Summer Sky Cohen

Biography

Naawegiizissukwe (she comes from the center of the sun), Summer Sky Cohen is an enrolled member of the Lac du flambeau Band of Ojibwe located in Wisconsin. She belongs to makwa dodem, bear clan. Summer grew up in the wilderness of the upper peninsula of Michigan. Living off the land with her family, Summer learned about ingenuity in being creative when it comes to survival. She learned to use plants and animals from the wild in survival and in art.

After graduating high school in 1993 summer went to NMU. Without direction and financial costs Summer ended up leaving school returning five years later with her daughter. She studied political science and pre-law along with Native American Studies. And graduated in 2003 with a double major Bachelor’s degree.

Summer jumped into working in law enforcement with the Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission. And found her way into historic preservation where she spent 10 years in cultural resources management and revitalization with the Keweenaw bay Indian community located in the upper peninsula of Michigan. In 2011 she made the decision to leave due to health reasons and continued to bead and sew and teach for income. In 2020 Summer was offered a position with the Anoka-Hennepin School district in Minnesota. Teaching through Covid and learning the routine of the program, Summer parted ways, missing the freedom of designing and creating traditional arts of her Ojibwe and native people.  Summer continues to take on classes to share with  native people the gifts she holds in her mind. Offering a holistic way to understand our place as native people on this earth through the intertwining of beads, bling and buckskin to tell our stories and ensure the survival of our culture.