• Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Youtube
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Mail
  • e-Catalog
  • Gift Catalog
  • Donate
  • Register Now
  • Contact Us
Call Us: 800-487-1074
Global Volunteers
  • Countries
    • International Partnerships:
      • China
      • Cook Islands
      • Cuba
      • Ecuador
      • Greece
      • Italy (Sicily)
      • Nepal
      • Peru
      • Poland
      • Portugal
      • St Lucia
      • Tanzania
      • Vietnam
    • USA Programs:
      • Aguadilla – Puerto Rico
      • Blackfeet Reservation – Montana
      • Española – New Mexico
      • Rio Grande Valley – Texas
  • Projects
    • Community Work Projects
      • Delivering Essential Services
      • Teaching Conversational English
      • Supporting Community Development
      • Supplementing School-Based Curricula
      • View All Community Work Projects
  • Dates & Fees
    • Seasonal
      • Spring
      • Summer
      • Fall
      • Winter
    • Monthly
      • January
      • February
      • March
      • April
      • May
      • June
      • July
      • August
      • September
      • October
      • November
      • December
      • All Service Program Dates
  • Give
    • Giving Options:
      • Donate Now
      • Changemakers Club
      • Gift Catalog
      • Ways to Give
      • Philanthropy
  • Impact
  • News
  • Request Information
  • Search
  • Menu Menu
Family Volunteering, Volunteer Voices South Dakota

New York Mother and Daughter Thrive as Volunteers on South Dakota Reservation

volunteer in South Dakota

Lisa Godek and her 13-year-old daughter, Chloe Fargo, are committed to helping others outside of work and school. Their latest service trip was a week on the Rosebud Indian Reservation in South Dakota, where they lent a hand to the native Lakota people through everyday tasks and a children’s fair. Here Lisa and Chloe reflect on their experience volunteering in South Dakota, and explain why families should serve together.


What motivated you to volunteer in South Dakota with your thirteen-year-old daughter?  

Lisa said: “I was a Business Analytics and Insights leader at Pfizer.  During my 16 years there, I served as the voice of the patient and physician to integrate their perspectives, needs, and experiences into our R&D and commercial strategies for medicines development.  I was a Pfizer Global Health Fellow in Shanghai in 2014. There, I created the mission and three-year plan to activate a Senior Health Research Center. While I believe these roles and others contributed to the greater good, I felt that I had not directly touched individuals’ lives. I’ve recently embarked on a new life chapter, having left the industry in which I worked after a 20-year career.  I took on an adjunct faculty role in the Columbia University’s Masters of Science Applied Analytics program. I gave myself ample time to reflect on my past and future with the goal of determining what I wanted moving forward. I realized that my career to date consisted of only indirect impact on people’s lives.

I wanted to identify an opportunity to connect to an under-served community within the United States with my 13-year-old daughter and searched for such opportunities on Native American reservations.  Living in Manhattan can skew perspectives on what’s important. It’s easy to lose sight of others’ hardships. I wanted Chloe to engage with a community in need and learn, and this is why I chose the Global Volunteers South Dakota program for us! 

volunteer in South Dakota

Lisa and Chloe worked with team members and community members splitting firewood.

Chloe, what did you learn from your volunteer experience in South Dakota?

Chloe said: “Visiting the tribe made me realize that one small task can help someone drastically. One of my tasks was to chop and stack wood so that in the winter, the many tribal families who don’t own heaters can use the firewood for warmth. At home, I never have to think about chopping wood in order to stay warm. I could not believe how difficult their lives are compared to mine. This small assignment made me hopeful that even though I’m a kid, I can still find a way to help these people.

By being a volunteer in South Dakota, I also got to learn about the Lakota tribe’s unique history and traditions. I was surprised by the ways they still keep up parts of their culture, like storytelling and wearing their detailed, handmade Pow-Pow attire. Their community is very strong despite the hardship.”

What were your interactions with local people like?

Lisa added: “Chloe and I had a wonderful experience with our hosts within the community.  In general, we found them to be warm and open. We asked many questions and received thoughtful and genuine responses.  We learned tremendously.”

Chloe agreed: “Each day, I met people from the reservation, and I learned about the difficulties of living there. They helped me understand the importance of family, friends, life, and to acknowledge the smaller things I can sometimes take for granted.”

“I made a commitment to helping the Lakota people, but towards the end of the week, I realized that we actually helped each other.”

~Chloe Fargo

volunteer in South Dakota

Lisa on the ground serving on the Native American Rosebud Reservation in South Dakota

What can you say about the time you spent volunteering together as mother and daughter?

Lisa replied: “Chloe and I have always been close, but as she is gaining more independence and as social relationships become more important, it is challenging to spend quality time together.  This experience, to volunteer in South Dakota together, gave us that opportunity and strengthened our bond.”

What was the impact that you made volunteering in South Dakota?

Chloe replied: “Our big task was to plan and run a Children’s Fair for the local kids who have no access to camps or other summer activities. The volunteers rented bouncy houses and a slip and slide, and we made games for the kids to play. It was relatively easy and fun to plan the event; I didn’t think it was a big deal! At the end of the week, we had the fair, and I was shocked because kids were coming up to me, hugging me, and thanking me for putting on the event. I did not think I did anything remarkable; it seemed very easy to put this fair together. I didn’t recognize that I would have such a big impact on these kids who have so little.

“Since I’ve been back from this trip, I have continued to spread awareness about the Lakota people and the difficulties their community faces. I want to go back to the reservation next summer and use my time and effort to help their people.”

~Chloe Fargo

Lisa Chloe chopping and stacking wood for the many tribal families with no warm heaters.

What is your advice to other parents who may be considering a volunteer opportunity with their children?

Lisa exhorts: ABSOLUTELY DO IT! It is rewarding and fulfilling on many levels; the ability to contribute to underserved populations, the human connections with the community and fellow volunteers, the opportunity for personal reflection and growth, and the appreciation (re)gained for our good fortune. I say absolutely volunteer with your family, and absolutely volunteer in South Dakota. 

TIME TO VOLUNTEER WITH YOUR FAMILY?

Why? It’s fun, you get to share the experience with the people you most love, you strengthen your bonds as a family and you help your children gain skills, a global mindset and awareness about the world and its issues as they start to appreciate exactly what they have. Contact us today and explore all the available volunteer opportunities for you and your family!

You may also like:

  • Three Generations Volunteer in Crete
  • Global Awareness for my Sons
  • Take a Chance. Do it. Unplug. Volunteer and Travel.
  • An American Family Meets an Ecuadorian Family

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest
  • Pocket
November 26, 2018/by Millie Pinakoulaki
Tags: American Indian culture, summer volunteer program, Volunteer impact, Work with youth
https://globalvolunteers.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/USD1807A1-Lisa-Godek-and-Chloe-Fargo.jpg 3264 4928 Millie Pinakoulaki https://globalvolunteers.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/2014-GlobalVolunteersLogo-Web.png Millie Pinakoulaki2018-11-26 12:11:512020-09-04 09:09:21New York Mother and Daughter Thrive as Volunteers on South Dakota Reservation
You might also like
Blackfeet reservation volunteers learn about plantsBlackfeet Reservation Volunteer Learns about Natural Remedies in Time for Healing
serving others Blackfeet ReservationFather and Daughter Serve Others on the Blackfeet Reservation
Volunteering at La MolinaReflections on Volunteering in Peru
Hospitality, Respect, Pride and Family – My Week with the Blackfeet
Service-Learning for Pharmacy Students in Montana
Blackfeet cultureThe Openness and Willingness to Share the Blackfeet Culture
Blackfeet cultureRelationship building on Blackfeet Reservation
Blackfeet cultureMore Cultural Experiences on the Blackfeet Reservation
0 replies

Leave a Reply

Want to join the discussion?
Feel free to contribute!

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Partner Communities

  • China (62)
  • Cook Islands (44)
  • Cuba (112)
  • Ecuador (89)
  • Greece (70)
  • Italy (52)
  • Montana (50)
  • Nepal (20)
  • New Mexico (2)
  • Peru (110)
  • Poland (97)
  • Portugal (44)
  • Puerto Rico (2)
  • South Dakota (8)
  • St Lucia (56)
  • Tanzania (230)
  • Texas (5)
  • Vietnam (33)

Categories

  • Classroom Assistance (8)
  • Conversational English (94)
  • Cultures and Traditions (136)
  • Development Impact (121)
  • Family Volunteering (61)
  • Free Time Options (79)
  • Group Volunteering (19)
  • News and Updates (146)
  • Partners' Stories (16)
  • Projects for Professionals (23)
  • Reaching Children's Potential (237)
  • Ripple Effect (7)
  • Service-Learning (49)
  • Staff Worldwide (26)
  • Volunteer Voices (683)
  • Why I Give (18)

Tags

American Indian culture Care for children Caribbean island College groups Conversational English Cuba people-to-people development impact Earthbox gardens Essential Services food insecurity Funding your fee gender equality Health and nutrition High school groups Labor projects retiree volunteers Spring break student volunteer summer volunteer program support children Support women teaching children teaching english team leader things to do peru top places to visit peru tourism cook islands tours peru travel peru volunteer benefits Volunteer impact volunteer time off work on reservations Work with youth youth volunteering

Get Global Volunteers News Here!

Enter your email address to receive fresh new posts in your inbox.

  • About Us
  • Boards of Directors and Advisors
  • US and International Staff
  • Our Beginnings
  • Our Vision
  • Community Partners
  • Collaborators
  • Compare Us
  • Volunteer Vacations FAQs
  • Accountability and Agreements
  • Travel Risks
  • Impact and Outcomes of Service
  • Donate to Global Volunteers
  • Donate to a Volunteer
  • Money Matters – Explaining Your Service Program Contribution
  • Discounts & Fundraising
  • Alumni Center
  • Covid-19 Policy
  • News/Media
  • Privacy Policy
  • Agreements
  • Site Map
  • Contact
  • Podcast
  • Volunteer Portal
  • Employment
Global Volunteers
375 East Little Canada Road
St. Paul, MN 55117-1628 USA
(800) 487-1074 | toll-free
(651) 482-0915 | fax
globalvolunteers.org
email@globalvolunteers.org
Federal EIN: 36-3352680

JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST!

Subscribe to receive updates, new blog posts, and inspiring stories from our work around the world.

Global Volunteers - Partners in Development ® | © Copyright 2002 - Present Global Volunteers
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Youtube
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Mail
  • Global Volunteers is a 501(c)(3) charitable nonprofit organization. Our tax ID is 36-3352680. All donations are tax deductible to the full extent provided by the law.
  • Send feedback about this web site and its administration.
Volunteer’s Winter’s Day ends in “Best Day Ever” St...“It’s another winters day in Ipalamwa or as I like to think of it, ‘Christmas Village in Tanzania.’Bill teaching with Global Volunteers in Hanoi, Vietnam“I Found My Calling in Service” says Global Volunteers Alumnus
Scroll to top