December 2021 Updates

Student in Art Class

Campaign Success!

We are pleased to share that as of today (December 18, 2021) LWS has received over $29,228 in annual fund gifts — which means we exceeded our campaign goal of $25,000!

Thank you for generosity. Thank you for helping us to provide tuition-free indigenous Waldorf education to children living on one of the poorest Indian reservations in the states.

The following “Lakota Winter Story” is an example of the integration of Lakota culture into our Waldorf educational program – which has been made possible through generous grants and gifts we’ve received from good people like you.

“Wazi” – A Lakota Winter Story

Written by Santee Witt, LWS’s Lakota Cultural Teacher
Chalk Board Drawing by Kris Carlson, LWS’s 1st-3rd Grade Teacher
(Wazi is short for Waziyata, which means North in Lakota.)

Wazi was a boy who lived with his people when the Lakota hunted buffalo and the land was free. Wazi wanted to go on a journey of the vision quest. He would go in the winter months where most went in the spring. He sat on a high peek above the land of the Lakota. It was cold and snowy, but Wazi felt at home within the fallen snow.

In his vision he sees the hardships his people will have to face in the future. He was shown where medicines lie for the benefit of the people. He found the sacred roots and medicine that lay within the land and these medicines will be used for future generations to come. He was told that sickness will wash away with the snowfalls to come, the falling snow is purifying. And that the seasons were a sacred blessing for the people. Within change we always find the goodness it brings.

We must replenish ourselves to carry on and Wazi learned it on his quest. The visions of the people remain strong, even today the dreams continue along with the seasons of change. 

Sending You Warm Holiday Wishes!

To all our LWS Friends & Families, 

As blankets of cold and snow come to cover Mother Earth this holiday season, please know that we hold you close in thought and send the warmest of wishes. May your homes be warm and safe. May your hearts be blessed by family and friends. And may we all be renewed in soul and spirit for our continued work in the new year ahead. 

The LWS Teachers, Board, and Staff

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