Vision on the Wind
Summer Newsletter 2019
1001 E Lake St, Minneapolis, MN 55407
Phone: 612-722-8722
LEAP! 2020: Feeding Native Families, Empowering Native Youth
Save the Date!
Thank you to everyone who attended LEAP! 2019: Feeding Native Families, Empowering Native Youth! Your generosity helped us to raise over $75,000 for our Horizons Unlimited food shelf and Youth Leadership Development Program!

LEAP! is the Division of Indian Work’s annual fundraising event featuring entertainment, silent and live auctions, a cash bar, and great food. All proceeds go toward our Horizons Unlimited (HU) food shelf and our Youth Leadership Development Program (YLDP).

We are excited to announce that in 2020, LEAP! will return to the Metropolitan Ballroom, and will take place in mid-March!

When: Monday, March 16th, 2020, 5pm-8pm
Where: The Metropolitan Ballroom

Be sure to follow us on Facebook for all of our latest news and updates on LEAP! 2020!
News
New Vans!
We are excited to share that we recently were able to purchase two new 15-passenger vans! These vans are primarily used for youth programming and the food shelf. One van has been named "Wambdi" (Dakota for "Eagle") and the youth in YLDP will name the second van. Purchasing these vans would not have been possible without generous donations from:

  • Pamela Bervin
  • David Bice
  • Kim and Carol Culp
  • Marian Ducharme
  • Cecy Faster
  • Lakewinds Co-op
  • Joyce & Richard McFarland
  • Prairie Island Indian Community
  • Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community
  • St. Luke Presbyterian Church

Miigwech! Pidamaya! Thank You!
Building Update s
We've been making some much needed updates to the building! This summer we repaired the leaking garage floor, the concrete wall in the basement, ceiling, and the concrete stairs leading down to Lake Street.

We'd like to give a Chii Miigwech (big Thank You) to the Butler Family Foundation and Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community for their generous grants to complete this work.
Interview with AMPERS
DIW and YLDP were recently represented on AMPERS (Association of Minnesota Public Educational Radio Stations)! YLDP Youth Worker Bryce Premo was interviewed about suicide prevention and culturally specific programming. To listen to the interview, click Here .
2018 Annual Report
DIW's 2018 Annual Report is complete and on our website! This is the first Annual Report for DIW since becoming our own tax-free organization. To see the Annual Report, please click Here .
DIW Staff Picnic
DIW wouldn't be able to do the work we do without our amazing staff! To show our appreciation, DIW has an annual staff picnic. This year it took place in late August at Minnehaha Park. It was a great sunny day for staff to take a break and bond with one other. We ate some good food, played fun yard games and Cribbage, and shared many laughs.
DIW is Hiring!
We are hiring for the following positions:

DASC American Indian Advocate: This position is officed primarily at the Domestic Abuse Service Center (DASC) located in downtown Minneapolis. The Advocate provides crisis management, legal advocacy, support and assistance with Orders for Protection, handles walk-ins, and reports directly to Hennepin County.
Healing Spirit Boys Home Support Staff: Provides direct care services, supervision and guidance for American Indian youth residing in the Healing Spirit House and works collaboratively with Case Workers to fill the role of "foster parent" for the youth residing in the home.

For more information about these positions and how to apply, please click the button below:
Program Updates
Ninde Doula Program
As the doulas receive their certificates, they're able to start working one-on-one with mothers.

Last quarter, Ninde doulas helped deliver 5 healthy babies into our community! It is our goal at Ninde to triple those numbers this quarter.  
Youth Leadership Development Program
Youth Leadership Development Program staff and youth had a great summer at Freedom School. Some highlights include:
  • They attended a National Day of Action with other Freedom Schools in the Twin Cities area, as well as all other Freedom Schools in the country at the same time, and participated in a march to end gun violence.
  • They participated in youth science day at the Science Museum with the other Freedom Schools. 
  • The young women’s group attended the Hearts of Our People exhibit at the Minneapolis Institute of Art. It was a guided tour and the girls were quite impressed and proud. 
  • The tipi set up and take down went really well with the older scholars helping to set up and then a ton of kids with the take down, but they learned some lessons and were able to see how heavy and careful a person needs to be with those tipi poles. 
Click Here to see more wonderful photos from Freedom School 2019!
Youth Leadership Council
The Youth Leadership Council had a wonderful time and learned a lot at the Tomorrow's Leaders Today conference! The conference took place at the University of Minnesota Duluth in early June!
Board of Directors
George Soule, Chair
Christine Trost, Vice Chair
Marcy Keckler, Treasurer
Korina Barry, Secretary
Robert A. Blaeser
Pauline Danforth
Honorable Anne K. McKeig
Lyle Meyer
Denise Reilly
Mark Stratman
Sarah Wheelock
Dale Woodbeck
Marne Zafar