Our vision for the future is to have a Healing Center. The Healing
Center will be a large ceremonial house. It will be a place
for educational work-
shops, cultural events, ceremonies, Lakota language
programs and other community activities. We will also have small cabins
where people will be able to stay to get help. The elders of the Tribe
will be actively involved in teaching younger generations about the
history and the beauty of the Lakota people. We currently have the
land, the architectural drawings; we just need the funds to build
it.
Additionally we will continue to develop
new materials to foster the
prevention of alcohol and drug abuse for
all Native young peoples. It is very hard once someone starts
using alcohol. This will include character education based on
Native cultures. We will also continue the development of Lakota
language and cultural enrichment. It is easier to learn language in
the younger years. Many elderly people speak the Lakota language;
most of our young people do not. The culture is kept alive by the
language.
Our prevention program is now in
its third year in about 82% of our schools. We have touched
the lives of approximately 2,400 students and want to expand
this to other reservations.
Finally, the Lakota
word for child is wakanyeja which means sacred being. Our vision also
includes a Sacred Child Center. The Sacred Child Center will be a
safe place to which parents or police will be able to bring the children
when the parents are drinking or when there is suspicion of child
abuse or neglect. It will also be a place for children to stay while
waiting for permanent placement in a home. This will be a safe, beautiful
environment for children with horses and lots of socialization activities.
The Sacred Child Center will be a place to learn the beauty of the
Lakota culture and language. It will have character education and
cultural enrichment programs. We will have many Lakota elders participating
in these programs.
