The First Week
We’ve been pretty busy this week. We left home after Church on Sunday (July 5), and got to Whiteclay, Nebraska on Wednesday. We stopped in at the ABOUT group to see what we would be doing this week and when the Clinton Wesleyan Church comes out. Bruce Bonfleur, the director of ABOUT, had plenty lined up for us. Because it was late in the day, he briefly went over what most needed done, and showed us the progress that had been made over the year.
Working in Green Tipi Gardens
The next two days followed a basic pattern. We got up and out to the Green Tipi Garden around 8am, pulling weeds and mulching around the plants. This year they are doing less food production, and planting more for arts and crafts, such as broom corn, gourds, etc. These will be used with the Lakota Crafters Co-Op.
When the sun started to get up, and we all got too hot, we headed down the street to the ABOUT group building. There we divided up according to our skills and worked on various projects. Some of us worked on drywalling and electrical, others sorted and cleaned up items for the 555 Whiteclay thrift store. I worked on the low power AM radio station and the ABOUT Group and Lakota Crafters websites. The ABOUT Group site is just about complete; the Lakota Crafters site will be coming along soon.
Moving wood with Floyd
On Thursday we helped Bruce and Floyd serve breakfast to the people on the street, something they do every week. On Friday, we served lunch. Many people come in to these meals. Bruce Bonfleur takes prayer requests, and Floyd gives a small sermon. There is usually a lot of joking around, but there are also some more serious times.
Bruce Bonfleur of the ABOUT group at Lakota Crafters Co-Op.
Please pray for Harrison, one of the men who are fighting alcohol addiction. From what the Floyd has said, he has a good home, and he does well for a couple months, but then he has a spell and ends up drinking on the street in Whiteclay. He knows he wants to do better, but he keeps falling.
This weekend we are visiting with some friends on the Rez’, and then heading up to Rapid for the next week or two.
