the roles of traditional dancer, Indigenous herbalist, basket weaver, beader, forager, chef, and community linguist.

She has served on the board of directors for the Yesa:sahį́ Language Project, an intertribal organization devoted to the revitalization of the community’s language, since its inception in 2021.

Ms. Jeffries has facilitated numerous talking and healing circles and has given presentations and workshops on Mother Earth, Indigenous herbology, basket weaving, beading, and Native culture at local universities.

She retired from administration at the University of North Carolina Family Medicine in 2020.

Crystal Bradshaw-Gonzalez

Board Member

Saponi of Ohio Descendant

Crystal Bradshaw-Gonzalez is a descendant of the Saponi Nation of Ohio and related Yesáh communities. Crystal actively reconnects to her tribal culture and foodways by growing traditional Yesáh foods and hunting. In 2023, she completed the Indigenous Hunters Course. She also enjoys participating in language classes, YLP gatherings, and cultural events such as the Fort Christianna monument ceremony, the annual Haskell Indians Nation University bison harvest, the deer butchering and hide prep series, and more.

Corey Roberts

Linguist & Board Member

Occaneechi Descendant

Corey Roberts is an Occaneechi descendant pursuing a doctoral degree in Linguistics at the University of Arizona focusing on the revitalization of the Yesa:sahį́ language. He holds degrees in Native American Languages and Linguistics, as well as Comparative Languages and Performing Arts. He has taught the Yesa:sahį́ language since 2020 and has also taught Spanish, French, and English as a Second Language in the U.S. and South America.

Bailey Martin

Board Member

Sappony Tribe

Bailey Martin is a member of the Sappony Tribe. His father is Bailey Martin Sr who lived in the Christie community until his family moved to Richmond when he was approximately 8 years old. Bailey's grandparents were Lena (Stuart) and Minor Martin. Bailey is a Deputy Chief with the City of Richmond fire department. He has been married to his wife Christy for 17 years and has 5 daughters; Jackie, Corinne, Avery, Allyson and Olivia. His daughter Jackie also gave birth to his first grandchild, Millie in November. Bailey is active with his tribe and participates in tribal events and has assisted with EMS and Security at the tribes youth camp for the last 3 years. He also attended the Yesáh Language conference at VA Tech. Bailey loves all sports and the outdoors and is a regular player in the Powhatan Shinny League. Bailey has been chair of his fire department's DEI committee and regular attends and speaks at community events and conferences on diversity and inclusion. He holds a bachelors degree in English and masters degree in Homeland Security. He is also near completion of second masters in Data Science.