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Pine Ridge Relief Project
Assisting the Indigenous People of South Dakota
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Thank you, with generous donations we assist the native people of Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota.
Current Tally Feb.24,2006: 188 bags of clothes, 18 boxes, 4 sewing machines, 25+ bolts of fabric
With your help, our efforts provide....
Pine Ridge is considered the most impoverished community in the United States.
But despite nearly-insurmountable conditions, few resources, and against unbelievable odds,
Nation after Nation of Indigenous leaders and their people are working hard to counteract decades of
oppression and forced destruction of their cultures to bring their citizens back to a life of self-respect
and self-sufficiency in today's world.
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Pine Ridge Reservation Statistics
* Median income is $2,600 per year with 85% to 95% unemployment
* Infant mortality rate 300% higher than the U.S. national average
* Diabetes and Tuberculosis rates 800% higher than the U.S. national average
* Elderly die each winter from hypothermia (freezing)
* At least 60% of the homes are severely substandard, without water, electricity, adequate insulation, and sewage systems
* Water table polluted by uranium and agricultural chemicals
* Recent reports state the average life expectancy is 45 years old while others state that it is 48 years old for men and 52 years old for women. With either set of figures, that's the shortest life expectancy for any community in the Western Hemisphere outside Haiti, according to The Wall Street Journal.
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If you would like to make a donation we gratefully accept Checks and PayPal.
Make checks payable to: Raymond Powers P.O. Box 1062, Ojai, CA 93024
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The Pine Ridge Relief Project was founded by
sustainability advocate and entrepreneur Raymond Powers.
Ojai Valley News
Feb. 1, 2006
Ojai Resident's Winter Relief for Lakota Nation
Ojai, CA resident Raymond Powers doesn't know where he would be today if he hadn't met up with Lakota Elders in his youth. Growing up surrounded by concrete under the smoggy skies of the San Fernando Valley, Powers was haunted by the sense that his life was missing something. "I was a troubled teenager growing up in an urban environment," said Powers. It was during summer camp in the woods near Big Bear Mountain that he first breathed clean air and slept under the stars, feeling connected to the beauty of nature. When summer was over and Powers returned to the city, he became curious about what the country had
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looked like before all the highways and skyscrapers were built. He wanted to know what kinds of plants had flourished in the ground that had been covered by cement, and he wanted to know more about the people who had lived there before him.
In his late teenage years, Powers came in contact with members of the Lakota Nation who were residing in Los Angeles. Originally these Native Americans lived near the Sacred Black Hills of South Dakota. The Lakota elders were descendants of original inhabitants of North America and had an extensive knowledge of local wildlife. They invited Powers to their sweat lodge ceremonies and taught him about their deep connection and respect for the earth. During ceremonies Powers learned to purify his mind and body, to stop and take the time to really think about what was important to him and to offer thanks for the gifts he had been given.
The Lakota elders brought meaning to Powers's at a vulnerable time in his life. Over the years he has consistently made efforts to give something in return to the first nation of this land.
Raymond Powers and Cindy Leher, VP of
Washington Mutual Bank, Ojai, CA.
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Powers moved to Ojai in 1999. About a month and a half ago he was presented with a perfect opportunity to once again assist these people who have influenced his life so greatly. The wife of a Lakota elder came to Ojai and introduced him to some of her Lakota friends from the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota. Through his new friends, Ron and Rosalie Little Thunder, Powers found a way to give something back to the Lakota Nation.
The Pine Ridge Reservation of approximately 40,000 residents is one of the poorest places in the country with a median annual income of $2,600. During the winters many Lakota children and elderly die of hypothermia. The infant mortality rate on the reservation is much higher than in the rest of the country, and the overall life expectancy of all ages is much lower. |
Since White settlers took over Lakota land to mine gold in the Black Hills in the late 1800's, few Lakotas have owned businesses on their reservation, and the unemployment rate among them has increased to between 85 and 95 percent, according to the Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization home page.
Powers is currently organizing a donation drive of winter clothes to send to the Pine Ridge Reservation through Ron and Rosalie Little Thunder.He is asking for winter clothes of all kinds and blankets that are in new or clean and usable condition. Donation boxes are currently at The Farmer and the Cook on El Roblar, Washington Mutual Bank on Maricopa Highway, and Rainbow Bridge on Matilija Street in Ojai. Oak Grove school is also participating in collecting items from students and their families.
Powers is also asking for donation of solid color quilt fabric so Lakota quilt-makers can sew their traditional Star Quilts. Ben Franklin has already donated some fabric and Help of Ojai has abundantly donated winter clothes from their thrift store, Second Helpings. He is also hoping for a gift of a sewing machine for the Lakota quilt makers. Ojai Business Center donated the boxes and printing for the project. "Big kudos to the community for all their help," said Powers. "Everyone has been really generous."
Donations are still being accepted and will be sent out mid-February. Cash donations are also accepted to help offset shipping costs and purchase propane for heat. For more information contact Raymond Powers at 805.715.0050. |
Ojai Valley News
Feb. 23, 2006
Ojaians Heed Call To Assist South Dakota Indian Tribe
Organizer seeking individual or trucking company to transport
1500 lbs of collected clothes and blankets to needy
Pine Ridge, South Dakota is considered the most impoverished community in the United States with a median income of $2600 annually, infant mortality rates 300% and diabetes and tuberculosis 800% higher than the national average, and elderly community members dying each winter from hypothermia.
When Raymond Powers, an Ojai musician and composer with a deep love of Native American music, got the idea to create a local program that would help the indigenous people living on the Pine Ridge Reservation survive another frigid winter, he never dreamed that the Ojai community would respond so enthusiastically. After placing large boxes and flyers at the Farmer and the Cook, Rainbow Bridge, and Washington Mutual Bank, donations began
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pouring in and have continued for the past six weeks requiring Powers to find a storage locker to help keep them safe. The donated 15'x5'x10' locker is nearing capacity bulging with about one-hundred bags and boxes of winter clothing and blankets, four sewing machines, and thirty bolts of fabric with room for several boxes of Ojai citrus and avocados he hopes may arrive before the contents are shipped to South Dakota later this week.
Five-hundred dollars that has been donated may have to be used to pay shipping costs, but Powers hopes to find an angel who will donate a truck and gas so that the cash on hand can be used to assist Pine Ridge families in purchasing desperately needed propane and firewood. "My plan is to ship everything this week. The temperature on the reservation is down to -3F at night and those without heating, electricity and blankets are seriously at risk. It's imperative to get these things out to them as soon as possible," Powers said.
If you have or know of a trucking company or individual that might be available to drive the donations and make the 1500 mile journey from Ojai to Pine Ridge, please call Raymond at 715-0050. If would like to make a contribution, checks can be sent to Raymond Powers P.O. Box 1062, Ojai, CA 93024 or you can donate using PayPal at his web link http://www.simplebrilliance.com/pineridge.htm |
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Propane for Heat & Cooking
Gardening Tools & Seeds 
