Friday, March 09, 2007

EXCITING News From The Rez

In the post below you will find the Jan. Newsletter. I will try to get the Feb. Newsletter posted tomorrow.

I also received a letter from Shelly detailing some of their needs and how we can best help them. There have been some folks at church who have offered used clothes, toys, etc. and I have had to turn these down because there was not a good way to give them out and because the missionaries discouraged us from doing a lot of that kind of thing.

Well, there is good news! Shelly is a lady on the move and she has created a "store" in part of the pain building where they can keep goods for the people to come and get what they need. This way seems to work better for everyone. She has outlined some things that are always needed and appreciated which will help us give some guidance to those who want to help the Lakota people.

John and I will be in touch with Matthew 25 Ministries to see if they are willing to supply any of these needs. If so, we will be taking as much as we possibly can with us this summer. Apart from Matthew 25 Ministries though, anyone can donate any of the following at any time and we will take them to the rez when we go.

Here is the list:

For the People
  • Blankets
  • hats
  • gloves
  • diapers
  • baby products (powder, baby shampoo, lotion, desitin)
  • small diaper bags
  • shampoo
  • dish soap
  • laundry soap
  • toothpaste
  • deodorant
  • combs
  • electric heaters (when they run out of propane which is the main heat source, they often go days without heat)

For the Church

  • paper towels
  • toilet paper
  • cleaning supplies
  • copy paper
  • colored copy paper

For the Kid's Play Area/Sunday School

  • Any kind of girl play area things, stove, vacuum cleaner,
  • anything to play "store" with
  • Boys play area rugs with car tracks on them
  • Lincoln longs
  • Legos
  • Puzzles - 100 pieces or smaller
  • fun foam
  • construction paper
  • markers
  • poster paint in the big bottles
  • any kind of craft items

In addition, they are also in need of a good VCR/DVD player. They are doing "Dinner and Movie Nights" with the kids and their DVD player is broken. They also use this in their youth meetings for the DVD series they are using. The church at Wounded Knee is also in need of a DVD player.

Another cool thing that Shelly is doing is making care packages if personal care items and taking them to the jail in Martin and Kyle. She also takes the children to visit nursing homes - the elders love it and it is good for the kids to be involved in giving of themselves.