Porcupine School, Kindergarten - 2006 Porcupine, South Dakota

Part of our mission is to promote education.

Sending books to the children of Pine Ridge Reservation schools is still our number one project in addressing our mission. There is no public library on the reservation, but the Oglala Lakota College has a library that is open to the public.
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Since 2001 we have gathered up and sent about 12,500 books to nine different schools. We do this because the school budgets usually allow for just curriculum books – there are limited funds for pleasure reading books. We believe pleasure reading inspires a child to dream of what he or
she can do, and be.

In 2006 we added five health clinics and the juvenile detention center to our list of recipients. At the clinics, children get to take a book home!

We work with wish lists provided by school librarians. Finding good, clean, enjoyable books is a challenge. We buy new and gently used early readers, picture books, chapter books, non-fiction for all ages, and current novels for Oglala Lakota College.

Preserving the Lakota language !

Recently we recorded a series of children's books that were written in the 1940s, by Ann Clark, a former school teacher for the Bureau of Indian Affairs. The books have wonderful, simple, but long, animal stories about life on the reservation, and they were written in both English and Lakota. The books were illustrated by Andrew Standing Soldier and translated by Emil Afraid of Hawk

Lakota speakers were used as readers, and the CDs are recorded as the books were written, in both English and Lakota.

Nine schools of the Pine Ridge Reservation were given a full set of books with the CDs.

TO BUY CDS AND BOOKS ••••

A book with a CD is $31.00, except for There Still are Buffalo. That book comes with
two CDs and costs $41.00. If you are interested in purchasing any of the CDs or books
please contact us by email at lakotafriends@lakotafriends.org, or phone 603-563-8021.

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Other Projects - we work on, or have worked on:

• A $2500.00 scholarship is given annually to a student, or students, from Pine Ridge.

• We sponsor an Annual Native American Film Festival, screening both documentaries and feature films.
The goal of the festival is to educate and raise awareness while celebrating, and enjoying great films.

• In 1994 we funded the establishment of a bicycle repair shop in Porcupine, SD.
We provided training on how to repair bikes, and how to run the shop.

• In 1998 we built The Lakota Fund's web site, and put their Spirit Horse Gallery's crafts
on that site www.lakotafund.org

• We loan funds for starting in-the-home small businesses.

• We have given small grants to artists and entrepreneurs.

• We talk to public schools in the New Hampshire area to raise awareness about what is going on in Indian Country.

• We provided a girl from Porcupine with a New Hampshire camp experience.

• We provide emergency aid for medical travel, propane fuel and electricity.

• We have provided children with special dental work. Particular dental work is not covered under Indian Health Service.