A group of horseback riders, including several Lakota from the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota, rode through Loveland on Wednesday, the fifth day of their 22-day journey through Northern Colorado, Wyoming, Nebraska and South Dakota.
“These rides are part of the Lakota culture … it’s mixed, building homes on the reservation and sharing the Lakota culture,” said Dave Ventimiglia, executive director of The Tipi Raisers, a nonprofit organization based on the reservation. “We do what we can to eliminate some of the conditions of poverty up there; we also try to share the Lakota culture.”
The riders have attracted attention from residents who have Native American roots but who haven’t been culturally connected. Residents such as Briana Ironwing of Northern Colorado.
“My dad called me and was like, ‘Bri! This is where they are,’ and I was like, ‘Oh, my God we have to go see them,'” said Ironwing. “It was cool because we’re Sioux, we’re Oglála.”
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