2010 USA Mission Experience

Meeting Our Sisters in South Dakota

The earth is the Lord’s and all that is in it,
the world, and those who live in it;
for [God] has founded it on the seas,
and established it on the rivers.

- Psalm 24:1–2

A group of 20 to 30 Presbyterian women will travel to South Dakota in 2010 for the second USA Mission Experience, connecting issues raised during past Global Exchanges with similar issues in South Dakota. They will meet our Native American sisters to learn about their day-to-day life, challenges they face and concerns they have.

Participants will:

• meet Native American women and learn about the issues that concern them — land development, food, farming, church leadership, health and social issues;
• visit reservations, schools, churches, tribal colleges and historical sites and
• hear the voices of our sisters and respond, building mutually supportive relationships.

Download a flier about the 2010 USA Mission Experience.

Applying for the trip

At least one participant will be chosen from each of the 16 synods. Applicants should be good listeners, open to cultures and experiences different from their own and should also be prepared for some long travel days and living arrangements changing daily. Upon completion of the trip, participants are expected to communicate what they experienced at gatherings throughout their synod.

The cost of the trip is approximately $1600, not including travel to and from South Dakota. Each participant is responsible for her costs, but it is hoped that synods, presbyteries and congregations will offer financial assistance to their participant(s).

Download an application.

January 15, 2010, is the deadline for applicants to send an application to PW synod moderators.

March 1, 2010, is the deadline for PW synod moderators to send completed applications (including moderator endorsement and forms from applicant’s two references) to PW USA Mission Experience Committee, c/o Kathy Reeves, 100 Witherspoon St., Louisville, KY 40202-1396 or fax to (502) 569-8026. If the synod moderator receives more than three applications, she should appoint a committee from the synod coordinating team to select the three best applicants.

Background

The Presbyterian Church and the Sioux people share a history of more than 100 years. Despite this long-standing relationship, many of us know little about our Sioux sisters and brothers.

Sioux people classify themselves into one of three linguistic and regional groups — Dakota, Lakota or Nakota. Like members of other Native American tribes, Sioux people may choose to live on or off reservations. Many Sioux reservations are in North and South Dakota.

Dakota Presbytery is a nongeographic presbytery established in 1844. Of the 22 Presbyterian churches in Dakota Presbytery, approximately 10 are on reservations identified as Sioux. The composition of the Presbytery of Dakota and its congregations is very complex, often based on key families in each church, with membership from several reservations and tribes and great distances between church clusters.
 
PW’s 2010 USA Mission Experience will provide the opportunity to meet with Presbyterian sisters living on reservations in Sisseton, Flandreau, Chamberlain and Pine Ridge, South Dakota. The journey will begin in Sioux Falls on September 9 and will end in Rapid City on September 16.

Learn more about the PC(USA)’s Native American congregations.

Read PC(USA)’s Native American churchwide policy statement.

Those interested in this experience will find additional reading about the history of Native Americans helpful.

Growing Up Native American
Edited by Patricia Riley
New York: Harper Paperbacks, 2005

Twenty-two Native American writers recall moments that were particularly meaningful to their cultural identities

We Talk, You Listen: New Tribes, New Turf
By Vine Deloria Jr.
Lincoln, Neb.: University of Nebraska, 2007

An overview of American Indian tribalism and its focus on group identity and community development from within

Indians in Minnesota (Fifth Edition)
By Kathy Davis Graves and Elizabeth Ebbott for the League of Women Voters of Minnesota
Minneapolis, Minn.: University of Minnesota, 2007

Statistics and insights on American Indians’ cultural and spiritual beliefs; compiled from hundreds of interviews with Native Americans from Minnesota

Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee: An Indian History of the American West
By Dee Brown
New York: Holt, 2007

A look at the white settlers’ westward expansion and resulting marginalization of Native Americans during 1860–1890

Indian Givers: How the Indians of the Americas Transformed the World
By Jack Weatherford
New York: Ballantine, 1989

An overview of the many ways that Native American’s beliefs, wisdom and practices impacted the entire world

Native Roots: How the Indians Enriched America
By Jack Weatherford
New York: Ballantine, 1992

An examination of the Native American influence on many of the developments and foundations of life in the United States, from linguistic to technological

Boarding School Seasons: American Indian Families, 1900–1940
By Brenda J Child
Lincoln, Neb.: University of Nebraska Press, 2000

A look at the emotional and cultural impact of boarding schools on Native American individuals, families and communities