Overview:
The Cheyenne River Youth Project helped hundreds of families on the Cheyenne River Sioux Reservation prepare for the school year and access fresh, healthy food through August produce and school supply distributions. The efforts provided produce to 337 families and 65 elders, while school supplies reached 100 families, with surveys showing the assistance reduced financial stress and helped families feel better prepared for the new school year.
The Cheyenne River Youth Project helped local families meet two essential needs this summer, distributing fresh fruits and vegetables and school supplies to hundreds of Cheyenne River Sioux Reservation residents. CRYP hosted the public produce distribution on Aug. 17 and its annual School Supplies Distribution for Family Services members on Aug. 19.
CRYP worked closely with Partnership with Native Americans (PWNA) and Pierre, South Dakota-based Rillings Produce to host the Aug. 17 produce distribution, which served 337 families. Each food box included sweet corn, watermelon, cantaloupe, onions, radishes, potatoes, tomatoes, zucchini, cucumbers, bell peppers, carrots and cherries.
CRYP also shared the produce with the Elderly Nutrition Center next door, serving 65 elders. Staff still had plenty of cucumbers, onions and zucchini on hand, and in the days to follow, 79 additional community members who were unable to attend the event stopped by to pick up the remaining fresh vegetables.
“These distributions are about taking care of our relatives and making sure good, healthy food is available in our community,” said Julie Garreau, CRYP’s chief executive officer. “We are grateful to PWNA and Rillings Produce for their partnership, and I’m always grateful to our CRYP team. They work incredibly hard to make days like this possible.”
Two days after the produce distribution, the youth project welcomed 100 local families to the Cokata Wiconi (Center of Life) Teen Center for the annual School Supplies Distribution. Open to members of CRYP’s Family Services program, the distribution provided children with the materials they need for the new school year.
This year, CRYP also took the opportunity to learn more about the families it serves. Eighty-two families completed a survey while on campus, and their responses gave the team a clearer picture of both the need for school supplies on the Cheyenne River Sioux Reservation and the difference the annual distribution makes for household budgets.
Seventy-four percent reported that their children’s schools are able to provide only a few basic supplies or none at all. The vast majority of respondents also had multiple children attending school at different grade levels.
After attending the School Supplies Distribution, 94% of respondents said they had received everything they needed, and 71% said receiving the supplies helped them feel more prepared and less stressed about the new school year. More than half reported that the distribution provided direct financial relief to their households.
“Everything we received is greatly appreciated,” one parent wrote. “Every little bit helps. I appreciate that my kids can get the basics like crayons, markers and paper. They are always going through those things.”
Families also identified other items that remain significant needs throughout the school year. Fifty-six percent cited hygiene products, 52% shoes and sneakers, 48% water bottles and 38% winter coats. Garreau said the responses underscore why CRYP has continued to provide these resources through the Family Services program year after year.
“Families are telling us very clearly what they need and what it means to have some of that pressure taken off, particularly at the beginning of the school year,” she said. “The cost of getting several children ready for school adds up quickly. If we can help make sure children have what they need, and families feel a little more prepared and less stressed, that matters.”
Families who were unable to attend the Aug. 19 School Supplies Distribution can still receive supplies. Family Services members are encouraged to call CRYP at (605) 964-8200 to arrange a time to stop by.
This year’s School Supplies Distribution was made possible with support from PWNA as well as Black Hills Federal Credit Union and individual donors nationwide.
CRYP created Family Services in 2002 to manage and distribute the increasing amounts of donated goods it was receiving. Today, the program provides member families with access to school supplies, shoes, winter clothing, household supplies, baby items and the annual Wo Otúh’an Wi (Moon of Giving Away Presents) Toy Drive.
For an annual membership fee of $30 per family, members have year-round access to the program’s seasonal distributions as well as routine household, hygiene and baby items on a monthly basis. Membership covers all household members for the year, and the fees support the infrastructure necessary to operate the program.
“These are community efforts,” Garreau said of the seasonal distributions. “Our families show us what is needed, then our partners and supporters provide the resources, and our team gets to work here on the ground. That spirit of working together is what allows us to keep doing this work over years — and decades.”
