About Us | Oaya Luta Okolakiciye

Oaye Luta Okolakiciye is a Lakota-based nonprofit 501c3 organization that promotes healing by providing continuum substance abuse prevention, intervention, and recovery education reconnecting inherent cultural potential while instilling hope, promoting wellness, and revitalizing cultural identity development in youth, adults, families and communities.

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“When a vision comes from the thunder beings of the west, it comes with terror like a thunder storm; but when the storm of vision has passed, the world is greener and happier; for wherever the truth of vision comes upon the world, it is like a rain. The world, you see, is happier after the terror of the storm.”

― He Haka Sapa, Black Elk Speaks: Being the Life Story of a Holy Man of the Oglala Sioux

Oaye Luta Okolakiciye Team

DEDICATION. EXPERIENCE. PASSION.

Founder / Executive Director

Gene Tyon

Gene brings more than 35 years of experience working with client issues of substance abuse, addiction healing and mental health management.

"I could see the current system of helping youth and adults simply was not working. I wanted to serve youth in the Oaye Luta way- to reconnect them to traditional values and enhance their identity development."

Board Member

Lynn Cuny

Oyate Waokiyan win emaciyapi ye. My Lakota name is She Helps Her People. I am dedicated to the health, education, sovereignty and lifeways of the Lakota na Dakota people. I have been on the board for OLO for over ten years.

I was born and raised in Rapid City, SD & am currently the Deputy Director at Thunder Valley CDC in Porcupine SD. I have a Masters Degree in Lakota Leadership and Management, with 4 undergraduate degrees. I worked at Indian Health Service for 11 years and have several certifications including my Personal Trainer Certificate. I am and have always been an artist and have a degree in Fine Arts from the Institute of American Indian Arts.

Board Member

Valeriah Big Eagle, Ed.D.

She received both her Baccalaureate in Sociology and her Master of Education from South Dakota State University. In addition, she received her Doctor of Education in Education Leadership from the University of South Dakota, specializing in Adult & Higher Education Administration. She understands the inequitable challenges that indigenous students face in education systems due to lack of cultural understanding and systemic racism, especially if they are in settings with little support for their cultural identity. She studied healing-informed practices in education that support Indigenous students and hopes to influence programming and public policy initiatives to culturally support indigenous students, resulting in an increase of indigenous graduates from high school, college, and beyond. Some of her accomplishments include being selected for Prairie Business Magazine’s “40 Under 40” Award, the F.O. Butler in Excellence for Community Service Award, and for serving as a 2020 Bush Fellow. She also participated in various leadership programs including: Leadership South Dakota, Native Nation Rebuilders, Rapid City Collective Impact Emerging Leaders, and Leadership Rapid City.

Program Director

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Verlyn Long Wolf, MS

Youth Male Mentor

Jeremiah Moreno