Congregational Church of West Medford Sends 21 Volunteers to Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, Works to Raise Awareness

Medford Church Announces Volunteer Work Trip, Educational Series, and Fundraising Event to Support Change Efforts

West Medford, MA (I-Newswire) February 10, 2013 - The Congregational Church of West Medford (CCWM) is thrilled to announce that in August 2013 it will send twenty-one volunteers to the Pine Ridge, South Dakota Oglala Lakota Sioux Reservation for one week to work on a project that will improve conditions on the reservation. The project will be coordinated through Earth Tipi (earthtipi.org), a nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering people to grow organic food and build natural homes on the reservation. The trip will be coordinated through RE-MEMBER (re-member.org), a nonprofit organization that seeks to improve the quality of reservation life through relationships, shared resources and volunteer services.

This trip is the second time that CCWM volunteers will travel to the reservation. In the summer of 2012, volunteers from the church spent a week building a straw-bale mud house for a Native American family living on the reservation. For many of the volunteers, this was a life-changing experience. Poor living conditions, scarce availability of resources, and high unemployment plague Pine Ridge and make life unbearably difficult for many of its residents.

In order to raise awareness about these forgotten people, CCWM volunteers have planned three community events that are open to the public:

ATTEND A PRESENTATION
Learn about Life on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation

Volunteers will tell the story of their August 2012 trip to the Lakota Sioux Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota to build a straw bale house for a Native American family living on the reservation.

Presenters will speak about the history of the reservation, provide facts about current conditions, and tell the ground-up story of the building of the straw bale house. The program will feature a comprehensive slideshow of original photographs taken during the volunteer trip.

This G-rated presentation is geared for adults, but is also perfect for youth (aged 10+) or students doing projects/research related to culture, environmentally-friendly housing, poverty, North American history or Native Americans.
Two dates are planned:

• Wednesday, March 6, 2013 at 7:00pm - Medford Public Library, 111 High Street, Medford, MA
• Saturday, March 23, 2013 at 2:00pm - Malden Public Library, 36 Salem Street, Malden, MA

These two events are free and open to the public.

ATTEND A CONCERT AND SILENT AUCTION
Enjoy a family-friendly night out and help us help the people of Pine Ridge

On Saturday, April 6, 2013 from 6:00 - 10:00pm, CCWM will hold a Benefit Concert and Silent Auction to support the 2013 volunteer trip to the Pine Ridge Reservation. The concert will feature performances by Randall Kromm and guests will have the chance to bid on donations from local venues including restaurants, hotels, and retail shops. CCWM is actively seeking donations for this event and gift cards, physical items, coupons for free services, etc. are welcome. All proceeds will go towards helping the people of Pine Ridge.

Tickets for the concert and auction are $7.00 per person at the door and can be purchased in advance.

To learn more about CCWM’s Pine Ridge Reservation Volunteer Trip or the upcoming events, please visit the trip website at http://churchmissiontrip.wordpress.com