Serving Families on Pine Ridge Indian Reservation Since 1999
OGLALA SIOUX TRIBE
PARTNERSHIP FOR HOUSING
HOME BUYER READINESS FINANCIAL EDUCATION ASSET BUILDING
Buffalo Dreams-Recapturing the Spirit of Self-Sufficiency
ABOUT US
Our Mission:
"To provide affordable housing and community self-sufficiency opportunities”
Now in its 15th year of service, Oglala Sioux Tribe Partnership for Housing, Inc. (OSTPH) is a private, non-profit organization promoting homeownership and developing viable housing options for people on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota. Home to the Oglala Lakota people, the Pine Ridge has long been one of the poorest areas per capita in the nation. It has taken a creative, innovative and determined commitment by OSTPH to form the partnerships with varied resources that have resulted in a meaningful start to addressing the area’s extreme housing shortage.
The Oglala Sioux Tribe Partnership for Housing, Inc. (OSTPH) has assisted families on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in their efforts to achieve homeownership since its creation in 1999. Over the past twelve years, OSTPH has promoted homeownership on the reservation, providing homeownership education and counseling, assisting families in applying for home mortgages, and building homes to meet the severe housing shortage on the Reservation. OSTPH has assisted over 110 families in purchasing a home. This number is impressive given the barriers to homeownership prevalent on Indian reservations, including land tenure, credit issues, and affordability. Using innovation and collaboration as its basic strategy, OSTPH has utilized self-help, the Governor’s House Program, Federal subsidy for first-time homebuyers and for rehab projects, private foundation initiatives, community-based projects and faith-based and Tribal support to develop affordable, safe, decent and sanitary housing options for families in its service area.
In addition to its housing development and homeownership education efforts, OSTPH has also developed a CDFI initiative to finance homeownership and home improvements, Mazaska Owecaso Otipi Financial (Mazaska). Originally created as a program of OSTPH, Mazaska is now an independent CDFI servicing its own mortgage portfolio. Starting in 2006 an added component of the organization’s work has been identifying resources for the rehabilitation, renovation, and preservation of existing homes, often for elderly homeowners. Through a HUD Rural Housing & Economic Development (RHED) grant in 2008, this initiative successfully helped homeowners make existing homes safer and healthier.
Affordable housing development has always been a part of the OSTPH Mission. At first the organization managed the construction process, working directly with local contractors. After implementing a self-help program for approximately eight years, the organization decided to turn to other housing development methods and projects. Exploring other options, OSTPH has been focusing development efforts in three (3) main homeownership areas:
1) mixed income housing developments in partnership with other resources,
2) a low-income prototype option for scatter-site placement, and
3) the development of a supportive housing four-plex apartment unit that can be replicated in each of the Reservation’s nine (9) districts.
In 2012, OSTPH sought and was awarded certification as a Community Housing Development Organization (CHDO), making it eligible for additional funding under the South Dakota HUD housing block grant. However, any funding offered through this resource is extremely competitive and the unique needs of rural Indian Country do not often equate to ready access to necessary funding, from this resource or other government and/or foundation grant programs.
We are a Tribally-chartered, non-profit Housing Counseling organization.
Serving the Oglala Lakota Nation since 1999
WHAT IS IMPORTANT TO US
CULTURAL VALUES
01/
OUR APPROACH
OSTPH utilizes our Lakota values in our educational classes; in our social media, and in our office.
Woc’ekiya – Praying: Finding spirituality by communicating with your higher power, this communication between you and Tunkasila without going through another person or spirit.
Wa o’ hola – Respect: for self, higher power, family, community and all life.
Wa on’sila – Caring and Compassion: love caring, and concern for one another in a good way, especially for the family, the old ones, the young ones, the orphans, the one in mourning, the sick ones, and the ones working for the people.
Wowijke – Honesty and Truth: with yourself, higher power and others with sincerity.
Wawokiye – Generosity and Caring: helping without expecting anything in return, giving from the heart.
Wah’wala – Humility: we have a spirit; we are not better or less than others.
Woksape – Wisdom: practice with knowledge comes wisdom.
02/
FINANCIAL EDUCATION
We share our financial literacy education with whomever we work with in hope that they will use the information.
SELF-SUFFICIENCY
03/
As an organization, we promote the opportunity to teach others to be self-sufficient. By working with other organizations, we want to help our tribal members to be independent and self-sufficient.
THE FUTURE
04/
We are excited to an organization that will help tribal members become homeowners. Through the education we provide for them, they too will become self-sufficient.
