Cultural Director

Brian Frejo, of the Pawnee and Seminole Nations of Oklahoma, serves as Cultural Director for Rooted & Restored Collaborative. He oversees culturally rooted groups and programing, facilitates cultural groups, and provides individual cultural identity sessions that support healing, reconnection, and leadership development.

Brian brings over 20 years of experience working with Tribal programs and Indian Health Service (IHS) clinics nationwide. A Trainer of Trainers for Generation Red Road and a certified facilitator for Fatherhood/Motherhood Is Sacred and Wellbriety/White Bison, his work centers substance use recovery, suicide prevention, intergenerational trauma, and culturally grounded wellness.

Brian has led IHS Behavioral Health Culture programs in urban IHS clinics, including Chicago and Milwaukee. As a Traditional Healer, sweat lodge and earth lodge ceremony leader and southern straight powwow dancer, he integrates traditional practices with contemporary approaches to healing. Through his program, The Power of Vision & Action, Brian also provides leadership development, resiliency training, goal setting, and motivational speaking.

Indigenous Community Liaison

Maraea Kamae is of Native Hawaiian and Indigenous Mesoamerican heritage and is actively engaged in cultural reconnection, recognizing its role in healing, identity, and long-term wellness. She supports Rooted & Restored through community outreach and advocacy. She values Indigenous ways of knowing that center community, relational healing, and responsibility to future generations, and brings this perspective into her work with individuals and families.

She has been in long-term recovery since January 6th, 2010, a lived foundation that shapes her approach to service, accountability, and connection. Maraea is deeply involved in community service, including ongoing service work through Narcotics Anonymous, mentorship, and volunteering at recovery-based and community wellness events that create safe, supportive spaces for healing.

She is a mother of three and is currently pursuing a degree in Human Services, where she continues to build skills in advocacy, resource navigation, and culturally grounded, trauma-informed support. Maraea is committed to walking alongside individuals and families with compassion, respect, and a strong belief in the power of community and cultural connection.

Community Engagement & Media Coordinator

Chris Hans is Mvskoke (Creek) from Oklahoma and serves as the Community Engagement and Media Coordinator for Rooted & Restored Collaborative. Raised in Oklahoma near his Tribe, Chris developed a strong sense of community and responsibility that continues to guide his outreach and communications work. He supports Rooted & Restored through community outreach, elders advocacy, media support, and communications, helping share the organization’s work and values in a clear and respectful way.

Chris places a strong emphasis on helping and supporting elders, physical health, fitness, and proper nutrition, viewing wellness as a practical foundation for stability, consistency, and personal growth. This perspective informs how he engages with community members—approaching outreach with balance, reliability, and a focus on sustainable support. Through his work, he helps connect individuals to resources, information, and services that can support overall well-being. He has completed coursework in psychology, which supports his understanding of communication and human behavior without being the focus of his role. Outside of work, Chris enjoys riding motorcycles and staying active.

CEO, Indigenous Relations Director

Jax Stewart, of Ilokano/Itneg, Tsalagi, and Scottish heritage, has worked in the behavioral health field since 2014 and completed drug and alcohol counseling school in 2016. She has been in recovery since September 5, 2012. Jax brings together lived experience and professional expertise to build meaningful, trust-based relationships and culturally grounded programs within the communities and systems she serves. Her experience spans clinical services, operations, logistics, program management, experiential and outdoor group facilitation, business development, outreach, and aftercare leadership.

As the founder of Rooted & Restored Collaborative, Jax serves as both CEO and Indigenous Relations Director, overseeing cultural outreach, relationship-building with Tribes and organizations, and the development of culturally responsive programming. A Generation Red Road and G.O.N.A. certified facilitator, her work centers cultural and heritage reconnection as a foundation for healing, recovery, and long-term wellness. Drawing from her background and passion for experiential and outdoor-based work, Jax supports the integration of traditional practices alongside modern therapeutic and clinical approaches in a way that is ethical, respectful, and community-informed.