How to Help One of the US’ Most Poverty-Stricken Regions with Knitting
You can help the Lakota people in the Pine Ridge Reservation with For the Children of Pine Ridge
Two of the questions I’m most often asked about charity knitting are the following. “Where is the need greatest?” and “Who can use what I love to knit?”
When you knit for the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota in the United States, you can easily answer both questions.
The need is so great it’s almost staggering. The vast majority of people living here are unemployed. Poverty is both extensive and pervasive. Many homes have inadequate or no heating, running water, or laundry facilities.
This is a heartbreaking situation, of course. But it also means that whatever you want to knit will be gratefully accepted, used, and most likely loved.
The Ravelry group For the Children of Pine Ridge is dedicated to making life a little brighter for this population through their charity knitting.
How You Can Help
For the Children of Pine Ridge encourages anyone who wants to knit for this group of people to “create what makes your heart sing.” So if there’s a particular type of knitting you love, knit it! Your heart of love will mean as much as what you actually knit.
At any time, you can send any finished project to the High Horses in South Dakota; click the link above to the Ravelry group and you’ll find their mailing addresses (for both US mail and UPS or FedEx) posted on their overview page.
If you want or need a bit more guidance, check out the various project threads on the the group’s discussion board. These projects include guidelines and mailing addresses.
One unique project is their Monthly Cooking Kits. Not only does it give you the opportunity to gift families with knitted kitchen items, but it also gives you the chance to help families learn to cook delicious, nutritious meals with soup kits. Be sure to check out that thread!
Be sure to read the guidelines offered on the group’s overview page before you begin a project. This will ensure that your project is acceptable and welcome within the Lakota culture. (These guidelines aren’t at all oppressive, they just need to be kept in mind.)
Are you ready to lend your needles to children and families of Pine Ridge? This is a wonderful opportunity for your charity knitting to make a real difference!
For more beautiful opportunities to help the people of the Pine Ridge Reservation, check out Friends of Pine Ridge Reservation and Afghan Squares for Pine Ridge Reservation.
Click here to sign up for my free email course, Getting Started with Charity Knitting, and subscribe to the free Knitting Nuggets Newsletter.
I have a big box setting on my chair and it is being filled with knit socks, hats, and mitten, pajamas, stuffed toys for babies, crib quilts and whatever else I can stuff into that box. It is so cold out there and they need warm items. Don’t worry about sizes, there are so many children in need out there, they will find one to
fit into the item. I vary the sizes on all items I make. Then I know even the older children will get some warm items.
I love this, Carol. Thanks so much for your encouragement and inspiration!
As a small church group we would like to send a donation. I cannot find the address for High Horses.
Sandra Walsh
Columbus Ohio
Hi Sandra, sorry it took me so long to respond to this! Visit the group’s Ravelry page (https://www.ravelry.com/groups/for-the-children-of-pine-ridge) and click the “Pages” tab. (As of this writing it says “19 pages.”) Scroll down till you see the “Mailing Addresses” link. You will need to join Ravelry before you do all this, if you haven’t already, but I really highly encourage everyone to join Ravelry. It’s free and won’t result in a bunch of annoying emails. 🙂 Hope this helps!
I sent 52 children’s. hats last year and have been adding to my stash for this year’s shipping. Have not done socks because of sizing, think I will look for a pattern for tube socks that could cover several sizes, Also sent a shipment to the Warwick Public school that serves the Lakota children in Warwick ND.
That is awesome, Elizabeth! Thank you so much for all you’re doing.
For the Children of Pine Ridge is a wonderful group to donate to. I have been sending items there for a few years now. Just remember no solid red or solid blue items. Those are gang colors. Also no owls. Owls are a sign of death.
Thanks for the reminders!
Do they accept crochet items?
Absolutely, Patsy! Just check their guidelines, as long as you follow those you can definitely crochet. Thanks for reading!
The children of Pine Ridge is a wonderful org. I have a friend who has been on mission trips to Pine Ridge and met the High Horses. Whenever I mail a box of warm items to them I get a thank you (via snail mail) so I know they are being used where they are needed.
Thank you for sharing, Phyllis!
Hello how can i help
If you’re a member of Ravelry.com, follow the link in the article and you’ll get all the information you need. If not, you’ll need to sign up for Ravelry first — it’s free and nearly instant. Just go to http://www.ravelry.com/ and follow the prompts to join.