Brrrr.....it's cold outside!

The Pine Ridge Volunteers are currently working on a new project.  Winter is a harsh time for the people of Pine Ridge, especially the children.  We would like to collect as many stocking hats, gloves and mittens as we can to send to the children of Pine Ridge.  If you would like to donate a pair of gloves, mittens or stocking hat, it can be placed in the tote in the Outer Narthex. 

Thank you so much for your help!

News about Pine Ridge

We had a very rewarding yet sobering trip to Pine Ridge, SD in September.  As we departed, there were over 500 requests for assistance yet to be filled. 

This year we skirted trailers, constructed outhouses,  built and delivered bunk beds plus bedding to several Lakota families.

We are indebted to the congregation of Trinity for your continued support of Pine Ridge. 

Our Spaghetti Supper served 100 meals and was made possible by those who helped set up, served the meal, cleaned up, and provided a wide variety of desserts to top off the meal.

Special thank you’s go our to the “Celebrating Creative Women’s” Group, Marlene Senn,  and Marlene O’Brien for providing warm blankets and sheet sets for the bunk beds.

The needs on Pine Ridge are many, please consider joining us on our next trip.

Also, continue to check our blog as updates will be posted throughout the year.

Re-Member Assistance 2012

I forgot to mention that Re-Member has assisted 220 families in 2012 to date (most ever).  300 more families still need help and have submitted such request.

91% of Re-Member Funds/Budget goes to help Lakota people.

The Director said, that biggest problem in the U.S. is that people have lost consciousness of the American Natives.

Friday - September 21st

Breakfast is on your own and a final Widsom of the Elders.  Then we say goodbye to Remember and The Rez until we return again.  It has been a good week physically and emotionally exhausting, but one filled with HOPE as we work alongside the Ogala Lakotas.     Mitakuye Oyasin!

Thursday - September 20th

Today our Trinity group split up for the day with Karin and Sandy going with the Remember group on a tour of The Rez.  Greg & Terry, Bob & Joyce spent part of the day with the Remember Board at Feather 2 and then joined us for lunch.
Our first stop was KILI Radio Station.  This is an information station which connects people on The Rez to what is happening across the area.  The information is interspersed with music ranging from Lakota, rock, rap, etc.  While we were there the roofing crew was putting on the final layer of shingles.
The next stop was Lakota College and museum.  The college has 7 branches scattered across The Rez.  For more information on the college, please visit their webpage at: http://www.olc.edu/.  The museum offered a panoramic audio tour of the history of the Lakota Tribe.  It was complete with framed photos, maps, replicas of treaties (broken) and paintings depicting the events.  The audio was then culminated with a video from the college.  Leaving the building we walked to the college bookstore.
A brief stop at The Chamber of Commerce provided an array of artistic offerings from award winning Lakota artists such as water colors, oils, beaded clothing and jewelry, etc.  All quite impressive!
The Singing Horse Trading Post/Bed & Breakfast was the next stop.  This store provides local crafters with their supplies plus carrying their finished products.  It was a souvenir shoppers dream.  Speaking of dreams, you've heard of the dream catchers?  Did you know that the first Lakota "website"??  Corbin Conroy, our guide for the tour kept us laughing throughout the day.
Lunch was at Betty's Kitchen.  Betting is the great granddaughter of Black Elk, a prominent Lakota leader. Learn more about Black Elk by reading "Black Elk Speaks".  Betty was serving over 200 lunches from her home today plus her specialties of fry bread and chocolate cake.  Some of the group then walked down to Black Elk's cabin, which is still standing.
We then headed to Red Cloud School and Heritage Center.  This school is associated with The Catholic Church.  It is highly selective about the students who attend with over 90% of the graduates going on to college.  A cemetery lies up the hill adjacent to the Center.  Here you can visit Red Cloud's grave site which is quite a moving experience.  A quick visit into The Heritage Center and museum completed our visit.
The most popular spot on The Rez was our final destination - Big Bats.  It is a gas station which is the local hang out.  We loaded up on snacks and treats to celebrate our final evening on The Rez.  Pizza and ice cream sundaes were slated for supper.  Karin and I departed for Denver for a morning flight back home and left our share of the food for the Elon students.

Wednesday - September 19th

Heigh-ho, heigh-ho, it's off to work we go!
Today, following the Wisdom of the Elders which was on relationships, we departed in several different directions.  Greg and Terry delivered the 7 bunk beds plus mattresses, bedding, blankets and books to four families on The Rez.  Three families received 2 sets of bunk beds with the fourth family receiving one.  Terry was able to meet with each family and listen to their particular situation.  One family had returned to a grandmother's home which had been vandalized and evacuated.  The clean up process began with the kitchen, where new linoleum had been installed.  This is where the 3 kids slept.  they of course were delighted with their bed and all the extras.  Terry will have more stories and pictures to share upon our return.
Joyce & Bob, Karin and Sandy headed toward Porcupine to skirt an 80' x 20' trailer.  Trenches were dug, frames were made, insulation and siding installed.  It was a very windy day and we worked very hard to complete the entire project.
Tonight was crafters night.  There were 10 tables of paintings, drawings and jewelry from which to choose.  It was a very nice variety!
Our speaker tonight was Naomi Last Horse.  She is an elementary teacher (grades 1-8) of the Lakota language.  After a mini lesson of Lakota names for body parts, we engaged in a game of "Naomi Says".  We all stod with eyes closed and attempted to point to the part of our body upon hearing the Lakota word.  I am sorry to say that Trinity sat down rather quickly as did lots of others!  Naomi and her daughter then entertained us with several songs before answering our questions.
Thursday will be our touring day on The Rez and our last full day at Remember.

Tuesday - September 18th

Up and at'em! - mornings are coming earlier!  Joyce and her group completed the trailer skirting project along with picking up more glass and debris.
Today, Bob, Greg, Terry and Sandy stayed at Remember and worked on projects at the workshop.  There were 3 outhouses to finish which required the talents of Greg, Terry and Bob.  Karin and Sandy sanded boards in preparation for the 7 bunk beds being constructed.  The boards were then painted by the girls from Elon.  Karin  and Sandy then selected 18 sets of bedding and 50 children's books to be delivered with the beds on Wednesday.
The third group completed removing the shingles off the roof of the radio station and were able to install 40% of the new roof!
We have a variety of Lakota speakers each evening.  Tonight, Larry Swalley and his family visited and shared the Lakota Creation Story with us.  Larry is a descendant of Red Cloud.  On Monday we were entertained by Will Peters.  He is an accomplished songwriter and performer.  He is also a high school teacher of Lakota language, culture and art.  He related very well with out college kids and made us all laugh with this anecdotes of life on The Rez.
Sunday evening, Keith Janis shared Lakota history and special prayers with us.  Tomorrow we will have Lakota artists and crafters visit.  This will give us all an opportunity to purchase some original creations.
....... The end for tonight.

                                                                      Greg Moore

Monday - September 17th

A wake up call was an hour earlier today at 6:00a.  After a hearty breakfast and Wisdom of the Elders, we broke into our groups and work assignments.
Groups 1 & 6 (Bob & Joyce), a young lady from Milwaukee and 5 boys from Elon University worked on tearing off two layers of shingles off the KILI radio station.  Needless to say, we sent the boys up on the roof and cleaned up everything they threw down.  We loaded it on the truck and then had to unload it at the dump.
We are learning about The Rez and meeting interesting people.  Karin worked in Manderson at a newly constructed strawbale house.  There she played in the straw and clay (mixing mud) which was used to cement the straw together.  The family owner is undertaking this project in hopes of helping others on The Rez to realize how the natural resources can be used.  The home is now ready for a green roof and the final touches.  For more info, log into the facebook page through www.earthtipi.org.
Greg, Terry and Sandy were located at a double wide trailer which needed skirting in preparation for winter.  After removing sections of temporary skirting, picking up glass and debris, and pulling weeds, we dug a small trench around the perimeter for the skirting frame and added 2x4's to complete our day's work.  All that remains is to install the insulation and T-111 (plywood).  This particular home has a new roof, new steps and had new windows, but a particularly strong windstorm has damaged all the windows.
A fourth group stayed at Remember constructing bunk bed platforms.  That's where we will be working on Tuesday.

Sunday - September 16th

Today we were gently awakened by Lakota flute music.  Breakfast was at 8:00a and then we were off to take in the sights of the Rez.
The first stop was The Badlands National Park where we hiked over a mile on rocky barren terrain to an area called The Sanctuary.  There we reclined in silence reflecting on the history and people of the area.
Following our visit to the Rez was a stop at a popular place on Pine Ride called Sharps Corner (a convenience store with lots of snack options).  This was very well received by the 15 freshman from Elon University who are sharing the week with us.
Traveling on we visited the new site of Remember - Feather 2.  This is 160 acres near Porcupine and will give Remember a more centrally located presence on Pine Ridge.  Much work needs to be done to ready the land in order to build the needed facilities.
Our last stop of the day was the site of the Wounded Knee Massacre of 1890.  We heard Dakota High Horse recount the events leading up to that horrific event.  Then it was back home for supper and our evening speaker.
Tomorrow we start our work.  Each of us is in a different work group which should make for a variety of experiences.

Almost ready to go!

We are packed and almost ready to go!  Everyone is anxious to get started and renew old staff acquaintances at Re-Member.  Thanks to the Congregation for their donations of blankets, sheets and health kits - they are very much appreciated and we look forward to distributing them to the Lakota Indians.  We will be arriving at Pine Ridge on Saturday, September 15th.  We will continue to update our blog while we are at Pine Ridge so check back for updates!!

Leaving in less than 2 weeks!

In less than 2 weeks, 6 Trinity members will travel to S.W. South Dakota to Pine Ridge.  A lively group of Creative Women knotted colorful flannel blankets to send to Pine Ridge.  Along with the blankets, several health kits were created to send along.  Twin sheet sets are also being collected, so that the Lakota bunks will have bedding.  A tot is provided for the bedding (sheets) in the outer Narthex.

Donations for Bedding

We will have extra room going to Pine Ridge and would be happy to accept any donations of bedding for bunk beds (twin size).  Collecting this bedding is one of the projects that is done to provide sleeping arrangements for all children and extended family.  We will have a donation box in the Narthex starting August12th and will only have one month to collect.  Thank you for your donations!

Spaghetti Supper - October 4th

We will be having our Annual Spaghetti Supper on Thursday, October 4th in the Trinity United Church of Christ Fellowship Hall.    --- More details posted soon..............

Welcome to our Pine Ridge Blog!

Our trip to Pine Ridge, South Dakota is scheduled from September 15^th, 2012 – September 21^st, 2012.   Learn to know and work with the Lakota Indians on this reservation, which is the poorest region in the U.S.  We strive to "put back that which is broken" through the non-denominational group of Re-member.   We will be updating our blog as the trip draws near and also updating you on the happenings at Pine Ridge!