Thanks from Our Friends at Pine Ridge Reservation!
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Kiyuksa O'Tipi Reintegration Center Lakota Oyate Wakanyeja Owicakiyapi, Inc. (LOWO) Little Wound Elementary School Little Wound High School Library Red Shirt School Sewing Circle |
February 8, 2007 Dear Friends of Pine Ridge, Again you have "come through" for us here at Re-Member. This time the focus was on protecting the volunteers who come to do the many work projects we have awaiting them in service to the Lakota people here. We truly appreciate your sharing the concern we have for our volunteers' safety. We received many shop goggles and work gloves from "Friends." This helps tremendously in allowing us to use the money we would have spent for these needed items on material needs we buy directly for the Lakota in need, ie; bunk beds, food boxes, Sunday dinners in the summer, scholarship funds, and much more. Thanks again for keeping us in your hearts!
Janet Crews December 7, 2006 Dear, dear "Friends"...We, here at Re-Member, want to extend the gratitude we have encountered from the recipients of your beautiful gifts. The overwhelming amount of new knit wear, crochet items, sewn items, clean used clothing, blankets, sheets, pillow cases, toys, etc. (items too numerous to mention) that you sent will help many, many here be warm and cozy this winter. We all love to bundle up our baby or selves in something comfy and new to us--yet that is beyond the reach of many here on the reservation were it not for people like you. It is a joy for us to give out the things you worked so hard to make, package and paid to post. The joy in the faces of the Lakota receiving these items would warm your hearts. Thank you again. May you all be blessed for the blessings you gave. May you have a very Merry Christmas--knowing you made a brighter one here. Sincerely,
Janet Crews July 31, 2006 Dear Friends, You are amazing....we shared our most urgent need and you soothed the urgency! We needed to protect the eyes and ears of those hard working volunteers who come here and give their time and talents to make beds for the Lakota people who have none. So, in reality...you too helped supply those beds! Because of your help a Lakota child is not sleeping on the floor tonight. Thank you, thank you for the many ear plugs and safety glasses you sent. Equally....thanks so much to those who sent paint rollers. We go through paint rollers quickly as we help those on the Pine Ridge reservation who need to protect and brighten their house or room with new paint. Sometimes -- that is all they have to brighten their world. Thanks for brightening ours!
Janet Crews
June 27, 2006 Dear Friends, As I sit down to write this I carry such thanks in my heart for your ongoing efforts that it’s hard to put them into words. Essentially RE-MEMBER is on Pine Ridge to stand beside our Lakota brothers and sisters. In order to do this two major ingredients are necessary...willing volunteers from all over the country and a dedicated staff. This year the items you sent were of great benefit to all of these folks who keep making it happen here at RE-MEMBER. We find ourselves continually adding to our staff quarters as the organization grows. The four new microwaves were just in time for one of these growth spurts, and we are truly grateful to have them. And then the children’s books began arriving. We put one on each of the beds as they are placed in the homes, and the kids truly enjoy them. Thank you for helping them to read and learn about their culture at the same time. Then as soon as Chris said the book drive was finished the work gloves and safety glasses started coming. I cannot emphasize how necessary these are when volunteers of varying skill levels are hard at work in the workshop. Wopila (a giant heartfelt thanks) to each of you for what you have given. These are the things of which relationships are made, and we at RE-MEMBER truly appreciate your generous spirits. And a special wopila to Chris for making it all happen!
Sue Schuster April 21, 2006 Dear Chris and "Friends" Members, We are overwhelmed with the four beautiful Sharp stainless steel microwave ovens and paper goods you sent for our use here at Re-Member. They will be so useful in our day-to-day operations to help the Oglala Lakota people of this Reservation. Like you, our respect and love for the people here motivates our every move to share our gifts and talents where they will do the most good in helping them. At a time in history when many are turning inward, often feeling overwhelmed by the needs of the world, we appreciate your hearing a call and reaching out to help the proud and devastatingly poor people of Pine Ridge Reservation with your support. At a time in history when many are called the "me" generation, or even worse, "apathetic" or "indifferent," we appreciate your show of supportive care for our outreach project.The many volunteers who so generously give of their time and energy to work on the Reservation join us in thanking you. At a time in history when we most need to dream and envision with hope, THANK YOU for helping us make it possible! Shalom & Shelem,
Rev. Keith S. Titus July 11, 2005 Dear Friends, You've been teaching us at RE-MEMBER what the true meaning of "Friend" is, with your generous donations of tools and bedding that are so integral to our work here on Pine Ridge. Each week volunteers ready all of the bunk bed components in our workshop. Then they are loaded onto a trailer, along with mattresses, pillows, and bedding, and placed in homes, one community at a time, around the reservation. We always seem to have more requests than we have beds. I'm going to let a little girl about 6 years old tell you the story from here. This was the first place of her own to sleep, and her eyes were practically glowing with anticipation. She busily ran from the RE-MEMBER cargo trailer to the trailer where she lived to check on the volunteers' progress. And finally there were several trips to choose just the right colors and prints of her sheets, pillowcases, and blanket. When we left she was perched happily in the special space that she had helped create. There are very few choices to be made amidst the overcrowded living conditions found here on Pine Ridge due to the tremendous poverty. Thank you for helping us bring a measure of comfort and choice into the lives of the Lakota people.
Sue Schuster June 11, 2005 Dear Friends, Thank you for all of your wonderful donations! We deeply appreciate the caring and sharing that was so evident from your response. Your efforts enable us to continue to reach out to the Lakota people amidst the enormous need that is found on Pine Ridge. The Lakota word "tiospaye" translates loosely in English as "extended family". One of the many fascinating relational aspects we've run into on the reservation has to do with their understanding of just what that means. For the Lakota, your mother is not just the woman who gave birth to you. It also includes your mother's sister(s), maybe your grandma, sometimes any other adult woman living in the home with you, and in some cases, the neighbor lady (if none of the others are around). One's cousins are referred to as brothers and sisters. Like the African model, the entire "village" becomes the family; all are equally responsible to one another. RE-MEMBER has that same feeling about you because you've elected to stand with us through your generosity. "Mitakuye oyasin" (We are all related). And through our relationship with the people of Pine Ridge, you are a part of their "tiospaye", even if you've never been here. Pilamaya (Thank you!)
Sue Schuster |