RAPID CITY, S.D. (KELO) –After a year of operation, the Sacred Storm Buffalo opened a retail location to make the buying process easier for customers.
The company is more than just selling meat, as it’s an employment development opportunity for young people dealing with personal obstacles.
The meat they sell is locally sourced and processed, and is bringing life to the north side of Rapid.
“Sacred Storm Buffalo has been up and running for a year now, we didn’t have any retail spots. So we have a process facility and then a mobile harvest unit where we’re able to go out to the pastures and process and harvest animals right in the pasture.” Sacred Storm CEO Chris White Eagle said.
White Eagle has also worked with young men this past year who are battling their own addictions, trauma and tragedy, and those that continue to work on themselves are thriving.
“When I was at my lowest point I wasn’t able to do anything as much as I’m doing right now helping the people with what I’m doing. But since I got this opportunity I feel like it helped me a lot to become a better person for myself and for my family.” Sacred Storm Employee Tyrell Waters said.
The goal is to bring the buffalo back while building up those who are struggling.
“We have to build up our community right. Build up our community to be able to do this, to do the buffalo. We bring them in, they coe with their traumas, they come with their addictions. We bring them in, we smudge them down, take them to sweat and see if they actually want to do the program, it’s a sobriety program you know what I mean. And then all these boys hold themselves accountable.” White Eagle said.
“Just being around them 24/7 every day working with them just made that brotherhood locked in with us. Like now I can go to them and actually talk to them about my problems instead of going and being alone and stuff. So like .” Waters said.
This program helps not only with sobriety, but with financial literacy and other important life skills.
The name Sacred Storm is for White Eagle’s granddaughter who lost her life at a young age and the mentoring program comes from his son’s perseverance to help others get through their traumas just as he did.
