By Pinal Central
SACATON — A proclivity toward innovation is something Gov. Stephen Roe Lewis believes has long been a part of the makeup of the people of the Gila River Indian Community.
And as a tribal leader, Lewis sees innovation as a key ingredient that has helped the community weather adversity and, in more recent times, thrive.
“What I was taught, both by elders and by my family, was that we come from very humble begins,” he said in an interview with Pinal’s People. “We were agriculturists, we’re farmers, we trace ourselves back to the Huhugam, who really were incredible builders and architects and engineers of the canal systems that brought water to this whole area.”