Lena (Sunada-Matsumura) Newlin
Writer, Photographer, Storyteller
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Lena is a fourth-generation Wyomingite and a descendant of railroaders and coal miners, plumbers, teachers, artists, adventurers, and storytellers. She is also a descendant of Japanese Americans incarcerated during WWII at Heart Mountain. She holds a Master's Degree in Public Health from Oregon State University and is a Certified Health Education Specialist. In 2022, she left behind her 22-year career in Public Health to focus on writing a book about her family history. She received her MFA in Creative Writing in 2024 from the University of Wyoming and is now pursuing a PhD in Public Humanities. Lena's doctoral research focuses on the parallel and interconnected histories of Japanese Americans and Japanese Peruvians from the early 1900s through the end of WWII.
Lena's art focuses on storytelling through hybrid media, including creative writing and poetry, origami, photography, videography, podcasting, and the integration of archival photos and documents. Her writing has been nominated for a Pushcart Literary Prize and appears in international and US publications including the New York Times, Solstice Literary Magazine, Like the Wind Magazine, High Desert Journal, and others. She teaches writing to college students at UW. She is academically trained in photographic history, theory, and technique, and her photographs have been published and exhibited by Wyoming Public Media, the University of Wyoming Art Museum, and SAGE Community Arts Gallery. Lena has two children, two adorable but naughty rescue dogs, and a very patient husband who are all graciously supporting her career change adventures. |
"When you want something, all the world conspires to help you achieve it." 
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