Iglutheca

Iglutheca Our Mission is to provide a pathway for homeless Lakotas out of addiction and poverty.

We are so grateful to Erica Yellow Hair (in the center of this photo in the grey shirt). She is a tribal advocate who sa...
06/19/2026

We are so grateful to Erica Yellow Hair (in the center of this photo in the grey shirt). She is a tribal advocate who saw the crisis with the homeless shelter, and she stepped in to help us with legal filings, sat through law and order to advocate for us, helped with the land search, and developed strategies for how to improve lines of communication with politicians. She has done all of this without asking for anything in return.

Erica is one of many people who have stepped up to help. This shelter is more of a community effort than most people realize. Our lunches are almost entirely made from food donated by the community; our meals are cooked by volunteers, our clothes are sorted and distributed mostly by volunteers, and volunteers advocate for us.

Erica's willingness to stand beside our shelter without expecting compensation reflects the spirit of community, compassion, and service that has carried us through this season.

Our focus remains where it has always been: caring for our unhoused relatives, supporting those on their journey toward stability, and working collaboratively toward a positive future.
Thank you to everyone who continues to believe in this mission and to everyone who has chosen to stand with us.

Congratulations David and Arlene, on your trailer! The trailer needs a ton of work, but it won't be long until they have...
06/17/2026

Congratulations David and Arlene, on your trailer! The trailer needs a ton of work, but it won't be long until they have it all together. Once the trailer is fixed up, they will have a place for themselves and for their children! They have been putting in the work on their sobriety, personal growth, professional development, and now David is teaching flagger certification! We are proud of them and their hard work.

06/10/2026

Update on the shelter!

Last Friday, the Executive Board declined to pass the resolution for the immediate closure of our homeless shelter. While the Executive Board did not support an immediate closure, there was discussion about relocating the shelter if and when a suitable location can be identified.

For some time now, we have been exploring options for a permanent home for the shelter, and the attention this situation has brought has surfaced some promising leads. We remain committed to finding the best long-term solution for the people we serve. If community members have ideas for potential locations, we would love to hear from you.

At this time, our presence in Pine Ridge Village remains temporary, and the timeline for any future transition is uncertain. We appreciate the community's brainstorming, prayers, financial support, and volunteer efforts as we continue planning for the future.

We are proud to be part of this community. Since our circumstances became known, we have received calls and messages offering help—from people with land or lease opportunities, tribal advocates offering legal assistance, offers of equipment to prepare a future site, connections to help establish utilities, and transportation support.

Support has also come from beyond the community. A lawyer experienced in working with tribes and contract matters has offered assistance with potential leases or purchases, and organizations have reached out with plans to help raise funds for any future transition.

Please continue to keep us in your prayers. Whatever lies ahead, we remain committed to serving our unhoused relatives with dignity, compassion, and hope, trusting that God will continue to guide our path.

“For You have been a refuge for the poor, a refuge for the needy in their distress, a shelter from the storm and a shade from the heat.” — Isaiah 25:4

We have persevered at the shelter and, we are seeing lives change for the better! Today, Fred was able to get an apartme...
06/09/2026

We have persevered at the shelter and, we are seeing lives change for the better! Today, Fred was able to get an apartment! Bones volunteered to go get his bed, which was donated by Re-member. All these individuals drove out to his new home to help set up his bed and move in the other household goods that he needed.

Another shelter guest taught the flagger certification for the first time today at TERO. He had to jump through all the hoops to become a contractor with the tribe. Now he will be helping tribal members to get jobs that may have otherwise required outside workers!

 The immediate closure of the Shelter was delayed, but we still need to work towards relocating: probably within just a...
06/05/2026

 The immediate closure of the Shelter was delayed, but we still need to work towards relocating: probably within just a few days: A couple of Executive Board members thought that they had a location that we could move to, but it looks like it will not work.

You can help in a few ways:
- We need a location. We will need some sort of access to Running, Water and Electricity. Leased land could make a good location for temporary Shelter,  but deed Land would allow us to build something permanent.
- We will have added expenses: a van for transport, extra staffing to account for the transportation needs of our guests, and funds to set up whatever water and electric infrastructure we need.
- Share our story, because public concern and awareness ensures that the homeless are treated humanely.
- And keep us in prayer.

Financial support can be sent to
Iglutheca
PO Box 5005
Pine Ridge, SD 57770

Stay in contact beyond the whims of the algorithm by messaging us your email.

06/05/2026

We have good (but very vague) news!

The original action was to have the Homeless Shelter shut down today and we only found out about it yesterday.

All I can say is we have friends in high places who are working towards solutions. All I can say with certainty as we are not moving out of the shelter this weekend.

Thank you for all of the prayers and words of encouragement! Please keep praying! It isn’t over yet.


06/05/2026

The closing prayer after telling the Homeless that we have to close the Shelter tomorrow. God is in control, but it’s really hard right now.

06/05/2026

I want you to feel this with us. This is the time that I had to let the Homeless know that our Shelter was being shut down. Excuse the cussing and the crying.

God has a plan and all of this. Pray for the Homeless in the meantime.

The poster for the district meeting was posted with the caption “make your voices heard.” Many community members showed ...
06/05/2026

The poster for the district meeting was posted with the caption “make your voices heard.” Many community members showed up with the intention of being heard.

Shortly into the meeting, we were informed that the decision to close the Shelter was already made by eight individuals at a law and order committee meeting yesterday.

There was no opportunity for the people to vote. Two people attempted to make motions and were shut down. I feel that this is a cowardly approach. By making the decision in law and order, the Council members were able to vote anonymously, they do not need to make decisions in front of their constituents like they do when their full council meetings are broadcast on KILI radio and streamed on Facebook.

No accountability and no democratic process.

Pray for the Homeless. The shelter closes tomorrow, unless there is some sort of intervention from the president’s office or the courts. We have virtually no time to help them find alternative arrangements.

Iglutheca will carry on its mission. We will continue to search for permanent location for our Shelter, and we will continue to help the Homeless in the best ways we can.

The church (a separate ministry with a similar mission) will continue to be open for recovery meetings and grief group, and I am sure we will see what kind of additional outreaches we can legally offer from the church.

The Homeless will be warm tonight, despite the brutal cold in the forecast. Tonight’s low will be -5°F and the next nigh...
01/22/2026

The Homeless will be warm tonight, despite the brutal cold in the forecast. Tonight’s low will be -5°F and the next night will be -10°F. We are making sure that we have backups to our backups. Meaning that we will have alternate sources of power and supplemental propane heat to keep the Homeless warm. This is the type of weather that our equipment likes to act up in, so be praying for everything to run smoothly.

We anticipate that we will probably be keeping more than 40 people warm per night as more people seek shelter from the cold. Thanks to everyone who donates to keep the shelter running and propane in the tanks!

Address

P. O. Box 5005
Pine Ridge, SD
57770

Telephone

+6056797259

Website

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