Volunteers from the UMSL community organize toys for the Wo Otúh’an Wi Toy Drive at the Kathy J. Weinman Children’s Advocacy Center. Donations will benefit children on the Cheyenne River Sioux Reservation in Eagle Butte, South Dakota. (Photos courtesy of Jerry Dunn)

As Theresa Moore worked with more than a dozen University of Missouri–St. Louis volunteers to provide a meal for the people of the Cheyenne River Sioux Reservation, she was overwhelmed by the reservation’s hospitality.

“I was just so grateful, appreciative and so happy to be able to connect with the community,” Moore said. “It was one of the times where you really got to see almost the entire community together and interact with them as you served them, and I really appreciated that.”

Moore, a PhD candidate in psychological brain sciences at UMSL, first traveled to the reservation in Eagle Butte, South Dakota, in summer 2022 to volunteer at the RedCan Graffiti Jam, an invitational graffiti festival showcasing Indigenous artists and visiting artists from around the world. Jerry Dunn, executive director of Children’s Advocacy Services of Greater St. Louis, and Dana Klar, associate teaching professor of psychological sciences at UMSL, have led the annual volunteer trips to the reservation since 2018.

Moore’s experience on the Cheyenne River Sioux Reservation was incredibly impactful, and she’s stayed connected to the community by working on the Cheyenne River Youth Project’s annual Wo Otúh’an Wi Toy Drive each holiday season. The Lakota phrase translates to “moon of giving away presents.”

“For me, it’s about being able to use resources – time and things like that – that I have to be able to, hopefully, provide that support back to that community,” Moore said.

Children’s Advocacy Services of Greater St. Louis and its Kathy J. Weinman Children’s Advocacy Center have served as the St. Louis hub of the drive since 2021. Dunn and her colleagues took over the operation due to the existing relationship between CASGSL and the reservation.

Every year, kids on the reservation write letters about themselves, and they also fill out a brief wish list where they can ask for clothes, toys and other items. The CASGSL aims to fulfill 340 to 350 letters each holiday season. Members of the St. Louis community have the opportunity to “adopt” letters and purchase the items on the child’s wish list.

In addition to adopting letters, community members can also make financial contributions, which the CASGL staff uses to fulfill letters. There’s also an Amazon wish list for those who want to contribute without shopping in person.

“We’ve actually had several donors this year that made a financial contribution in the past, but now they’ve actually seen what goes on and so they’re actually adopting a couple of letters from kids,” Dunn said. “Our donors are always as generous as they absolutely can be, and we’re always just blown away by some of the things that donors do throughout the year.”

UMSL volunteers load a trailer full of gifts donated by Linda Key (fourth from right), a longtime supporter of the toy drive.

Linda Key, an annual donor from Shiloh, Illinois, regularly takes on a dozen letters each year and buys additional gifts. Kathy King, another regular donor, contributed 15 “babies in a basket” bundles for the kids with handmade blankets and pillows.

Those donations come to the Kathy J. Weinman Children’s Advocacy Center, where volunteers like Moore work diligently to sort, organize and pack gift boxes in preparation to load the delivery truck next week. The drop-off deadline for in-person donations is Dec. 7.

Dunn stressed even the smallest donation makes a tremendous impact on the reservation.

“It’s very rich in culture, tradition and community,” she said. “That being said, the economic resources there are so scarce, and there’s not a lot of opportunity for job development and things like that. So, these contributions really, truly make a difference in these children and families’ lives.”

Moore encourages anyone who has the means to get involved with the RedCan Jam and the toy drive to do so. For her, it’s been transformative.

“Something that I tell everybody when they ask me about RedCan is that I didn’t know it would be such a powerful experience,” she said. “I don’t think I realized how much my life would be changed just from going there the first time. If it’s within someone’s means, if they’re even slightly interested, I very, very highly recommend it.”

If you wish to make a financial contribution, please reach out to Dunn at dunnjer@umsl.edu or friendsoflakotayouth@gmail.com.