Before she began working as deputy director of Lakota Funds, Ellen White Thunder had built a background in construction. She was certified as a residential building inspector. She was a certified pipelayer. She had her certification in plumbing inspection. “I love everything about construction,” she explains. And she knew that knowledge in construction would be needed on Pine Ridge and other reservations in South Dakota, where there was not just a shortage of homes, but a shortage of the people who could build them and make sure they were safe.

NeighborWorks America Awards Second Tranche of FY 2025 Flexible Impact Grants: More Than $13.9 Million of Investment to Nonprofits Driving Proven, Market-Based Solutions to the Nation’s Housing Supply and Affordability Crisis 

For Immediate Release 

May 22, 2025 

Contact: Douglas Robinson

[email protected]

For many aspiring homeowners, securing financing can be a challenge — especially for self-employed individuals navigating fluctuating income and strict lending requirements. Greg’s journey from small business owner to homeowner showcases how manufactured housing and access to flexible financial solutions can turn dreams into reality.

Building business with the right support

Sarah Kackar

Sarah Kackar, AICP, is a seasoned planning practitioner with 20 years of direct experience in community planning and development, stakeholder facilitation and cross-network collaboration.

Marietta Rodriguez

Marietta Rodriguez is president & CEO of NeighborWorks® America, a congressionally chartered nonprofit corporation that supports a national network of nearly 250 organizations working to expand access to affordable homes, improve lives, and strengthen communities.

Ricky Dollison grew up farming in Poulan, Georgia, on 197 acres of fields, pastures and woods. His father grew peanuts, cotton, vegetables and tobacco. He raised hogs and cattle, too. Before that, his grandfather, known as "Big Daddy," farmed the land.

Farming wasn't easy and for a time, Dollison pictured a different life for himself. He received biomedical training and calibrated and repaired medical equipment at a hospital before moving to Connecticut to do electrical work.

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