Category: Uncategorized

“Let us put our minds together and see what life we can make for our children.” – Sitting Bull

In South Dakota, today is not Columbus Day. Today is Native American Day. Continue reading “SJIS joins with Native Hope to celebrate Native American Day”

When the sun rose on St. Joseph’s campus on Saturday, September 15, there was something different in the air – a different energy. Continue reading “Connectedness at 42nd Annual Powwow”

After competitions in dance and a Q&A with judges, St. Joseph’s Indian School has crowned three students as the 2018 royalty for the 42nd Annual Powwow. Learn more about Mariah, Rico and Vincent! Continue reading “Meet our 2018 Powwow Royalty”

Free books.

Those are two words that should always be together and, thanks to donor support, they are! St. Joseph’s is blessed to provide several outreach programs for Native American families living on reservations. One is the St. Joseph’s Bookmobile. Continue reading “Supporters Help Fuel Love of Reading on Reservations”

Homes are always happier when one of the members of the family walks on four legs, right? We sure think so!

With the help from supporters like you, St. Joseph’s is proud to have the Houseparents and Pets In (HAPI) Homes program on campus. The program launched in 2017 with three dogs. We’re happy to announce the program just got a bit HAPI-er, and has expanded to 10 dogs in select homes and classrooms! Continue reading “Students Find Comfort in Furry Friends”

At St. Joseph’s Indian School, every measure is taken to be good stewards of the gifts donors send students. Some of those gifts are bicycles.

As expected, kids are hard on bikes. They zoom, race and bump along and the bikes take a beating in the name of having fun. Continue reading “Wheels Keep Turning Thanks to Helpful Houseparent”

It’s a week filled with launching eggs, exploding elephant toothpaste, and other fun science activities that ends with a trip to Rapid City’s Journey Museum. To say the least, the Starbase camp keeps St. Joseph’s Indian School fifth graders busy, busy, busy! Continue reading “Love of Science ‘Explodes’ during Starbase Camp”

St. Joseph’s Indian School is excited to begin a new effort in supporting Native American families, starting with the littlest members.  Continue reading “Donors Help Provide Diaper Bag Essentials to Native American Parents”

Note: The following guest post was written by St. Joseph’s Indian School houseparents, Mike and Bette, about an experience they had this summer on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. Enjoy!

As houseparents at St. Joseph’s Indian School, my wife, Bette, and I (Mike) jumped at the opportunity to go on a Service Week trip to the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation this summer.

Our trip started on a Sunday at a church in Hermosa — a small community on the northern edge of the reservation. We met the rest of the group who came from the Fairfax, Va., area and shared some of our experiences we’ve had with the children we care for at St. Joseph’s, as well as our recent experiences while serving on the Bookmobile route. While together, we learned how to play some Native American games, such as throwing a spear through a rolling hoop and a bit of archery. Continue reading “A Summer of Service: Houseparents Give Back in Reservation Communities”

In June 2018, four St. Joseph’s high school students and their chaperones visited Germany as part of an annual exchange program with Gymnasium Leonium in Handrup. Both founded by the Congregation of the Priests of the Sacred Heart, St. Joseph’s and Gymnasium Leonium have partnered in an exchange program for more than 10 years.  Continue reading “Lakota students discover connections, forge friendships in Germany”