A non-profit community loan fund based on the Cheyenne River Indian Reservation has expanded its target market to all enrolled members of federally recognized tribes who reside in the state of South Dakota.
Prior to its expansion, Four Bands Community Fund was limited to serving clients within the boundaries of a reservation. Tanya Fiddler is the Fund’s executive director.
“At the time we started back in 2000, our target market was just the Cheyenne River Reservation because of the high poverty and high unemployment,” explains Fiddler. "So, our original mission was to serve the Native Americans and permanent residents of the Cheyenne River Reservation in order for us to stimulate economy with business development.”
Despite the success of that mission over the years, the Fund’s leadership realized they were missing a substantial portion of a population in need
"So, we thought it was going to be important for us to try to pilot some lending with our tribal members off-reservation,” says Fiddler. “Especially Rapid City…the Native American population’s around 15 percent or so and over half that population lives below the poverty level.”
Fiddler hopes to mirror the success the Four Bands Community Fund has had in creating businesses on the Cheyenne River Sioux Reservation to tribal members living in Rapid City, Pierre and other parts of the state.
Tanya Fiddler adds that business and consumer loans paired with educational services are also now available to tribal members on reservations other than the Cheyenne River.
http://fourbands.org/