Tom Kinley, Sos-Sos-O-Win, (he/him), is a member of the Lummi Nation near Bellingham, Washington and joined the National Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition (NABS) in January 2024 as the Human Resources Manager. Prior to joining NABS, he worked Human Resource leadership positions supporting Tribal for-profit, national retail, hospitality, and government contracting organizations.

Tom was born in California but moved to the Lummi Indian Reservation at a young age when his father returned home to take care of his mother. Having been raised by his parents, grandmother, aunts, uncles, and older cousins, he learned a deep appreciation of community while growing up on the Reservation.

After graduating high school, Tom followed in his father’s footsteps and joined the United States Air Force and retired as a Senior Master Sergeant (E8) after a 24-year career. Always an optimist, he finds good in every moment, even during the long, hazardous deployments away from his family. As a lifelong student, he has completed two Associate’s degrees, a Bachelor degree, an MBA, and graduated from three military leadership academies while serving on active duty. He continued to expand his knowledge after starting his HR career earning his Tribal Human Resources Professional (THRP) and Society of Human Resources Management Senior Certified Professional (SHRM-SCP) certifications.

Learning traditional teachings at a young and devoting nearly a half his life to the Armed Forces, Service To Others is an important value to Tom and he is grateful for the opportunity to contribute to NAB’s mission seeking Truth, Justice, & Healing.