The White Buffalo Calf Woman Society, a nonprofit organization, on the Rosebud Reservation in South Dakota is offering a number of outreach and educational events including a walk in Rosebud on October 8 to raise awareness about domestic violence. The Society, the first shelter located on a reservation for domestic violence victims, has struggled to keep its doors open this past year after the completion of several federal grants.

Last month, however, Society leaders announced that the organization had received a $900,000 grant from the Department of Justice to be shared with Rosebud tribal courts and law enforcement.

The Society has served victims of domestic and sexual violence for 38 years, offering emergency shelter and other services.

According to the National Indigenous Women’s Resource Center, Native women are subjected to domestic violence at a rate of 2.5 times higher than any other group in the United States.

“Our shelter is always full,” said Janet Rouzen of the Rosebud tribe. She is executive director of the Society that serves four counties including the Pine Ridge Reservation in this sprawling region of Southwestern South Dakota.