Legends and Legacy Community Award

Begay-Kroupa is an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation. She is chief executive officer for the Phoenix Indian Center, which is the oldest social service agency in the U.S. dedicated to serving and uplifting urban American Indians through culturally grounded social services, advocacy and community-centered programming. She also teaches Navajo language classes at Arizona State and has taught at Stanford, Harvard and Yale. Begay-Kroupa’s work is rooted in deep commitment to ensuring that urban Native communities have continued access to culturally responsive services that honor Indigenous identity, community-defined priorities and collective self-determination. One of her most notable accomplishments was serving as the 50th Miss Navajo Nation. Miss Navajo Nation represents culture and serves as an ambassador for the Navajo people, promoting education, community well-being, and the preservation of language and traditional ways of life. Across all aspects of her leadership, Begay-Kroupa is committed to ensuring Indigenous perspectives are meaningfully interwoven into policy, education and community system. 

 

Lewkowitz has had an astounding positive impact on the city of Phoenix and the state of Arizona for years. One of the founding members of Phoenix Children’s board of directors, Lewkowitz was instrumental not only in bringing quality pediatrics care to the area but also guiding the hospital to where it is now regarded as one of the best children’s hospitals in the country. Lewkowitz has always been a champion of children. He has served on numerous boards, including Crisis Nursery (Child Crisis Arizona) and the Phoenix Zoo. He has also been very supportive of the Jewish community. He was the founding president of the Arizona Jewish Historical Society and has a longtime connection to Temple Beth Israel, which was founded in part by his parents. In his early years, Lewkowitz served in the Air Force as a judge advocate general officer, as an Arizona assistant attorney general, and as a Phoenix City Council member. He eventually opened the Lewkowitz Law Office with Andrea Lewkowitz, his wife of over three decades. 

 

Seciwa is the project director at the Southwest Indigenous Women’s Coalition, where she leads initiatives to support survivors of domestic and sexual violence across tribal communities in Arizona and New Mexico. She is the founder of Chelsa Seciwa Advocacy Resources, where she provides tribal legal services in family law, the Indian Child Welfare Act, the Violence Against Women Act, and protection orders for domestic violence victims across tribal courts in Arizona and the Pueblo of Zuni, her home community in southwestern New Mexico with ancestral lands extending into Arizona. Through Seciwa Advocacy, Seciwaalso has worked with families of victims of missing and murdered Indigenous people, providing culturally grounded legal and advocacy support during times of crisis and loss. Previously, she served as a project specialist with the National Criminal Justice Training Center, where she collaborated with tribal leaders and law enforcement to enhance child protection systems in Indian Country. Dedicated to her heritage and roots, Seciwa uplifts Native voices and promotes healing, justice and cultural continuity in tribal communities. 

  

Serna is an influential leader in the Phoenix/Maricopa County community. He is president of Cash Community Sports Organization and the Playa Margarita Park Steering Committee. Cash Community changed its name to Playa Margarita Park in 2019. The sports organization is a nonprofit created to provide organized activities for at-risk youth in the area. Serna is a key figure who has led the organization to success. A decorated and honorably discharged service-connected Navy veteran, Serna has made an impactful mark in the community, getting involved in numerous local organizations, including the Citizens Transportation Oversight Committee, Maricopa County Parks Commission, Citizens Transit Commission and Southwest Phoenix Community Center. He also served as a member and later president of the Laveen School Governing Board, has been involved with the Valleywise Community Health Advisory Committee, City of Phoenix Police Hispanic Advisory Committee, South Mountain YMCA Youth Sports Commission, and the Arizona Diamondbacks Foundation and Ambassadors Club. Serna also gave his time to developing young people in the community by coaching youth soccer, softball and baseball during his career. He is a member of the American Legion and was a celebrated Laveen Parade grand marshal.  

 

Spicker has been an innovative nonprofit leader with a strong reputation for directing transformational programs and initiatives for Arizona-based organizations for 50 years. Before his retirement last year, he was president and chief executive director of the Maricopa Community Colleges Foundation. Spicker led the foundation through the pandemic, bolstering student emergency and basic need funds and securing additional support for programs and scholarships. He built key relationships, elevating the foundation’s presence as a leader in raising funds and as a high performing nonprofit organization. In response to a huge increase in student requests for emergency assistance brought on by the pandemic, Spicker established a Day of Giving for the Maricopa Community Colleges. He also launched a fundraising campaign, EmpowerED for Student Success, and surpassed the revenue expectations. The annual fundraising increased from $5 million per year to nearly $17 million for initiatives and programs. Previously, as executive director at Body Positive, he was successful in building the largest privately funded community-based HIV clinical trials program in the West. He also established Spicker Coaching and Consulting LLC, designed to develop a strong nonprofit sector through leadership development and coaching of nonprofit leaders.