Mt Rushmore & Crazy Horse

Maddi & Luke try on hats :)

Our last few days took us to Mt Rushmore and Crazy Horse Mountain in the Black Hills. We also stopped by Lutherans Outdoors of South Dakota's camp Atlantic Mountain Ranch. The beauty of God's  incredible creation is all around.

Danielle at Mt. Rushmore

Such a great group of youth!!

Miss Kathy

Now where do we go??

Pastor Curt

Atlantic Mountain Ranch of Lutherans Outdoors of SD

Westward Ho!

Atlantic Mountain Ranch

New Friends

Rachel's mountaintop experience

Crazy Horse Mountain

Crazy Horse: Model + actual mountain

Feeding the Buffalo--Don't Try this at Home

Our last day in Pine Ridge we went to a buffalo ranch where we heard stories of The White Buffalo and also had the opportunity to feed the buffalo. Please do not try this at  home! A memorable experience we will never forget! [It was hard to get pictures when something that big is that close!  Videos to follow!]

The harsh Pine Ridge landscape

We are in the back of a pick up truck trying to lure the buffalo toward us

The buffalo weren't quite sure about us to begin with...

Bonding

Gotta admit, never have had a buffalo in my lap before....

Buddies!

Kissing a buffalo

Ewwwwww.........

An experience we will never have again!

Leading Kids' Worship for the Community

Our group led two worship services for the children of the community with singing, prayer, skits and a puppet show

Worship for the younger children on Wednesday.

After worship, everyone shares a meal.

Our group provided dinner music

Playtime after worship

Sharing in the culture

Danielle with the Talking Stick

 Each night we shared in a talking circle, telling about those times when we saw God, our revelations, and sharing our hearts with each other. We used a Lakota talking stick to do this.




Valerie (sorry, I can't remember her last name) came and shared her talents of porcupine quilling with us. It was an amazing art form using the quills of porcupines to make jewlery and other craft items. Here, Pastor Curt designs a cross with Valerie.

Pastor Curt discusses quilling with Valerie

The Badlands

We shared a traditional meal with Rev. TwoBulls and his daughter Twila at Standing Rock on the outskirts of the Badlands.

Kathy in front of the Episcopal Church where Rev. Two Bulls is the priest. 

"Mitakuye Oyasin" means "we are all related."  The medicine wheel prevalent in the culture represents "The red people, the yellow people, the black people, and the white people." Yes, we are all united in Christ.

Reverend Two Bulls sharing Lakota stories with us on the outskirts of the Badlands.

Pictures, Pictures, Pictures!!

Kids Time: Games didn't need to have rules :)

Talented artists in the community!

Kids Time: Joy in being together

Smiles, laughter, and joy are universal to all

Love is a universal language

This picture needs no explanation

We Apologize for Getting Behind in Posting

 We just wanted to apologize for getting behind in our posts for our blog this week.  It has been an incredible experience for everyone, and sleep has been an after thought. We will continue to post to this blog even after we return to Florida, so please keep checking in for more pictures, stories, and words about how God is at work in each of our lives this week. Today, is a posting of pictures from Kid's Time. On Wednesday, we visited Red  Cloud School [www.redcloudschool.org ]  We also led worship as a team for the children who come to the retreat center for kids time.

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Honored to be at a Funeral with such deep Traditions

Practicing music for the funeral

On Tuesday, we were invited to attend the funeral of Mrs. Irma TenFingers. Irma was beloved by her family and in her community. It was an honor to be a part of a ceremony that celebrated the life of this woman. We were welcomed with open arms at the funeral, and invited as special guests to sing for the service as well as read the word. It was a humbling experience to share the common bond of grief.  All of us felt the Holy Spirit's presence with us, and it helped us all to contemplate our relationships with Christ and our own families and value those relationships  a bit more.

Transporting the casket in a pick up

All are invited to help cover the casket in the ground, sharing the shovels and working together.[Note Pastor Curt in the blue shirt in the middle of the picture.]

Wounded Knee memorial

We also went to the Wounded Knee Memorial where Kelly and Suzanne Looking Horse shared their family stories about that battle and the massacre of so many Lakota.  It was a blessing to have so many speakers and people we met who could share about their families. We ended the evening with dinner followed by a drum circle.