TABLE OF CONTENTS
Chapter 1 (February 2008)
-Preface
-Sioux
-Lakota and their culture
-The Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe reservation
Chapter 2 (March 2008)
-Eagle Butte
-Accommodation
-Climate
Chapter 3 (April 2008)
-Clothing & Packing list
-Health/Medical precautions
Chapter 4 (May 2008)
-The stay in Rapid City
-The July 5 itinerary and the stay in Eagle Butte
-Our volunteer work and some safety tips
Chapter 5 (June 2008)
-Contact Information
-Team Meetings
-Conclusions
CHAPTER 1
PREFACE
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The Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe reservation is predominantly inhabited by people belonging to the Lakota division of the Sioux Nation. By way of this Chapter I will provide you with some information on the Sioux, the Lakota, and the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe reservation.
SIOUX
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The United States government took the word Sioux from Nadowesioux, which comes from a Chippewa Indian word which means “little snake” or “enemy”. The French traders and trappers who worked with the Chippewa shortened the word to Sioux. The Sioux classify themselves with words –Dakota, Nakota, and Lakota-that have the same meaning of “friends” or “allies”. These words are different because they belong to three different dialects that, incidentally, coincide with the Sioux sub-tribes who are known as Dakota, Nakota and Lakota. Collectively, the Sioux refer to themselves as The Great Sioux Nation. In the middle of the 18th century, when the first Europeans contacted them, seven “Sioux Council Fires” existed, each “Fire” representing different sub-tribes. At that time the Sioux inhabited the Great Plains and the western prairies-mainly those lands that today are Wisconsin, Iowa, and Minnesota, North and South Dakota, and up into the bordering provinces of Canada. It is estimated that the Sioux numbered at least 30,000. The Sioux sub-tribes are:
-The Santee, who spoke the Dakota dialect and who are known as Dakota
-The Yankton, who spoke the Nakota dialect and who are known as Nakota,
-The Teton, who spoke the Lakota dialect and are known as Lakota.
The Dakota/Santee-Sioux occupied a region east of Mississippi in what is currently Minnesota. Four out of the seven “Council Fires” belonged to them. At present they are spread in North and South Dakota, Nebraska, and Montana reservations.
The Nakota/Yankton-Sioux split from the Dakota and moved to the prairies in the region that is now southwest South Dakota. Two out of seven “Council Fires” belonged to them At present the Nakota/Yankton-Sioux can be found in North and South Dakota and Montana reservations.
The Lakota/Teton-Sioux moved from forests and grasslands of what today is Central Minnesota to a region west of Mississippi. For that reason they are known as “Westerner Sioux”. The Lakota become the largest of the three Sioux divisions and developed what is known as the Plain Indian Culture based on the use of the house.
LAKOTA AND THEIR CULTURE
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As we have seen, the word Lakota identifies both a dialect and a people. The term Teton which is another way to indicate the Lakota means of “Dwellers of the Prairie”.
From now on I will use the term Lakota to identify them because it is the more common.
The Lakota used to subsist on hunting and gathering wild rice in the forests and the grasslands of what today is the central Minnesota. Over time (1600s-1700s) the Lakota moved west, pushed by the first Europeans who arrived on their territory. In the course of their migration, they acquired horses from other tribes, bred and traded large pony herds, and hunted buffaloes. In the middle of the 18th century they occupied an area from the present northern Minnesota to the plains north of Black Hills, and westward in the present day Montana and Wyoming. They lived a migratory life, following the buffaloes they needed for food, clothing, and shelter. It is estimated that in the middle of the 18th century Lakota population was of 15,000 individuals. As of today the Lakota are about 70,000 split into seven main groups or branches.
The Lakota moved from their original settlements to west in three separate groups: the Oglala, the Brule`, and the Saone. The Saone, in turn, split themselves into five sub-groups. Four of those sub-groups- the Mnicoujou (“Planters by the water”), the Itazipco (“Those without bows”) the Oohenumpa (“Two kettle”), and the Sihasapa (“the Blackfeet”, not to be confused with the Algonkian Blackfoot tribe, will be our hosts since they live in the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe reservation.
The traditional culture of the Lakota was based on some noble principles like living in harmony with others, having sense of belonging to one’s community, valuing interpersonal relationships, trusting one another. These principles translated themselves into generosity: the resources were freely handed among people, and an effective cooperation and teamwork within the community existed. The sense of “community” was very strong and the cornerstone of it was the family. The family for the Lakota did not end at one’s immediate relatives, rather it included different families linked by blood or marriage ties united together to form a social unit called “tiyospaye” (“extended family”).
The Lakota also adhered to an ideal of having physical and mental strength, which implied having composure, determination, self-confidence, and self-control. The Lakota were expected to face challenges with all these traits. Their strength was applied as well to courage intended as acknowledging the fear exists, yet controlling and mastering it. Lastly, the Lakota ideal of strength was also about practice, patience, and perseverance. Their emphasis on strength was particularly evident in their hunting and warrior activities, at which they were tremendously proficient.
Like many Native American groups, the Lakota culture is imbued of symbolism, especially the number four and the circle. The number four is a sort of sacred number since there are four basic elements that surrounds us: earth, fire, air, and water. There are also four seasons: winter, spring, summer and fall, andcardinal directions: north, south, east and west. The number four represents also the four races: red, black, white, and yellow. As far as the circle is concerned, the Lakota consider the journey of life and death a circular process. They used to say that everything the Power does, it does in circle. An example of circle’s symbolism is in the architecture of their traditional houses, the tepee, that have a circular foundation. Incidentally “tepee” is a Lakota word that means “used to live in”
(A good example of the Native American symbolical representation of circle and number four is the flag of the State of Arizona).
THE CHEYENNE RIVER SIOUX TRIBE RESERVATION
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The Indian reservations at large represent the last stage of a governmental policy toward Native Americans. Initially, when the pressure of new settlers was modest, it was possible to assign large territories where the Native American could continue to live according to their traditions. The territory assigned (Fort Laramie Treaty of 1851) was particularly large because the Sioux, and the Lakota in particular, lived a nomadic life. Unfortunately that territory was bordered by the California trail, which put the Natives in contact with the unwelcom white people. According to a new treaty signed at Fort Laramie in 1868, the land occupied by the Lakota was drastically reduced. The new area did not border the California trial any more. A major event that had dramatic implications for the Lakota happened in 1874: gold was found in the Black Hills on the occasion of a raid in that area made in by General George Custer and his 7th Cavalry in violation of the Laramie Treaty. The Government tried initially and without success to buy or rent the Black Hills from the Lakota, then under pressure of public opinion and speculators, decided to make recourse to the force. As mentioned at the “South Dakota and the Native Americans”, battles followed and having successfully defeated the Sioux, the Government occupied the Black Hills, and for having a better control of the tribes decided to move them into reservations. This new policy implied for the Lakota to abandon the traditional nomadic life, to rely on the Government for any necessity, and to give up a land that they considered sacred. In 1889 the Lakota were forced to surrender another part of their land and, and to accept six separate reserves in place of a single one. On that occasion the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe Reservation was created. The reservation is bordered on north by the Standing Rock Indian Reservation, on the east by the Missouri River on the south by the Cheyenne River, and on the west by the Meade and the Perkins Counties.
The population of Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe is approximately 12,000 people. The reservation’s economy is based on cattle ranching that accounts for 75% of the private branch of the economy. However, because of the seasonal nature of the cattle ranching and the limited economic base of the area, over 80% of the total adult population are not employed during the winter months.
CHAPTER 2
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EAGLE BUTTE
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The little city of Eagle Butte, that is part of Dewey County, can be reached from Rapid City in less than a 3 hour drive. Eagle Butte is administratively divided into two entities which are separated by Highway 212: North Eagle Butte, whose year 2007 population of 2169 included over 2000 American Indians, and Eagle Butte, whose year 2007 population of 620 included over 500 American Indians. Eagle Butte, Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe reservation Headquarters, the location where Habitat for Humanity has an Affiliate, is the place where we will stay in July. Two hundred and twenty seven households are registered there, spread in a prairie grassland where wildlife includes bison, elk, deer, prairie dogs, and much more. Small as the city can be, we will find in Eagle Butte what we will need for our daily necessities. There is a Main Street there with some hardware stores, a school, a post office, a library, a restaurant, and so on. At one end of the Street there is a supermarket. At the other end, on the same side, there is a laundromat. I will mention some of these places in the next section of this Chapter. Better than my words, maybe some pictures could help you to have an idea of the place. The first two pictures that you will find here below were taken just outside Eagle Butte. The third was taken on the way to the city. The last picture was taken in an area surrounding Eagle Butte.
Those of you who would like to keep themselves abreast with the Eagle Butte, could
access the following websites: http://www.lakotacountrytimes.com
and the “Eagle Butte News” at: http://www.topix.com/city/eagle-butte-sd
ACCOMMODATION
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The words “Okicipyapi Tipi” that you can see on these pictures are a translation of Habitat for Humanity in the Lakota language. They literally mean “People helping people to build houses” The house that you can see on the first picture, at the right of the sign, is called by the “Volunteer Headquarters” by the Affiliate, in other words it is the place where we will stay. The house has a sleeping area that can accommodate up to 20 people in bunk beds. The bunk beds do not have any sheets so everyone has to bring their own bedding. At Chapter 3, section “Clothing & Packing list” I will remind you what we should bring. In the house there is a well-stocked kitchen with plates, glasses, utensils, and an outside porch with two picnic tables where we will eat. The house structure is the following:
The front entrance leads right into a first bedroom where there are three bunk beds and a bathroom. Passing through that room there is the kitchen. To the left of the kitchen there is a second room that has four bunk beds and a bathroom. To the right of the kitchen there is a back exit and the porch. Straight through the kitchen there is a tiny room that has two bunk beds close to each other. Turning left from that room, there is another bedroom with two bunk beds. I’ve collected a good deal of information on the way the volunteer life is organized there.
Let me share it with you starting with the cooking. The affiliate staff in collaboration with homeowner families will provide two volunteer dinners. The rest of the time we have to prepare our meals by ourselves. We will go every day to the grocery store to get what we will need for preparing our meals. A schedule will be made of those who will volunteer to cook (they will be the people who will help in the shopping) and those who will do the dishes and cleaning. The dishes will be hand washed since there is not a dish washing machine. There is a refrigerator in the kitchen that will be utilized mainly for dairy and other perishable products. A paper will be left on the refrigerator for writing down simple requests of items to be bought. Based on the distance from the build site to our house, we will either go back to our place for lunch or will eat on the site. Details on how we will organize ourselves will fall in place when we will be there. In any event, late in the afternoon a couple of us will go back early for cleaning the kitchen if necessary, and for preparing the dinner. Those who have a culinary talent will have a chance to impress everybody else.
A few words on the laundry: we will take turns going to the laundry mat in the Main Street. There is a machine there for getting the quarters needed to do the laundry.
TV & computers: sorry to disappoint you but there is no TV set there. There is neither a WiFi meaning that it would be useless to bring your own computer for going online or checking email. Solution: a few miles east on the Highway there is a Dairy Queen. Some nights we will go there and have a chance to see the news and try some treats. As for the computer, there are two of them at the library in the Main Street.
As you can see from the description and the information that I provided so far, the lodging will be very simple. On the other hand we will be in a poor area and our place is the best they can offer us. We will need to be flexible there, to help each other, and to act like a large, harmonious family.
CLIMATE
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Climate in South Dakota is unpredictable. It is hot during the summer but it can switch into humid or cold and rainy in a matter of minutes. You will find in the next Chapter –section “Packing list”- my recommendations for what to bring to cope with this situation.
During the summertime the average temperatures in the area tends to be in the 70’s (20’s C.). The warmest month of the year is July with an average maximum temperature of 87 degrees F (30 degrees C.).The temperature variations between night and day tend to be moderate during the summer.
Rainfall is fairly distributed throughout the year. The wettest month of the year is June (the average rainfall: 3.25 inches, 8.25 centimeters). July is the second wettest month.
There is an interesting website that I suggest that you check before starting the trip. It is: http://www.wunderground.com/US/SD/Eagle_Butte.html
You can obtain there an Eagle Butte weather forecast for one week.
CHAPTER 3
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CLOTHING & PACKING LIST
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Clothing
When choosing the clothing that you should bring with you on the trip you should take into consideration that we will stay and operate at a time of the year when the weather in Eagle Butte will be hot, and the rain is a possibility. You also should keep in mind that the people we will meet are quite modest. In any event we will need a mix of work clothing and regular daily clothing, the latter to be worn when visiting places and spending our free time. Working clothing should be durable, simple, lightweight, not white/light colored, and not of sentimental value to you. On the working site the recommended dress for women are pants and T-shirts. Same kind of clothing would be acceptable on other occasions. Recommended dress for men on the working site are short pants (not too short) or regular pants and T-shirts. Long pants and T-shirts or shirts with collar should the clothing for men when not at the working site.
In addition to the items already mentioned, the following clothing should be worn by women and men when doing construction: study shoes that are practical for walking on rugged terrain (heavy work boots are not necessary), working gloves, and a broad rimmed hat.
Just remember that even during the summer, the weather can be unpredictable in South Dakota It can switch very rapidly from hot and dry to cold, humid and rainy. Jerry Farlee, the Habitat coordinator there, recommends that we bring clothes that can be worn in layers to cope with possible weather condition changes. He suggests waterproof windbreakers. For safety reasons he recommends to avoid wearing overly loose jackets, shirts, and pants
Packing List
The Packing List that follows is based a personal experience and on the recommendations and requests of Jerry Farlee. Some items are marked on the list by a number in brackets. Those numbers connect the items to notes that can be found at the bottom of the list.
Documents and financial means
___________________________
-An ID document
-Airline tickets (and a copy to keep separated from them) (1)
-A copy of your prescriptions, if any.
-A copy of the itinerary (leave another copy with family/friends)
-A copy of your own packing list
-A copy of the Short Term Mission Manual that you should have received from Habitat
-The team biographies and pictures
-Cash (1)
-Credit Card (1) A part of your trip fee covers the cost of a very comprehensive health insurance plan. This includes emergency medical treatment.. I recommend carrying a credit card as expenses are usually paid upfront and then reimbursed.
Clothing and related items
____________________________
-Daily work clothes: T-shirts, underwear, slacks, hospital scrubs, sturdy work gloves, hat, bandana, socks, sturdy shoes.
-Evening/free time outfit: shirts, underwear, pants, socks shoes, a fleece or a sweatshirt
-Other: “flip flops”/sandals, windbreaker/poncho, light weight jacket, handkerchiefs, sun-hat.
Toiletries and health care items
______________________________
-Soap (2), (3)
-Toothpaste, (2), (3) toothbrush, dental floss, toothpicks
-Shampoo (avoid floral and herbal ones. They can attract insects. Head & Shoulder is recommended) (2), (3)
-Towels/washcloths
-A comb
-Nail clippers, tweezers, a pocket knife (optional)
-Insect repellent, disinfecting spray (2)
-Hand sanitizer (2)
-Sun screen, (2) sun glasses
-Contact lens supply and reading glasses (if needed)
-A simple first aid kit (for its contents, please refer to last paragraph of section Medical Precaution)
-Ladies: feminine hygiene items
-Gentlemen: razors and shaving cream (2) (3). Do not bring after shave, since like floral and herbal shampoos, it could attract insects.
Personal Items
______________________________
-A lightweight sleeping bag (4)
-Guidebook, information on the country
-Family/friend addresses (e-mail, snail mail, telephone numbers)
-Journal note book, pens, pencils
-Games, cards, paper backs
-Small sewing kit and pins
-Camera, film, memory cards, and batteries (1)
-Flashlight, and batteries
-Picture of your place, your family and so on
-A knapsack or a bag to carry items to the building site
Sundry
_________________________________
-Laundry powder (3)
-A small bottle of dish-washing soap
-Games to play with the children (5)
-One sponge for dishes (just in case we run out)
-One roll of toilet paper
-Tools (optional) (6)
Notes:
(1) Bring some zip-lock bags to protect and keep dry cameras, valuable papers (cash, airline tickets, credit cards, passport and so on), and any other items that are valuable or perishable.
(2) Pack leaky items (toiletries and alike) in zip-lock bags and tighten their caps.
(3) You could simplify your toiletries by bringing a product that can wash everything, including your teeth, body, hair, laundry and so on. One of those products is Dr.Bronner’s soap ( http://www.drbronner.com/index.html)
(4) You will also need a pillow to sleep. Consider bringing a pillow case and to stuff it with your clean clothing. You could bring also an old pillow case for the laundry.
(5) The best games to play with the children are frisbee, jump rope, balls, balloons to be inflated, children books, etc. Please note that you are under no obligation to bring anything.
(6) The Affiliate should have all the tools needed to support the work of the team. On the other hand it would be fine if we would like to bring our own tools to use and/or donate to the Affiliate before going home. Please note that we are under no obligation to bring any tools. Should we decide to bring some, this is a list of typical tools that an Affiliate could use and that will be easy to pack:
-tape measures
-working gloves
-carpenter pencils
-small trowel
-‘claw’ hammer
-levels (any size that is small enough to pack)
-builder’s nail apron (or tool belt)
-square
Speaking of packing, there are some sites on the web that offer ideas on packing. Among them I suggest the following:
http://www.onebag.com/
http://www.webfoot.com/travel/tips/index.php
http://www.travelite.org/
HEALTH / MEDICAL PRECAUTIONS
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Before your departure you should make a photocopy of your vaccination record book, and of any medical record that you may have. You should also prepare a medical kit which includes any prescription medicines that you frequently take or that your doctor recommend that you take with you. Your kit should also include at least the following items: band aids, treatment for upset stomach, Tylenol or aspirin, and antibiotic ointment.
While we can buy those items when in Eagle Butte, it would be better to have them handy for being immediately utilized when needed. I’ll bring a first aid kit to complement the supply that you will bring along with you. In terms of medical precautions, it is advisable to keep your hands clean. Water will not necessarily be available when you will need it. I therefore suggest that you bring and use a hand sanitizer product and use it often, especially prior lunches if they will take place at the working site.
You will always want to wear something for protecting your feet. To that end, flip-flops are recommended while walking around and taking a shower. Avoid all the times being barefoot. Please note that no flip-flop will be allowed at the work site. When there you will be required to wear “substantial” shoes.
To help you to stay in good health, we will drink bottled water. Speaking of water, when there you should drink a lot of it even if you do not feel that you are particularly thirsty. Do not forget that we will be involved into manual work in and the temperature will be high. In those conditions a massive loss of body water through perspiration is the norm. If that water is not replaced, you could run the risk of dehydrating.
I had been informed that the summer time is the mosquito season in Eagle Butte. You will want to bring with you a good supply of mosquito repellent (at least 25-30% DEET) and to use it. Let me quote here what a team leader who was last summer in
Eagle Butte wrote to me about mosquitoes: “There was an insane amount of them everywhere we went in South Dakota and they were very aggressive! Everyone on my team sprayed their entire bodies, even their clothes every few hours of every single day. We carried extra bottles of mosquito repellent with us at all times. I really cannot even exaggerate the amount of mosquito that were there…and they even bit through clothes a few times!”
You have been warned, guys.
CHAPTER 4
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THE STAY IN RAPID CITY
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The hotel in Rapid City where we have a reservation for Saturday, July 4 and Saturday, July 11 is Rodeway Inn, 2208 Mt. Rushmore Rd. The hotel phone number is (605) 342-1303, their email address is: rodewayinnrapidcity [at] yahoo [dot] com. The hotel has a website
address: http://www.rodewayinn.com/hotel-rapid_city-south_dakota-SD001.
I suggest that those who will arrive in Rapid City before July 4 make a reservation at the Rodeway Inn.
Steve rented two vehicles for the team transportation. He will be with one of them at the Rapid City airport for meeting those who will arrive on July 4, and for bringing them to the hotel. He has the arrival details of those who submitted theirs to him and/or to me.
THE ITINERARY OF JULY 5 AND THE STAY IN EAGLE BUTTE
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On the morning of July 5, those who will have spent the night of July 4 in Rapid City will have an early breakfast, will leave their luggage at the Rodeway Inn, and will depart with the two rented vehicles at about 8.30am. Our destination will be the Mount Rushmore National Memorial (Mount Rushmore), that is located some 17 miles south of Rapid City. Mount Rushmore is a monumental granite sculpture that represents four US Presidents. The Presidents were selected on the basis of what each symbolized. George Washington represents the struggle for independence, Thomas Jefferson the idea of government by the people. Abraham Lincoln was chosen for his ideas on equality and the permanent union of the states, and Theodore Roosevelt for the 20th century role of the United States in the world affairs. The carving of Mount Rushmore began in 1927 and spanned a length of 14 years.
There are a number of websites on the Mount Rushmore. One that I recommend to visit is:
http://www.nps.gov/archive/moru/park_history/carving_hist/carving_history.htm
A map of Mount Rushmore can be found at:
http://www.nps.gov/moru/planyourvisit/upload/park%20map.JPG
We plan to stay at Mount Rushmore until about 11am and to then travel south west from there for about 17 miles to the Crazy Horse Memorial. This Memorial is a mountain monument in the Black Hills. It will eventually represent Crazy Horse, an Ogala Lakota warrior, on his horse. The monument has been in progress since 1948 and it is still far from completion. There are a number of websites on the Crazy Horse Memorial. One that I found particularly interesting is the following:
http://www.blackhillsvacations.com/activities/supplierdetail.cfm?s=651724
A map of the Crazy Horse Memorial is the following:
After our arrival at the Memorial- an arrival that should take place at approx. 11.30am- we will see a 20 minute DVD on the site, we will tour the local Indian museum, and have lunch at the Laughing Water Restaurant. The restaurant has a panoramic view of the mountain carving. Its website is the following: http://www.crazyhorsememorial.org/campus/restaurant.html
After lunch we plan to be back to Rodeway Inn by approx 3pm. There, we will pick up our luggage, then meet those who arrived that afternoon. We’ll do some grocery shopping for Monday, July 6th breakfast, and will depart to Eagle Butte.
Rapid City and Eagle Butte are about 170 miles and three and half hours apart.
Jerry Farlee (the Habitat representative in Eagle Butte) wrote me that when in Eagle Butte we should stop on the Highway at the “24-Hour C-Store”. Somebody of the local Habitat will be there waiting for us. By the end of next month Jerry will let me have the name of those we will meet. He will let me have as well a telephone number to call in case of need. We will start working on Monday, July 6 after an orientation session that will take place in the morning.
A few words on what we can expect to do in Eagle Butte when we will not be occupied by our volunteer activities. I spoke to some team leaders who had been in Eagle Butte in the past, and everybody agreed that being under the supervision of Jerry Farlee means to be in very good hands. As a Lakota Sioux shaman, Jerry is knowledgeable on his people’s traditions and culture, and is always willing to introduce them to the teams that visit Eagle Butte. Speaking of our free time, let me quote here what Jerry wrote to me: “During the week we will do a number of activities after work, such as: a trip to a buffalo ranch, a tour of the southern area of the reservation which is sparsely inhabited, a tour to the local museum, talks on local history, culture and spiritualism, and a chance to participate in one of the seven sacred ceremonies of the Lakota Sioux called “Inipi,” or in English “Sweat Lodge”. He added: “I would definitely plan a day touring Badlands”.
You can find on the web some details on the Sweat Lodge that Jerry mentioned. In any event I suggest that you access the following website where you can see some pictures of him performing the ceremony: http://www.uucb.org/habitat/sweat.html.
On another occasion Jerry wrote me that he would like to be with us on Saturday the 11th for a sightseeing of the Badlands and possibly the Black Hills.
OUR VOLUNTEER WORK AND SOME SAFETY TIPS
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I inquired with Jerry for knowing what kind of work we can expect to do. He answered that chances are that we will be involved in the repair and restoration of old houses. In any event he will be specific on what we will do in a couple of weeks before our departure. I learned from other sources that sometimes the Habitat Affiliate of Eagle Butte purchases old houses that are in need of refurbishing and sell them to new owners once the houses have been repaired. Maybe we will participate in one of those projects. We will see. Regardless of what we will do there, we should start working by 8.30am and finish by 4.30pm. Based on my previous construction and refurbishing experience, I wrote down some guidelines that I strongly suggest that you follow. They areas follows:
-We will operate at a time of year that will be particularly warm. This implies that we will loose fluids here more than we are used to. To stabilize our body’s systems, we have to drink water frequently, even if we do not feel that we are thirsty.
-If we feel tired, we have to stop and rest in the shade. We shouldn’t feel guilty if others continue to work while we rest. We are not all built the same way. The time for the others to rest will come sooner or later.
-We have to be constantly alert about the activity around us, above us, and below us to be sure that we do not present a threat to the others, and that we are not in a potentially dangerous spot. Some examples: those who operate above others could drop tools, or those who move materials where other people are working could hurt somebody.
-Scaffolding: before using scaffolding, ask the person in charge of the team to check stability and supporting weight. Use solid material for building them. If necessary, such as when long scaffoldings are used, put a support in the middle. Do not stand on the edges of the scaffolding unless somebody else is on the other edge. Do not move if you have not first alerted the individual standing at the opposite side. Do not climb scaffoldings if you do not feel comfortable working on them. Descend if you feel unsafe or uncomfortable.
-Ladders: before using a ladder, be sure that it is on solid, level ground, that it can support your weight, and that of the material/tools you are carrying, that it is not positioned in an area where it could be hit. Move your ladder with your work: do not extend your body out of the ladder frame.
-We will have to keep clean the area where we will work.
-Chances are that we will experience some minor cuts or some scratches. In those events we should stop working, wash the cut/scratch with bottled water, and contact the person who has the first aid kit for any needed action.
-Dressing appropriately for the work will be important. Please do not arrive on the building site wearing sandals or open-toes shoes. Bring and use gloves, cap, and possibly a bandana. Wear comfortable clothing.
-Concentrate on what you are doing. Distraction and overconfidence are responsible for most of the situations when something goes wrong.
CHAPTER 5
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CONTACT INFORMATION
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A reminder to those who will make a call to Eagle Butte or will receive a call there.
The Eagle Butte Time is “Mountain”. It means that when it will be noon there, it will be 11am in the Pacific Time zone, 1pm in the Central Time zone, and 1pm in the Eastern Time zone.
I already mentioned to you (see Chapter 4), that my Habitat contact in Eagle Butte-his official title being Executive Director- is Jerry Farlee. His phone number :(605)964-8532.
His email address is: othfh@lakotanetwork.com
Let me provide you as well with the Habitat Headquarters coordinator details. Her name is Jwana L. Washington, her phone number in Americus, GA is (229) 410-7972.
Her email address is: jwashington@habitat.org
Finally a reminder that on our arrival in Rapid City and on Saturday, July 11, we will be
at the Rodeway Inn Hotel, whose phone number is (605) 342-1303.
I suggest that you provide the above information to your family/friends.
TEAM MEETINGS
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Unless for some reasons they should be cancelled, we will have evening meetings from Monday to Thursday and a special meeting on Friday evening. Moreover if the circumstances will allow it, we will have each morning a short reflection/devotion time just before starting to work. Everybody will be invited to attend this ceremony, and it will be up to you to decide if you want to participate.
The evening meetings (considering the place, we could call them pow-wow) will take place after the dinner. They will offer a chance to everybody to discuss our experience, to plan our work, to make suggestions, to clear possible problems, and in the process to know us better. Once the meeting will be over, it will be time for reading a book, writing, talking and so on. If you want, you could bring your favorite games.
On Friday evening we will discuss our experience, and collect ideas and suggestions. This time of “closure” will offer us a chance to put into prospective all the things that happened to us during the week. On the occasion of this last meeting I will provide you with a Global Village web contact that will allow you to inform Habitat of your experience.
CONCLUSIONS
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Those of you who had a chance to be with me on other teams will probably remember that I consider these projects as not belonging to the team leader –Steve and I on this occasion- but to all of us. That means that Steve and I expect that you cooperate with us
and that approach this experience with an open mind, maturity and flexibility. On these
conditions your reward should be an amazing experience, hopefully one of the best you ever had.
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