Several tribal citizens enjoyed the good food cooked by volunteers and one another’s company at the Christmas Dinner served at the center in Mission. Courtesy Photo
Rosebud Tribal Citizens Welcome A Place To Call Home
By Vi Waln
lakotacountrytimes.com MISSION – The opening of a shelter for people on the Rosebud Reservation came just in time to help locals stay warm and safe during a powerful Christmas blizzard. “We were very happy to be given the opportunity to provide a shelter for our relatives with nowhere to go,” stated Kathleen Wooden Knife. She serves as a tribal council representative for the Soldier Creek Community. “The first night we had three, within a day our numbers were up to twelve.” The shelter was initially able to open during a bone-chilling December weekend marked by subzero temperatures, made even more harsh by life threatening wind chills. Some stranded motorists also took advantage of the shelter hospitality on Christmas Day when they were caught in a blizzard. There is no federal funding provided for this new shelter. The center is located in a building previously owned by Rooks Funeral Home and recently purchased by Tribal Land Enterprise on behalf of the Rosebud Sioux Tribe. “What the building formerly was does not bother anyone,” stated Wooden Knife. All the daily work is done by volunteers who come in to oversee the care and activities. They work in shifts to keep the home open around the clock. Food, clothing, blankets, a TV/DVD player with movies have all been donated to the shelter. Ongoing donations of food, household items, furniture, bedding, etc. are welcome and appreciated. The center is open to anyone who seeks shelter from the winter weather or as needed due to power or fuel outages.
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“We have the understanding of Mitakuye Oyasin,” Wooden Knife continued. “We are all relatives and we do not refer to anyone as clients, homeless or street people. They are all our relatives. Listening to their stories about their lives tells us they do not choose to be where they are.” Several local residents have been instrumental in getting this shelter up and running. They include Bayon Bordeaux, Paula and Calvin Martinez, Virginia Wright, Lorenzo Brave Hawk, Julie Kelly, Valencia Beth Guerue along with Chris Yellow Eagle and his companion. They put food donations to good use by preparing and serving a delicious Christmas Dinner for the people staying at the shelter. (Vi Waln is an enrolled citizen of the Sicangu Lakota Nation and is a nationally published journalist.) Find the award-winning Lakota Country Times on the Internet, Facebook and Twitter and download the new Lakota Country Times app today.
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