WHO
WE ARE

Charlene Yarlott Johnson is the Executive Director and founder for Plenty Doors Community Development Corporation, established in 2018. She has lived on or near the Crow Reservation for most of her life. Prior to Plenty Doors, Charlene worked with the Indian Health Service for almost 25 years as a public health nutritionist and an administrator. Her interest in starting a nonprofit organization focused on community economic development while working with the Indian Health Service. Charlene acquired her education at Montana State University – Bozeman and the University of North Carolina- Chapel Hill. Charlene is a member of the Apsáalooke Nation in Montana. At Plenty Doors CDC, we know that our Apsáalooke people possess the ability, the intelligence and talent to control and determine our own destiny. We do not need to be dependent on outside entities to do the work that is needed or to determine what is best for our communities. Accordingly, we believe that Plenty Doors CDC can foster community change by engaging Apsáalooke people in locally driven efforts to improve our communities through economic development, individual and community capacity building, business development, promotion and preservation of culture and food sovereignty. Given adequate resources, our Apsáalooke people will be a sovereign Nation that determine for ourselves how we can create a good future for our children and those to come. Plenty Doors CDC works to inspire Apsáalooke independence.

Charitina serves as the Operations Manager for Plenty Doors Community Development Corporation. She joined our team in 2020. Her experience includes significant work for non-profit organizations as well as student financial aid and grants administration at Little Big Horn College. Charitina seeks to provide service to those who in turn provide service to others, employs her own background and experience to work with individuals in the helping profession, and focuses to forge partnerships with organizations whose members lead and work with passion at the root-cause level of change. Charitina earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration with an emphasis in Management from Montana State University - Bozeman. She is a member of the Apsáalooke Nation in Montana. Charitina considers her work with Plenty Doors to be the most important work in her life-time.

Joen joined Plenty Doors in the fall of 2023. She brings with her various administrative roles and management experience. She has 35+ years of experience delivering financial, budgeting, accounting, audit, and payroll services. She has proven success in managing and allocating multi-million-dollar funds to federal programs, agencies, and tribes of Montana and Wyoming. Joen attended Little Big Horn College and Haskell Indian Nations University. She brings years of experience working with the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Bureau of Land Management, US Forest Service, the US Treasury, National Interagency Fire Center, and the Executive Branch of the Crow Tribe. She retired from the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Rocky Mountain Regional Office as a Budget Analyst after 30 years of federal service. Joen is an enrolled member of the Apsáalooke Tribe and speaks fluently in her first language. She was intrigued with the Plenty Doors mission and core values. Her interest in Plenty Doors is the opportunity to partner with their passion and commitment to improve our communities through all it has to offer.

Roberta is the Development Services Community Coordinator for Plenty Doors Community Development Corporation. Roberta is a member of the Apsáalooke Nation in Montana and grew up on Crow Rez . She earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology from Rocky Mountain College in Billings, Montana and is working on a Master’s Degree from Montana State University, Go Catz!!! Roberta works one on one with small business owners and entrepreneurs on and off the reservation, offering technical assistance. She provides financial literacy classes to the communities, and other trainings i.e. QuickBooks and ServeSafe.

Jonathan Jefferson started as the Grants and Contracts Administrator Trainee at Plenty Doors Community Development Corporation in June of 2023. Jonathanhas served his community in the Army and seven years in law enforcement on the Crow Reservation. Jonathanhad recently moved back from Sumner, Washington where he had lived for seven years and was a Lead Technician at Rambo Pest Control for four years and was a security supervisor for two years. Jonathanattended Little Big Horn College. He is a member of the Apsáalooke Nation, is a member of the Greasy Mouth Clan and a child of the Ties the Bundle Clan.

Zac Birdinground is the new Owner Representative/Project Manager for the Crow Innovation Center in Crow Agency, MT. Zac will be responsible to serve as Plenty Doors representative during the design and construction of the Crow Innovation Center, with architects, engineers, contractors, vendors, consultants, and regulatory authorities. ​ Zac has 5 years of experience estimating and managing commercial and residential construction projects. He is a dedicated worker, whose goals are to ensure that a project finishes on time, finishes on budget, is of great quality, and is run safely. Zac has earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Construction Engineering Technology and a minor in Business Administration from Montana State University-Bozeman, which has helped Zac estimate and manage over $30 million in contracts. Zac is the founder and owner of Zac Birdinground Construction, a firm that provides preconstruction and general contracting services located in Billings, MT. ​ Zac is a member of the Apsáalooke Nation in Montana. Zac is excited and grateful for the opportunity Plenty Doors has provided him; this opportunity will allow him to use his education and experience to work on a project in his hometown which will help improve the lives of the Apsáalooke people. When Zac is not doing work for Plenty Doors, he is spending time with his family and working on growing his business. ​ For more information on the Crow Innovation Center, please visit the Crow Innovation Center section of the website which is located under the “Our Programs” Drop Down Menu at the top of the web page

Teatta Plain Feather is the new Loan Officer for Plenty Doors Community Development Center, an emerging Native-led Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI). She joined our team in 2021. Teatta has experience both as administrative assistant and program coordinators on and off the Crow Reservation. She earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Business from Rocky Mountain College in Billings, Montana. Teatta is a member of the Apsáalooke Nation in Montana and a fluent speaker of the language. She is excited to play an active role in the important work of Plenty Doors by being a part of providing opportunity to tribal community members in building financial and economic stability.

Carla Catolster is the Business Incubator Manager and Individual Program Account (IDA) Coordinator for Plenty Doors Community Development Corporation (Plenty Doors). The Business Incubator Manager role is responsible for the small businesses incubated with Plenty Doors. The Manager helps the businesses succeed and provides services and resources for the small business to grow and succeed which in turn impact the economy of the Crow Indian Reservation. The IDA Coordinator oversees the implementation of the savings program to ensure the complete success of the participants. ​ Carla is an enrolled Crow tribal member of the Crow Tribe and a descendant of the Eastern Band Cherokee Indians. Her parents were a part of the job relocation program that did not successfully “take the Indian out of the man!” As was the intention of that program. Carla has lived and worked on and near the Crow Indian Reservation all her life. She has a passion to build the Crow people and land up, as it should be, and this is what brought her Plenty Doors. ​ Carla graduated from Lodge Grass High School, Montana. She received her Associate of Arts in Information Systems/ Business Option at Little Big Horn College and earned her Bachelors of Science in Business Management from Rocky Mountain College, Billings, Montana. ​ Carla has held many positions with the longest being the Administrator for Awe Kualawaache Care Center, a medicaid and medicare certified, nonprofit nursing home in Crow Agency, Montana. The common thread throughout the positions she has held is helping people and providing customer services. She has always said that she wanted to work for the people and just make it a better place for her kids, grandkids and even the unborn yet to come. Carla recalls a time in her life when her hometown and the community functioned self-sufficiently. She envisions seeing this again in her lifetime and looks ahead to the future growth that will occur to where it will be a place where people thrive together as a community.

Julia Covers Up is the Loan Administrator for Plenty Doors Community Development Corporation (Plenty Doors). The Loan Administrator performs the loan intake and application support, underwriting and loan committee support, loan servicing support and Individual Development Account (IDA) intake and application support. She is rewarded with learning new ways to enhance knowledge of opportunities and financial education for our Native Community. She encourages individuals to go forward with their dreams without fear and assures them they have a group of people in their corner to help them reach their goal(s). These types of opportunities are what caught her attention to Plenty Doors. Julia earned an Associate Arts degree from the Little Big Horn College in Crow Agency, Montana. She has passed the Crow Tribal Courts Bar Exam, which has provided her with another way to assist the Community. She has worked in the public sector in various jobs for over 35 years.

Jacy Hogan is the Bookkeeper for Plenty Doors Community Development Corporation in Crow Agency, MT. She is responsible for the day-to-day bookkeeping activities as well as coordinating and gathering information for the program leads and the Executive Director. Jacy has 2 years of experience in bookkeeping. She enjoys learning new things daily. She is a dedicated, focused, detailed oriented person who is passionate about her work. Her long-term goal is to continue her education in accounting to become an accountant. Jacy earned an AA in Business Administration from Little Big Horn College. Jacy is a member of the Apsáalooke Nation in Montana. The mission of Plenty Doors and the programs offered to the community intrigued Jacy to apply for a position at Plenty Doors.

JoRee LaFrance - also known as Iichiinmáatchileesh/Fortunate with Horses – comes from the Apsáalooke/Crow Nation in Montana. She is Greasy Mouth and is a child of the Ties the Bundle Clan. JoRee holds a B.A. in Earth Sciences and Native American Studies from Dartmouth College and is, now, an aspiring water scientist studying surface water quality in the Little Bighorn River watershed as a doctoral candidate in the Department of Environmental Science at the University of Arizona. At Plenty Doors, JoRee works as a team leader for the Apsáalooke Energy Justice Project (AEJP) where she is joined by a team of young Apsáalooke leaders and an advisory committee. The AEJP is dedicated to economic diversification, workforce development, alternative energy, and cultural preservation. She also serves as a consultant and volunteer on various cultural and community projects. As an environmental science scholar, she was an Agents of Change in Environmental Justice Fellow, Aspen Institute Forum on Women and girls SOAR Fellow, UofA CALS Impact Leader Fellow, CLIMAS Environment and Society Fellow, Carson Scholar, National GEM Fellow, Sloan Scholar, NSF NRT Indigenous Food, Energy, Water Security, and Sovereignty (Indige-FEWSS) Fellow. On top of her research, JoRee co-manages the Ilíiaitchik: Indigenous Correspondents Program and the Biawaatchaache Collective that she founded.