$100,000 Presented to Cheyenne River Youth Project
September 28, 2023 // Grants, Beyond Idea Grant Program
The South Dakota Community Foundation (SDCF) recently presented Cheyenne River Youth Project (CRYP) with a $100,000 Beyond Idea Grant (BIG). Offered in partnership with the Bush Foundation, the BIG program supports community-based problem-solving efforts in South Dakota. SDCF received 89 applications in the first round of the BIG program for 2023. SDCF is currently reviewing second round applicants.
“To continue to meet the needs of our community, the Cheyenne River Youth Project must be able to attract and retain qualified staff,” said Julie Garreau, CRYP’s executive director. “The hard truth is that the Cheyenne River Sioux Reservation has a severe housing shortage. Without available homes, we will continue to struggle with human resources — and continue to be limited in terms of what we can provide for our children and families. To address this challenge, we’ve created our own workforce development initiative, which incorporates carefully renovated older homes and new, state-of-the-art tiny homes in and around the city of Eagle Butte.
“In addition to creating jobs and helping to grow our local economy, this initiative also will play an important role in increasing property values and beautifying our community,” she continued. “We are deeply grateful to the South Dakota Community Foundation for recognizing us through the Beyond Idea Grant Program, because this much-needed funding will allow us to bring our vision to life.”
The Cheyenne River Sioux Reservation has a severe housing shortage that impedes CRYP’s ability to attract and retain qualified management level staff for their growing youth centers. Their idea is to develop workforce housing for CRYP by building "tiny homes" to accommodate the relocation of new staff. Over the past few years, CRYP has developed this workforce development model by purchasing several land parcels around Eagle Butte, some with and some without existing housing structures. CRYP's goal is to improve the housing stock in Eagle Butte, beautify the community, increase property values, create jobs, and grow their local economy.
A total of $1.2 million dollars will be available for the SDCF to award in 2023. In 2023, SDCF will open two separate rounds for the BIG program in March and August. Interested organizations can visit SDCommunityFoundation.org/BIG to review the grant guidelines, deadlines and application instructions. In order to qualify, a nonprofit must be IRS Publication 78 verified or have a fiscal sponsor. Any questions regarding the program can be directed to Ginger Niemann by phone at 800.888.1842 or by email gniemann@sdcommunityfoundation.org.
SDCF is a public non-profit organization established in 1987. SDCF, with offices in Pierre, Rapid City, Sioux Falls and Aberdeen administers 1,200 funds benefiting hundreds of charitable organizations annually. The Foundation distributed nearly $30 million in grants in 2022 which made a tremendous difference in communities statewide. This would not have been possible without the generosity of our donors. If you have a specific cause you would like to support or would prefer to give for the general good of our state, please visit https://sdcommunityfoundation.org/giving to learn more or call 1-800-888-1842.
The Bush Foundation invests in great ideas and the people who power them. Established in 1953 by 3M Executive Archibald Bush and his wife Edyth, the Foundation encourages individuals and organizations to think bigger and think differently about what is possible in communities across Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota and the 23 Native nations that share the same geographic area.