Help Lakota Families Grow Business
Donation protected
Help create economic opportunity for the Winyan Wasaka (Strong Women) of the Lakota Nation – Immediate proven revenue potential!
Who we are: I am Christinia Eala of the Sicangu Band of the Lakota nation. I am founder/director of Tiyospaye Winyan Maka winyanmaka07. webs.com , a 501(c)(3) non-profit that helps families on the Pine Ridge reservation in South Dakota, home of the Oglala Lakota people. Life expectancy on our reservation is the 2nd lowest in the Western Hemisphere - second only to Haiti. Poverty is rampant, with average annual incomes around $3,000. We have slowly made progress over the past many years, helping families establish safe and viable homesteads on their ancestral lands and develop sustainable lines of income through cottage industry. One of our most promising areas is the development of a business plan that would build a strong foundation for the beautiful, artistic bead and quillwork that many families create together to sell during tourist season. Their businesses are small and seasonal, their income dwindle down to almost nothing during the late fall and winter months.
Over 30 years, company founder Susie Cotcher built a very large and successful business www.truewestmagazine.com/beadwrangler-makes-magic/. Susie passed away one month ago. Though there are other substantial offers to buy the business, before she died she made it clear that she wanted the business to be sold to the women of the Lakota nation, living in poverty at Pine Ridge, even if it meant giving a substantial portion of the company's value as a gift.
What we need:
BY MAY 1st: $5,000 to acquire supplies and training, so that we may keep Susie's business alive and begin to immediately generate revenue, transforming our humble operation into a real engine of prosperity for our people.
Please Act Now – we need your help!: The business is still active, with orders coming in weekly. We need to quickly transfer the book of business, patterns, and supplies to the skilled Lakota bead workers, and train them in her technique, before the orders dry up and the buyers begin to look elsewhere.
Above: Valery Amber Brown Eyes quill work
Above: Susie Cotcher hatbands
Who we are: I am Christinia Eala of the Sicangu Band of the Lakota nation. I am founder/director of Tiyospaye Winyan Maka winyanmaka07. webs.com , a 501(c)(3) non-profit that helps families on the Pine Ridge reservation in South Dakota, home of the Oglala Lakota people. Life expectancy on our reservation is the 2nd lowest in the Western Hemisphere - second only to Haiti. Poverty is rampant, with average annual incomes around $3,000. We have slowly made progress over the past many years, helping families establish safe and viable homesteads on their ancestral lands and develop sustainable lines of income through cottage industry. One of our most promising areas is the development of a business plan that would build a strong foundation for the beautiful, artistic bead and quillwork that many families create together to sell during tourist season. Their businesses are small and seasonal, their income dwindle down to almost nothing during the late fall and winter months.
Over 30 years, company founder Susie Cotcher built a very large and successful business www.truewestmagazine.com/beadwrangler-makes-magic/. Susie passed away one month ago. Though there are other substantial offers to buy the business, before she died she made it clear that she wanted the business to be sold to the women of the Lakota nation, living in poverty at Pine Ridge, even if it meant giving a substantial portion of the company's value as a gift.
What we need:
BY MAY 1st: $5,000 to acquire supplies and training, so that we may keep Susie's business alive and begin to immediately generate revenue, transforming our humble operation into a real engine of prosperity for our people.
Please Act Now – we need your help!: The business is still active, with orders coming in weekly. We need to quickly transfer the book of business, patterns, and supplies to the skilled Lakota bead workers, and train them in her technique, before the orders dry up and the buyers begin to look elsewhere.
Above: Valery Amber Brown Eyes quill work
Above: Susie Cotcher hatbands
Organizer
Christinia Eala
Organizer
Fort Collins, CO
