CROW CREEK WELLNESS COMMITTEE
                                                              PO Box 94
                                         Ft. Thompson, South Dakota  57339

Diversity Foundation Inc
Po Box 2013                                                                                                    
Maple Grove, Minnesota 55311                                               Feb 26, 2008

Lyle:

I want to take a few minutes and personally thank you for all for the wonderful help, hope and opportunities the Diversity Foundation of Minnesota has brought into the lives of so many here on our Crow Creek Reservation. 

• The first project that came to mind was the assistance received enabling Crow Creek to bring the South Dakota Lions Foundation Mobile Screening Unit (MSU) to Fort Thompson’s Health Fair and West Bend District Wacipi.  We were unable to find a South Dakota Lions Club to sponsor our two events; the advantage of having a Lions Club sponsor would be the overall cost of $200 that includes unit transportation and medical supplies for screening; without a sponsor the cost was significantly higher with a minimal amount for each screening.  Diversity Foundation found us a Minnesota Lions Club Chapter from his home town of Rushford to help sponsor both events.  It’s interesting to note well over 65% of those screened required some type of follow-up healthcare.

• Diversity’s assistance with acquiring and transporting over 2000 new toys & books for our youth from the Marine Toy for Tots drive in Minneapolis for each of the past two years.  Once here, the toys were distributed throughout the three districts.  The smiling faces on both children and parents faces made the long hours we volunteered to complete the project well worth the efforts.

• Over the past several years, Diversity has organized Collection drives in Winona, Rochester and across SE Minnesota and arranged transportation for numerous semi trucks and trailer loads of used furniture, bedding, clothing, winter coats, boots and shoes for distribution to over 250 households throughout Crow Creek since 2005.  Community members still asking about the remaining items in storage at Winona and Rochester that are still awaiting funding for transportation.

• Assistance in securing needed medical items the past two years.  Last year our Ambulance received medical supplies; this year Crow Creek Diabetes Wellness Center will be the beneficiary.  With our Tribes extreme financial shortcomings, anything to help keep our costs down is appreciated.

• Assisting our Dakota and Native youth in receiving secondary education at St Mary’s University, SE Technical College in Winona, MN and Mayo Clinic’s PA Program.  What an opportunity for them to excel.

• Interviewing our Crow Creek Elders Documentary.  Many of us at Crow Creek are curious of finding out who we are and where we came from.  The past two President Day holidays in February have been declared “Chiefs Day” here on Crow Creek.  During last year’s holiday, Crow Creek honored one of our first tribal chairmen, Vern Ashley.  Mr. Ashley helped prepare our tribe’s original Constitution and by laws and I’ve always felt should have a hand in helping amend them to reflect needed changes.  He is in his 90’s and has so much to share yet and again thanks to Lyle & Diversity, who have been filming and documenting Mr. Ashley and other Crow Creek elders to help us tell our story & preserve our early history.   Our cultural committee has spent endless hours researching our tribes history.  Photos have been secured thru South Dakota Historical Society and Corp of Engineers and have been shared with the community during various events.  This past week during “Chiefs Day” there was a small wacipi for the youth that was warmly received.  We are hopeful that Diversity will finally be able to secure the needed funding to help us record remaining elders & archive this all important Crow Creek story & documentary.  

• Diversity helped provide the assistance from the Prairie Island Indian Community on behalf of Crow Creek’s Habitat for Humanity Housing Program of $ 5,000.  Crow Creek Reservation is in desperate need of housing with hundreds on our waiting list.  Many existing homes are poorly build & energy inefficient.  The Power Companies high fuel and electricity prices cause monthly cutoff crisis with our high unemployment.

NEW OPPORTUNITIES:

• Dakota Hunkpati Cemetary Restoration Project – Diversity Foundation has coordinated efforts between the churches and communities on the Crow Creek Reservation and Trinity Presbyterian Church of America from Rochester MN.  Earlier this month Trinity Presbyterian Church of Rochester, MN made their second visit to Crow Creek after on-site visits to four cemeteries’ to determine greatest need, what materials are needed and the most feasible direction to begin.  Although St John’s Episcopal Church in Crow Creek District demonstrated the most need; efforts would begin in April 2008 with Christ Episcopal and the Presbyterian cemeteries both in Fort Thompson as these two cemeteries were the most visible and would help serve as a model  for other cemetery restoration projects. 

• Diversity Foundation of Minnesota, The City of Winona, Minnesota and the Winona-Dakota Unity Alliance have offered assistance to the Crow Creek Sioux Tribe in the form of grant writing & making improvements to the water utility system critically needed throughout the reservation.

I’ve only mentioned some of the projects that I’ve had direct dealing with Diversity Foundation with.  In fact, helping us secure your Rushford, Minnesota Lions Club sponsor for Crow Creek was our first project together back in 2006.   However, Diversity has been involved with recording our elders and assisting other Crow Creek programs going back to 2002, when Lyle filmed the Crow Creek Dakota Memorial and Monument Dedication at the Big Bend dam, which for the first time, honored and acknowledged our Dakota ancestors (mostly women & children) who were tragically exiled here from Minnesota in 1863.      

Our needs at our Crow Creek Reservation seem so great at times it’s overwhelming but it’s a nice feeling to know that we are never really alone.  There are others willing to take the time and make the commitment to help and for that I’m extremely grateful.   Thank you Diversity Foundation for finding people like Lyle and all your volunteers who really do listen and understand our need for a better future for our children and grandchildren.

If there is anything I could ever do to help Diversity Foundation with, please let me know.

Pidamaye

Donita Loudner,
Outreach Coordinator,
Crow Creek Wellness Committee-
Buffalo County Commissioner – Ft Thompson District 3
Enrolled member Crow Creek Sioux Tribe-

                                            CROW CREEK SIOUX TRIBE  
                                         Ft. Thompson, South Dakota 57339

From: Lisa Lengkeek                                                                        September 27, 2006  
Distribution Coordinator

To: Lyle Rustad, Ex Dir.
Diversity Foundation Inc.

Dear Lyle & Diversity Foundation;

I am writing this letter on behalf of the people of the Crow Creek Sioux
Tribe.  We want to say THANK YOU ALL, for your generosity and compassion shown to our people by your Minnesota communities. As you know we are considered the poorest County & reservation in the US, with very little help or concern from our neighboring communities in South Dakota.

Thank you is not enough for everything that your people have done for us here in South Dakota over these past couple years!    It is good to know that there are people like you out there that still care and we are not forgotten. The daily struggles that we go through here on the reservation just to keep our families feed, clothed, the lights on are often overwhelming. Therefore even the simple things mean alot to us!

The help that has come to us from you and Minnesota is unbeliveable, we cannot express how grateful we are. Once again THANK YOU ALL.

PS.   There are alot of people here at Crow Creek that want to come to next years gathering and homecoming in Winona, so we hope to someday actually meet you all and to thank you in person.

PRAYERS & HOPE TO ALL


Lisa Lengkeek
Crow Creek & Diversity distribution coordinator