DULUTH 鈥� A fire has been burning for the past few days in memory of Ray 鈥淪kip鈥� Sandman, 68, a Fond du Lac Band tribal elder, also respected as a healer, or nananbawewinini, the Ojibwe word for "one who doctors."
Sandman made a name for himself in the political realm, as well, twice running for Congress, once as a Green Party candidate and again as an Independence Party candidate.
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His wife, Babette, said her husband鈥檚 political ambitions were inspired by a dream he had after an afternoon spent watching children swimming in the Lester River. He revisited the scene in a dream that night, and the children asked him: What are you going to leave us?
鈥淚t was like a bolt of lightning hit him. He said, 鈥業鈥檝e got to protect the water. These are our little kids.鈥� And he thought the best way to do that was to run for Congress,鈥� Sandman said, recalling his staunch opposition to the development of copper-sulfide mining.
鈥淚 told him, 鈥楽kip, we don鈥檛 really do that.鈥� And he said, 鈥榃hat do you mean?鈥� Because I was raised on welfare and I had poverty thinking. 鈥橸ou were raised on a reservation, and like, we don鈥檛 do that, Skip.鈥� And he asked, 鈥榃hy not us?鈥� Then he told me his name and that he had to protect the water. And I just shut right up and said, 鈥楢ll right, let鈥檚 go for it. Holy smokes.鈥欌��
Babette Sandman said her husband鈥檚 bold decision to seek office has inspired others to step up, as well, including one of his seven children, , who is running for a District 8B seat in the Minnesota House of Representatives.
鈥淔or a lot of us young folks, what he did was create elbow space for everybody," Kozlowski said. "But also, he respected his gift so much as a spiritual adviser that he used that gift to help us step into the fullness of who we are, and that might include new workplaces, education, political spaces. For me, he played a humongous role in me being able to step into the fullness of who I am as a queer person, as an Indigenous person, and he actually made the first $100 donation to my campaign."
Shawn Carr, a military veteran, said Sandman was proud to have served his country in the Vietnam War. 鈥淚 think he felt it was his obligation to his people and his country,鈥� Carr said. 鈥淚n fact, his whole life revolved around service to the people.
鈥淎 lot of people sought him out for spiritual healing. His most recent employment was as cultural adviser for Fond du Lac, and he did a lot of healings and ceremonies there. So, everything with Skip was about the people,鈥� Carr said. 鈥淗e was so many things to so many people.鈥�
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Sandman鈥檚 death has left community members in a state of shock, according to Carr.
Sandman had appeared to be on the mend from a recent heart attack and was expected to begin rehab in a matter of days, but he unexpectedly took a turn for the worse, passing away Sunday night.
Babette Sandman said his service to the Creator was of paramount importance to her husband.
鈥淗e was given his gift by the Creator, and the only way you can get that gift is through the dreamworld. That鈥檚 how he became a traditional healer,鈥� she said. 鈥淪o, it wasn鈥檛 his gift. It was a gift he carried for the people who came to him for healing.鈥�
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