Fort Washakie, WY – The Wind River Development Fund (WRDF) announced today that Erika Warren-Yarber has been promoted to Chief Operating Officer of the growing organization. Yarber previously served as the Director of Business Development since joining the Fort Washakie-based nonprofit in 2022. WRDF is a Native Community Development Financial Institution focused on economic development on the Wind River Indian Reservation, and in Fremont and Hot Springs counties in Wyoming.
Paul F. Huberty, Executive Director of WRDF, stated that Yarber has been instrumental in the organization’s success over the past year, including the recently awarded $36 million EDA Recompete grant. Huberty commented, “Erika is a strong leader. She contributed to the new vision and strategic direction for the Wind River Development Fund, which not only brought in significant funding for our organization and the Reservation, but also elevated our profile on the national stage. In every conversation, Erika remains a constant advocate for the people in Wind River and she keeps us grounded in our mission and purpose.”
As Chief Operating Officer, Yarber will have leadership responsibility for the organization’s lending program, fundraising, human resources, marketing, and real estate management. Yarber will also have a leadership role in the implementation and execution of WRDF’s strategic projects, including a new 14,400-sq-ft Tribal Buffalo Center at the Wind River Tribal Buffalo Initiative and a new 13,100-sq-ft Tribal Fish and Game complex across from the Fort Washakie hot springs.
Yarber is an enrolled member of the Northern Arapaho Tribe and a descendent of the Eastern Shoshone Tribe. In speaking about the promotion, Yarber said, “I am very humbled and honored. I am optimistic about the opportunities that are being creating through economic development for all of our people. I look forward to what the future will bring. Hahou.”
Yarber serves on the Boards of the Wind River Visitors Council, Wyoming Women’s Business Center, Wind River Community Alliance, and she is the Chair of the Board of Directors for the newly established Sweet Grass Food Lodge on the Reservation. She was accepted into the 2024 class of the Wyoming Leadership Academy, and she was recently invited to speak at the International Economic Development Council’s national conference in Denver and the Just Transition Fund’s national convening in Washington, DC.