A MULTITUDE OF WAYS TO SERVE! HOW WILL YOU SERVE?
- Many members serve weekly and monthly at Feeding South Dakota in the warehouse, at mobile distribution sites, and helping with Senior boxes.
- Members deliver food and provide uplifting conversations to Meals on Wheels recipients.
- Volunteers walk dogs and clean pens at the Humane Society of the Black Hills.
- A sister volunteers at Minneluzahan Senior Center.
- A member volunteers at the Alternative High School in its “Clothes Closet”.
- A member volunteers at Black Hills Works and the Fir House.
- Some youth and adult members volunteer at the Black Hills Raptor Center, to conserve and protect birds of prey.
- Members helped at Youth and Family Services Kids’ Day and Fall Festival.
- A sister and sister missionaries volunteer at Mommy’s Closet weekly.
- Members volunteer at the Spearfish Food Pantry and other small pantries in the Black Hills.
- Rapid Valley Ward’s members bake and decorate cakes each Tuesday for Volunteers of America Veterans Outreach Center.
- Chadron Ward members serve their community by providing meals for the needy through “Closer to Home” on the 5th Tuesday of each month. Volunteers prepare and serve a complete meal for 30 people.
- Members serve on the Boards of the Rapid CIty Library/Library Foundation, Feeding South Dakota, Elementary School Parent Councils, and other Parent Councils.
- Parents and grandparents volunteer in classrooms and coach community sports.
- Musically talented members play in the Rapid City Symphony and some also play in the Rapid City Municipal Band performances.
- Some members belong to Rotary Club and participate in monthly service and humanitarian projects. One project this past year was helping Story Book Island put up holiday lights for a December fundraiser.
- Members put warm clothing on Presidential statues during our cold months for those in need.
- Members donate blood at our Stake Vitalant Blood Drives.
- Wards participate in “Clean Up Rapid City” in the Spring.
- Members help with Community Theater.
- A Young Woman helped Hop With A Cop around Easter time.
- There are Sisters that make quilts and blankets for Monument’s NICU, Children’s Home Society, and Mommy’s Closet.
- Members helped with the PIT (point in time) count for the homeless living in Rapid City.
- A Sister helped Children’s Home Society by getting mailers out for them. Others helped them decorate for their Gala.
- A Sister helped with the “Prom Dress and Shoe Give Away” when 210 dresses and 39 pairs of shoes were given away to 15 different schools in the area.
- Canyon Lake Ward had an Emergency Preparedness Fair open to the entire community.
- FSY participants cleaned up a park.
- Members installed a wheelchair ramp in Pine Ridge.
- Relief Society Presidencies donated Easter goodies for Children’s Home Society’s residents.
- Rapid Valley Ward helped with the 4-H Archery Program for a month.
- Twice a month the Pine Ridge Branch members and missionaries help distribute Feeding South Dakota and Bishop’s Storehouse food.
The Mission President has asked missionaries to complete 8 hours of community service per week. Our missionaries are especially active! From January through June, missionaries in the Black Hills area provided 765 hours of service, 300 of those hours working jointly with members in the community.
Among their ongoing service activities are the following:
- Continuing weekly Sport Night to bring non-member friends to fellowship.
- Feeding South Dakota: Packing food boxes for families and Seniors in need. Distributing boxes and bags of food at several different distribution sites in Western SD each month.
- Unloading the Bishops Storehouse trucks and preparing boxes for distribution.
- Helping members pack up, clean, and prepare for moving.
- Completing various chores for members and non-members when requested.
- Elder Allen, service missionary, worked full-time at FSD. Elder Backlund also volunteered at ReStore, Habitat for Humanity, and the Humane Society. Elder Gunnell served at SunCatcher Therapeutic Riding Academy.
- Sisters help with various tasks at Mommy’s Closet.
- Elder Van Dam helped on a ranch with calving and branding.
- Helped at the Salvation Army’s Christmas Angel Toy Distribution
- Missionaries helped at Community Connect
Five sets of Senior Service Missionaries serve in the Rapid City area.
We are a stake with a love of and commitment to service, and there are many "success stories' to share. Here are two.
Kieffer Sanitation Golf Tournament:
Lauralee and Bob Hatch of the Black Hills Ward volunteered 6 ½ hours on June 6 at the 12th Annual Kieffer Sanitation “Trash Can Open” at the Golf Club at Red Rock. The event benefits The Children’s Home Society Rapid City Campus. Positioned at a tee box, the Hatches encouraged players to make a donation in exchange for an advantage. For $20 per team, they could tee off at the 150 yard mark instead of at the tee box at approximately 585 yards. “Almost everyone paid the $20,” said the Hatches. “It was fun to interact with the players as they enjoyed playing for such a good cause.” They signed up for the event on the JustServe app and look forward to volunteering again.
Eagle Scout Project:
Chase Von Savoye of the Mt. Rushmore Ward completed a part of his Eagle Scout Project by painting the Salvation Army’s Camp Chapel (on Hwy 44) with the help of 18 people for this much needed project. Breakfast and lunch were served to all the volunteers. Chase has committed to complete benches, a table, and a frame that he will make for the Salvation Army’s Camp.
Information collected and reported by Sister Hemming and Elder Hemming