I was approached back in December by two senior nursing students, one of whom had made the August trip to Pine Ridge, about completing their nursing management project on the reservation during the Spring 2017 semester. The student who had made the trip previously felt a strong calling to return, and in talking to her peer about her experiences in August, found a kindred spirit. Both were (and still are!) very enthusiastic about reaching out to the teenagers of Pine Ridge to provide health promotion and teaching on several topics. After exploring the logistics, getting support from the School of Nursing (this support has been unwavering!), and providing some guidance, these two students, Britin and Ashley, were off and running. Full of creative ideas and the aforementioned enthusiasm, they reached out to the school nurse and principal at Little Wound High School in Kyle, SD. I never expect much from a cold call with an offer to provide services from a distant location; however, their call was received with excitement and an invitation.
So here we are…on the rez during Spring Break. We drove up yesterday from southern Indiana with a car packed to over-capacity. I drove straight through–18 hours total. We are here with a plan to go to the high school everyday this week. The students’ Pre-Prom Health Blast will offer education, giveaways, and games related to prevention of STD’s; healthy body image; healthy coping strategies; distracted driving prevention; and more. We will culminate on Friday with a prom dress giveaway–we have about 50 prom dresses for the girls and dress shirts and ties for the guys. I never know how things are going to go here–usually have a general trend to give me an idea, but my experience has been that you bring your best and things fall into place. The students have worked so hard, and I only want the best results for them.
This journey is a new one–I have done the summer trip so many times that I have an idea of how things might go, but this time, I am not sure what to expect. Tomorrow I will try to take the following quote to heart and encourage the students to do the same:
“None of us, including me, ever do great things. But we can all do small things, with great love, and together we can do something wonderful.” –Mother Theresa
As always, I feel grateful and privileged to be here, and there will certainly be more to report tomorrow~!
Here are some of the sites from today’s journey through the Badlands to Rapid City, Crazy Horse, and Mt Rushmore.
Nursing Students at Pine Ridge 