Volunteer on Rosebud Reservation– Tax-Deductible Starting $1,177

Our Global Volunteers trip to the Rosebud Reservation in South Dakota in July 2022 exceeded my expectations. There were so many dimensions to our service program. Barbara Bicknell was our leader and she did an awesome job connecting us with the community. We stayed at a dorm of the Rosebud Episcopal Mission and Rev. John Willard was our host. On our first day after orientation, we visited a wildlife refuge and hiked to a waterfall and river. We were invited to sit in on two Tribal Council meetings, which gave us insight into the issues the Lakota Tribe dealt with. We were invited to work with the Tribal Land Office. We worked alongside Lakota women and men foraging for various plants used by the tribe and we worked with them picking up litter at the cemetery and a small lake. The Lakota provided lunch for us on some of these occasions. We all felt very welcomed by these kind and generous people.
We were also invited to their Bison range and later attended a workshop at the Tribal Ranch with lunch provided. We learned so much about the Lakota culture through our involvement with the local community. Some of us participated in daily sage smudging prayer services. We were all invited and six of us participated in a sweat lodge ceremony along with Lakota women and men who had recently finished a Sun Dance. On our last day, some of our team cleaned out the basement of an Episcopal church while others of us worked with the Land Office at a Children's Day festival handing out helium balloons, candy, and water.
Each Global Volunteers trip is unique, and I list our service program activities to give future volunteers an idea of what we did. This journey was personally life-changing for me and I learned so much. The Lakota principle of interconnectedness with all the elements of nature is a way of life that really inspired me. I truly benefited from our interactions with these beautiful people who have suffered so much throughout time and they have enriched my life.

The title is from a motivational picture of three wolves about Teamwork. The team at Rosebud practiced this every day. Not only with each other on the team, but with citizens of Rosebud. Our mantra was, "what do you need us to do today?" Seniors working along side the next two future generations learning from each other, teaching each other, and helping families of Rosebud. I have been on one other GV project, but Rosebud and Rev. Stanley taught me so much about the Lakota and their continued struggles. I was so proud to be apart of the April 2019 Team and recommend it 100%.

There are experiences in life that you may consider pivotal--perhaps because of the people you were with, the value you believe you gave or gained or maybe how it changed your outlook on life. My volunteer experience with Global Volunteers on the Rosebud Reservation encompassed all of those. I am forever grateful.

Two friends and I volunteered together. We had no idea what to expect when we arrived in the little town of Mission, South Dakota, on the Rosebud Reservation. Our host was Mother Lauren Stanley, an Episcopal priest who serves the local Lakota population. We were not surprised to learn that life was not easy on the Reservation. Mother Lauren arranged a meaningful array of ways we could help and participate with the local community beginning with attending a church service and lunch with the congregation. We had such an amazing variety of service projects. We helped with renovating the local Women's shelter under the guidance of locals Billy and Danny, and helping, Lindsey, the Director of the White Buffalo Calf Women's Society, organize the Women's thrift store. The facility was established in 1977 by Native Americans for Naative American Women and was the first of its kind in the United States. We had such a blast working with the children in the GLORY Program (God Loves Our Rosebud Youth) one evening. We had a wonderful selection of guest lecturers who shared their knowledge and wisdom with us. We took an extremely meaningful and unexpectedly emotional field trip to Wounded Knee Massacre site. We danced with Sage Eagle (using the term danced very loosely), admired amazing beading shared by Hattie, ate delicious food prepared by Billy and his daughter Rachel, and, visited a nearby quilting factory. We also worked at the Rosebud Economic Development garden with Aaron, an amazing project aimed at developing food sources. A personal highlight was our visit and tour of the local Middle School to delivery backpacks we had brought to support a project of sharing food with students. There were several teachers on our team and everyone was absolutely blown away by the programs the Principal, Dana, had put in place. I could go on. In fact, I have to anyone who would listen There is no way to describe everything we learned, all the amazing people we met, our extraordinary team, and the sacred place the Rosebud Reservation holds in our hearts. Yep, a pivotal experience. I highly recommend you give yourself the gift of this experience.