Ch’a Yaa Eesh (Richard Peterson) is Tlingit from the Kaagwaantaan clan and is a life long Alaska Native resident of Southeast Alaska.  Richard lives in Kasaan and has served the community in the capacity of Tribal President of the Organized Village of Kasaan (OVK) since 1998, and as either Mayor or City Council Member since 1996. He has been a delegate to the Central Council of Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska (CCTHITA) since 2002, a twice elected member of the Southeast Island School District Board of Education since 2003, and is currently serving as Secretary of the School Board. In his service for OVK, Peterson has fostered the growth of the tribe through innovative program and economic development. During this tenure, the annual budget of the Tribe has grown from $13,000 to over one million dollars.  This has been due to widespread program development and an aggressive pursuit of grant funding. This pursuit is successful because OVK has developed competent and reputable grant and fiscal management procedures, which have resulted in six consecutive clean audits. During this time, OVK has grown from two part time workers to nine full time, one part time and six seasonal employees.

Richard is also the President of the Prince of Wales Tribal Enterprise Consortium, LLC (POWTEC), a dynamic 8(a) company that participates in the growing global information technology, professional engineering, and environmental engineering industries. It is through collaborative efforts like POWTEC and local economic development initiatives that Richard is helping to shape the future of economic and social well-being for Native people in rural Alaska

A Message From Richard
"I feel blessed to have grown up all my life in Kasaan. Not only have I had strong family support to nurture me, but I also have had the opportunity to learn our traditional ways from elders that truly lived a culturally enriched life. This blessing is not something I have ever taken for granted. It is something that has also followed me in my life, as I have been blessed with mentorship from other elders, such as Richard Stitt, Ethel Lund, Judy George, Liz Walters, Viola Burgess and Evelyn Hotch (my Gram). I have learned, and continue to learn, from such strong leaders and I pray that I can continue to retain and prosper from their priceless guidance, and one day share with others, as they have shared with me.” Gunalcheesh Hawaa