Christmas for the children of White Swan

The flooding woes of 2019 have never gone away for the families of White Swan, a tiny community near Lake Andes on the Yankton Sioux Reservation. We have met a wonderful woman there — Shelly Saunsoci — who is quietly but determinedly helping by organizing a food kitchen every day for the poor and hungry. She has been feeding a hundred people daily but that number will triple on Dec. 19 when many children will be coming home from boarding schools in Flandreau and Chamberlain. Shelly and her helpers have been preparing two meals a day, and they hope they can do three meals for the children during the holidays.

Onward Yankton, a group that promotes entrepreneurism and quality of life in Yankton, learned about Shelly’s holiday challenge and we told her we would help spread the word and gather resources for the children of White Swan this Christmas season.

Here is a link to a good article about the White Swan flooding:

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/nov/29/its-like-the-third-world-tribe-feels-forgotten-as-flooding-brings-misery-to-a-struggling-community