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\\u201cWe were never afraid to admit what we didn\\u2019t know...But we did not fear to dream big...it is your right to dream big bold visions about your future, and your right to pursue those visions.\\u201d

Thunder Valley Community Development Corporation is doing some incredible work on Pine Ridge. And Nick Tilsen is the Executive Director of the organization.

Thunder Valley was created after Nick and others were scolded by some ancestors during a sweat. They had been complaining about the way the rez is. The ancestors challenged them: \\u201chow long are you going to let other people decide the future for your children. It\\u2019s time to stop talking and start doing. Don\'t come from a place of fear, come from a place of hope.\\u201d \\xa0And with that, Thunder Valley CDC was created, named after a spiritual circle on the reservation.

Nick Tilsen is an enrolled member of the Oglala Lakota. When he was five years old, his parents separated and he moved to Minneapolis with his father. He went from a predominantly Native American school district to a school where no single group made up more than 20 percent of the population. But no matter how long he lived in Minnesota, he knew his home was Pine Ridge.

After high school, Nick spent some time in Alaska fishing. Eventually he joined U.S. Trek. He traveled around the country interviewing leaders in their local communities. He saw the impact they had in their communities and was inspired by them.\\xa0

Nick had what he calls \\u201ca burning desire to be amongst his land and his people.\\u201d Nick returned to Pine Ridge to work like those he had interviewed while traveling. He sought to reclaim his family\\u2019s land, living in a tent while remodeling his parents\\u2019 house.

Eventually he had his encounter with the ancestors and he created Thunder Valley. Where a field once sat, Thunder Valley is now a hive of activity disrupting the status quo. Thunder Valley is creating a 34 acre community from scratch. They employ 30 people. The organization has received significant attention recently, including from President Obama. But the work has been a decade in the making.

Nick\\u2019s work is changing his community for the better. But Nick views his work and that of Thunder Valley as the stewards of the work. It is really the people who are making these changes.

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