Eileen “Taffy” Lafferty grew up in He Dog Community on the Rosebud Sioux Reservation and is an enrolled member of the Rosebud Sioux Tribe. Taffy is the Acting Executive Director at Black Hills Community Loan Fund in Rapid City, South Dakota.  She has worked with Native CDFIs in the Northern Plains Region. Taffy is a consultant, trainer, and grant writer for American Indian tribes and organizations.  She has worked with 19 tribes and numerous organizations/programs on economic development, housing, funding, and training. She studied Business Administration at National American University and Fine Arts at Sinte Gleska University.  She enjoys traveling, art, cooking, sewing, and sports when she is not working.

Gerri LeBeau is the Director of Operations at the Black Hills Community Loan Fund (BHCLF) in Rapid City, South Dakota. She started at BHCLF in September 2022. Among other duties, Gerri oversees the management of and reporting on the organization’s grants to funders. Ms. LeBeau is an enrolled member of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe Two Kettle Band. Her Lakota name given to her by her mother is Laughing Woman (Eha Pi Win). Gerri is a member of the National North American Indian Women’s Association, Carole Anne Heart Cancer Coalition, Katala Okolakiciye Winyan Society (a Lakota women’s society), founding member of NARP, and Advancing Contextual Analysis and Methods of Participatory Engagement Community Advisory Board. Gerri graduated from Black Hills State University with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with an emphasis in Accounting. In her free time, Gerri enjoys creating jewelry, baking, hiking, reading, traveling, and playing card and board games.

In January 2022, Gerri along with five family members and an attorney worked on an international repatriation plan to request the return twenty-five cultural and sacred artifacts from Glasgow Life/Glasgow Museums in Scotland. The repatriation effort was successfully approved by the Glasgow City Council in March 2022. The anticipated return of the artifacts is June 2023. The international repatriation effort is in honor of the late Marcella LeBeau who assisted with the repatriation of the Sacred Wounded Knee Ghost Dance shirt in 1999 from the Kelvingrove Museum (now known as Glasgow Life/Glasgow Museum).

Samantha “Sammie” Crawford is an enrolled member of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and is also Oglala Sioux on her mother’s side. Born and raised in Rapid City, South Dakota, Sammie earned her Bachelor of Arts in Social Science in December 2020 from Oglala Lakota College (OLC). Shortly after graduating, she began employment at OLC as a Student Support Services (SSS) Counselor. She served as an SSS Counselor from March of 2021 to August of 2023. Sammie joined our team in October of 2023. She is grateful to be working at a Native CDFI and is enthusiastic about helping her relatives within the community improve their financial wellness.

Sammie is happily married and has one son. Outside of work, she enjoys spending time and creating memories with her family. Her hobbies include DIY arts or crafts and cooking. Sammie is always eager to engage in activities that allow her creativity to soar.

Amanda Standing Bear, an enrolled member of the Oglala Sioux Tribe, graduated from Dartmouth College in 2017 with a BA in Native American Studies. After graduation, she returned home and joined Mazaska Owecaso Otipi Financial, a Native American community development financial institution that specializes in homeownership on the Pine Ridge Reservation, as an AmeriCorps VISTA worker. In 2018, she moved into the Education & Housing Specialist role at Mazaska until January 2024, when she joined Black Hills Community Loan Fund as the Small Business Advisor. Through her work in the Native CDFI field, she developed a passion for financial literacy, homebuyer education, and helping others with their finances. Outside of work, Amanda likes to spend time with her three dogs and two cats. She also loves to travel, hike, and cook and bake.