Cheyenne River Youth Project

Youth development, including many activities for Youth on the reservation on our 5 acre campus, which is comprised of educational and recreational spaces that offer safe spaces for children ages 4-18 mentored by staff and volunteers. The main Youth center, for ages 4-12, offers active areas, a commercial kitchen to serve daily meals and snacks, an art room and library in addition to volunteer living quarters. The cokata wiconi teen center services Youth, ages 13-18, and within the facility offers a dance studio, gymnasium and fitness center, library, classrooms, computer lab and art studio, in addition to volunteer living quarters and office spaces. This facility is also home to the keya cafe & coffee shop and the keya gift shop. The winyan toka garden is a 3 acre naturally grown garden and the waniyetu wowapi art park is a public art space as well as a place to create art. The main Youth center: our Youth center is many things to the 4- to 12-year-olds on Cheyenne River. It's place to come when there is nowhere else to go, a place to learn and explore, a place to play and socialize with friends, and a place to receive a healthy, hot meal. We have carefully created each program and activity with the idea that every child deserves the chance to have a healthy and happy future. This is where we make our first contact with Youth on Cheyenne River, and we pride ourselves on being able to establish strong relationships that will last for many years. At the main, we lay the groundwork for these long-term relationships, instilling core values that will help our little ones make a successful transition to young adulthood.daily arts and crafts: all cultures utilize the arts to provide social commentary, whether it is the expression of emotions, the documentation of historical events, or the preservation of heritage. The lakota, also, have a rich history as crafts people and artisans, a tradition that the Cheyenne River Youth Project respects and promotes in its activities. Staff and volunteers include arts in crafts in our daily program because it encourages creativity, provides a healthy outlet for the children and gives us another avenue to discover the talents of our children, talents which we can further and inspire. These activities might include painting a mural, working with plaster molds, or making puppets. Tables covered in supplies are placed around our large activity room so that the children have plenty of space and all of the tools that they need to create their masterpieces.literacy: for the Cheyenne River Youth Project, literacy is not just about reading, it is about comprehension, expression of oneself and communication. Created over ten years ago, our year-round literacy program incorporates reading aloud, creative and persuasive writing and letter writing. Our daily literacy activities include a library hour, during which the children can chose to read a book quietly, or work with a volunteer on their reading and comprehension skills. During the summer months, cryp endeavors to keep the children's reading skills active through the summer reading program. Wellness: the Cheyenne River Youth Project understands the importance of a healthy body for improving self-esteem, gaining confidence and keeping the mind open to new ideas and information. Through our wellness activities, we incorporate physical activity with recreation and mentorship. Whether it's playing kickball on the playground or taking the kids on a nature walk, we always find a way to include education into the mix. Staff and volunteers teach the children to appreciate good sportsmanship, learn more about indigenous wild- and plant life, or to challenge themselves just that little bit more. Daily outdoor activity with the children (weather permitting) is scheduled, like team sports or an hour in the children's garden, weeding and harvesting. Not only do these activities help the children to work off excess energy from sitting in school all day, but they encourage children to reconnect with the outdoors. For the lakota, a strong connection to the earth has always been a part of their spiritual and daily life. Unfortunately, many children no longer value this relationship as much as they could and we try to help them find new ways to rediscover this aspect of their culture. In addition to our daily activities, the Cheyenne River Youth Project has developed a summer camping program. The program helps the children to find adventure and fun outside of the internet and video games. The children go on hikes, are taught about some of the plant life and animals they see, and most importantly, talk to the children about their lives in a more candid environment.main university: the main university, begun in january 2002, is designed to enhance the children's current experience and education in school with a series of staff and/or volunteer instructed classes on a variety of subjects. The participants must complete four classes in a "semester" of eight weeks in order to graduate from the university. Children with five or more classes receive honors. The graduates are given a small ceremony complete with certificates of excellence. Children are exposed to the vocabulary of higher education at a very young age, that may help to ease anxieties later on. In addition, the children get the benefit of learning from many different kinds of people, who come from throughout the world. Community volunteers with expertise are also invited to teach classes to the children, connecting our participants with local role-models who share our vision for Cheyenne River Youth. The topics are always different, and children can always find classes that pique their curiosity. Main university is not just about education, it is also about setting reasonable goals for success that our children can be proud of when they achieve. Poverty can lead to insecurity and many of our children are quite reserved as a result. With encouragement, however, we can help our children to find their voice and the confidence to express themselves. Main university proves that children care about their education and expanding their horizons.cokata wiconi (center for life) teen center: the organization created cokata wiconi to meet the specific needs of Cheyenne River's teens, who told us exactly what they wanted in terms of facilities, resources and programs. Cokata wiconi offers an art studio, classroom, dance studio, computer lab, library and full-size gymnasium. Its programs allow us to teach valuable job and life skills, foster wellness, address self-esteem issues, and give our kids a positive, healthy place to socialize, learn, express themselves and pursue their interests the issues of gang violence, drug use, and alcohol dependency, and helps kids develop valuable life skills.education (internships and employment initiatives): cryp has teen internships available in 5 tracks: sustainable agriculture, social enterprises, wellness, arts, indigenous cooking and lakota language & culture. All of our interns have the opportunity to become certified in first aid and cpr, participate in educational workshops such as financial literacy and financial aid, enjoy hands-on experience in cryp's facilities, serve as peer mentors and community leaders, earn money for their new savings accounts, and gain vital job and life skills for a more secure and vibrant future. Cryp has launched a Youth employment trainee initiative where Youth, ages 14-18, are hired as trainees and work at cryp working with adult staff who serve as mentors but participate in employment trainings, working towards developing the next generation work force.native wellness: diabetes, heart disease and obesity are just a few of the serious health issues that disproportionately affect native american populations in the united states. The u.s. department of health and human services estimates that native americans are twice as likely to develop diabetes as the general population, and according to the center for disease control, heart disease is the leading cause of death in our communities. The time to be active is now. At cokata wiconi, we offer open gym, a state-of-the-art fitness center, sports clinic and tournaments, midnight basketball, diabetes prevention initiatives, seasonal clubs like biking or running club as well as 5k run/walk event. At cryp, we believe in holistic wellnesssupporting every child's physical, mental, emotional and spiritual well-being. We prepare them for a successful, vibrant adult life with wellness training that incorporates physical fitness activities, culturally relevant classes and workshops, health education and certifications, and opportunities to develop their skills and self-confidence through peer mentorship and community leadership.

Families can purchase annual memberships which allow access to emergency hygiene and household products. Families may qualify for cleaning supplies, furniture, clothing, school supplies, and diapers.waniyetu wowapi arts & cultural institute: the Cheyenne River Youth Project has always engaged our teens in the arts but over the years, daily arts programming has become much more and we have expanded what is available to our young people. Cultural reclamation through our arts programming has been key to strengthening our Youth to their culture. Throughout the years our arts program has grown into an institute where now we offer arts internships, art camps, art fellowships. Cryp has created an art park which is a public space for the community to express themselves through the arts. Cryp's redcan graffiti jam began in 2015, where artists from throughout the world come to our community and reclaim dilapidated buildings by painting murals, working alongside our Youth as they learn from established artistic mentors. Art classes teach traditional and contemporary arts such as drum making, sewing ribbon skirts, learning how to construct a sweat lodge, etc. Construction of a new arts 10,000 square foot facility begins in july 2024. Winyan toka win garden: fostering a sense of connectedness has always been the primary goal of the winyan toka win garden. Decades ago, the original vision of a community garden, was to fulfill elders' desires for traditional foods and reacquaint lakota children with the earth. At cryp, we approach native food sovereignty and security through our garden. Cryp stresses the importance of fresh produce in a daily diet; the significance of traditional foods for the lakota people; and the powerful relationships that a naturally grown garden can foster between generations as well as between our people and the earth. Cryp has managed the garden since 1999, planting, maintaining and harvesting the garden. Its fresh, nutritious produce from the garden is incorporated into daily snacks and meals at the main, cokata wiconi and keya cafe; processed and sold under the cryp label in the keya gift shop; and made available to the community through the seasonal, weekly leading lady farmers market. It also serves as a classroom for the Youth and teens. The turtle island food truck is scheduled to launch in summer 2024. Through our garden club and food sovereignty internships, Youth strengthen their connection to the land and learn how to sustainably manage a garden and also eat better for improved health.