For 13 years, the Cheyenne River Youth Project® has celebrated the strength, achievements and tremendous potential of the young ladies who live on South Dakota’s remote, 2.8-million-acre Cheyenne River reservation through a signature program called “Passion for Fashion.” This year, the not-for-profit youth project timed its annual Passion for Fashion event with International Women’s Day on Saturday, March 8; together, CRYP staff, 30 community volunteers and 77 teenage girls celebrated the achievements of women everywhere.
Open free to youth ages 13-18, Passion for Fashion allowed guests to select and take home everything they need for this year’s prom, from dresses and shoes to jewelry and other much-needed accessories. What’s more, CRYP is ensuring that young women who weren’t able to attend the March 8 event still can visit the Cokata Wiconi teen center to obtain the items they need.
“At the moment, we’re booking appointments from April 1 to May 2 during regular teen center hours, from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.,” said Tammy Eagle Hunter, CRYP’s youth programs director. “With those appointments, we’re expecting to reach a total of 175 girls this year. There’s still time to make an appointment; just give us a call at (605) 964-8200 and give us your name, grade and the date and time you’d like to come in.
“We’re thrilled that we’re going to help nearly 200 girls be ready for their high-school prom, which is a veritable rite of passage in this country,” she continued. “We’re also delighted that nearly 80 girls were able to attend the actual event on March 8, because we topped our attendance from the last couple of years. It was wonderful to see so many excited young women having fun and enjoying each other’s company.”
The March 8 festivities kicked off at 1 p.m. with luncheon in the Keya Cafe, courtesy of Four Bands Healing Center and Tracy Leismeister. For the keynote presentation, CRYP invited Dr. Karla Abbott, RN/DNP, to share her journey as a member of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe who grew up in Eagle Butte, worked and studied hard to become a registered nurse, and then went on to finish her Doctor of Nursing Practice program at Augsberg College in Minneapolis.
“The young women really responded to Karla, because she is a tribal member and shares their background,” Eagle Hunter explained. “They were very receptive to her message that if you are willing to work hard and pursue your dreams, you can accomplish anything.”
After the presentation, staff and volunteers led the young women in a series of icebreaker activities. In one, each teen was paired with someone she didn’t know; she interviewed her partner and then had to introduce her and describe her in one word.
“We did that to enhance confidence, and to give the girls an opportunity to get to know each other better,” Eagle Hunter said. “Then we allowed the high-schoolers to head to the gym to start shopping. The younger girls completed more icebreakers and games, and then they were allowed to go in, too.”
From 3 p.m. to 6 p.m., the girls perused the massive racks of dresses and tables filled with shoes, jewelry, hair accessories and other prom essentials. Volunteers also pampered their young guests with hair styling, makeovers, facials, manicures and pedicures.
“We were so grateful to our community volunteers, many of whom traveled from throughout South Dakota to come and help,” said Julie Garreau, CRYP’s executive director. “We were deeply appreciative of their time, and the fact that many of them gathered resources from their local communities so our teens would have beautiful, abundant choices.”
The annual fashion runway show took place at 6:30 p.m. in the Cokata Wiconi gymnasium. Nearly all of the guests participated, and each received a gift of prom jewelry to match her dress — plus a bag full of lotion, makeup and other prom essentials. Volunteer Dawn LeBeau, a professional photographer and tribal member, captured the runway highlights so that the teens would have keepsake photos to remember how, on this special evening, they each shone with confidence, energy and beauty, inside and out.
Finally, the girls watched the popular movie “Catching Fire” on the teen center’s big screen. And then Passion for Fashion drew to a close for another year.
“All of us at CRYP look forward to this day for months, and we treasure the memories we make with the girls and with their female family members of all ages,” Garreau reflected. “It’s an unforgettable experience of bonding, laughter and positive, healthy play, one that allows our Cheyenne River youth to forget their worries and just be teenage girls who are eagerly anticipating the magic of prom night.”
Passion for Fashion is one of CRYP’s longest-running and most popular teen programs. The annual event, created in 2001, provides support for teens who need all the prom essentials. It also promotes intergenerational exchange, improved self-esteem and positive body image, and it helps combat bullying and school violence by giving girls from all social circles a chance to spend quality time together.
CRYP is still accepting dresses and accessories for this prom season, and it’s already preparing for the 2015 Passion for Fashion event. If you’re interested in supporting this popular, long-running program on the Cheyenne River reservation, please consider donating new and gently used dresses in sizes 4-26, and especially in sizes 16-26. Also in demand are shoes, particularly sizes 9-12; jewelry and hair accessories; makeup and bath sets; and gift cards.
The Cheyenne River Youth Project, founded in 1988, is a grassroots, not-for-profit organization dedicated to providing the youth of the Cheyenne River reservation with access to a vibrant and secure future through a wide variety of culturally sensitive and enduring programs, projects and facilities that ensure strong, self-sufficient families and communities.