Congratulations Fern FCI’s 2021 Nan Cheney March for Justice Awardee!
Fern Orie, a strong advocate for cultural and economic prosperity of Native Americans in Wisconsin is named the 2021 Nan Cheney March for Justice Awardee by Forward Community Investments!
Fern fights tirelessly to improve the lives of Wisconsin tribal members in many ways. Knowing one way to improve these members’ lives is by infusing capital into those communities, she was the founding CEO of the Wisconsin Native Loan Fund (WINLF) a certified Native Community Development Financial Institution. The goal of creating WINLF is to provide access to affordable lending opportunities by promoting financial self-sufficiency and improving economic and social conditions on Tribal lands in Wisconsin. Under her leadership, WINLF has deployed over $7 million in loans to tribal members on all eleven reservations and across the state for home improvement, home purchase, down payment, debt consolidation, auto purchase, and starting or expanding small businesses. Along with the loan products WINLF provides development services like financial education, homebuyer education, credit coaching, and technical assistance, to name a few.
