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Cheyenne River Reservation in a State of Emergency after Devastating Ice Storm

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Northwest Area Foundation authorizes $50,000 for recovery
ST. PAUL, Minn. (February 3, 2010)   The Cheyenne River Reservation in north central South Dakota  remains under a state of emergency after a winter ice storm decimated the reservation’s utility system.  Although water and electricity are slowly being restored, some remote communities are in their second week without these basic needs, and what limited supply of water is available must be boiled to avoid contamination.  This is one of the greatest natural disasters ever to hit the reservation, which has a poverty rate approaching 50 percent.  Cheyenne River Sioux Tribal Chairman Joseph Brings Plenty has issued a plea for donations of heating oil, propane, kerosene heaters, generators, non-perishable food and bottled water.

“I would not ask for assistance unless I was confident we are doing all we can,” Chairman Brings Plenty said in a statement. “I know there are hard economic times across the country and those who are able continue to respond with prayers, money and muscle to help our neighbors in Haiti.  I find myself in the humble position of appealing for your support in our time of emergency.”

The tribe has established emergency shelters and has made medical provisions for tribal members who are on dialysis.  Yet, there are an estimated 9,000 tribal members and non-Indian residents on the reservation who are suffering.  Brings Plenty said there will be an ongoing need for home repairs as a result of the storm.

“Many on the Cheyenne River Reservation are living without heat, electricity or water in the bitter cold of the South Dakota winter” said Kevin Walker, president and CEO of Northwest Area Foundation.  “They are our friends, our neighbors, our partners, and we must respond. Much of the nation’s attention is focused on the tragedy in Haiti, and rightly so.  But the crisis at Cheyenne River is a significant natural disaster closer to home. We have a responsibility to work with other funders to ensure relief supplies are available to address this emergency.”

Northwest Area Foundation (NWAF) has offered grants of $10,000 each to Native Americans in Philanthropy and the South Dakota Community Foundation. These grants are intended to trigger other funds including matching grants from the Bush Foundation designated for the Cheyenne River Reservation.  The money will pay for food, water, relocation and heating fuel. 

“We applaud the decisive action our friends at the Bush Foundation have taken,” Walker said. “Our grants are designed to rapidly increase the response-and-recovery funding available to Chairman Brings Plenty and his government.”

Northwest Area Foundation has also authorized the use of $30,000 for disaster relief from an account of existing grant dollars to the Cheyenne Sioux Tribe.

Since 2004, Northwest Area Foundation has worked closely with the Cheyenne River Sioux Nation in its efforts to overcome poverty and build sustainable prosperity on the reservation.  The Foundation has invested nearly $6 million dollars in the Cheyenne River Tribal Ventures initiative, which is part of more than $60 million the Foundation has invested in rural and urban Native communities over the past 20 years. 

The Northwest Area Foundation is dedicated to supporting efforts by the people, organizations and communities in Minnesota, Iowa, North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana, Idaho, Oregon and Washington to reduce poverty and achieve sustainable prosperity. These states were served by the Great Northern Railway, founded by James J. Hill. In 1934, Hill’s son Louis W. Hill established the Foundation. To learn more, visit www.nwaf.org.

To learn about the needs:  Cheyenne River Sioux Disaster Facebook page  and Facebook Causes

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