Great River Energy awarded $1,000 to Dakota Boys and Girls Ranch to do safety upgrades on its Bismarck campus. Specifically, funds will be used to update the fire alarm system.
Children who come to the Ranch have severe emotional, mental health, behavioral, and developmental challenges. They work hard, with professional guidance, to overcome issues like conduct disorder, autism spectrum disorder, personality disorder, depression, anxiety, chemical dependency; and challenges related to trauma, abuse, and neglect.
Due to the severity of trauma many Ranch kids have experienced, safety upgrades are important to keep the kids as safe as possible, while still providing a somewhat normal, home-like environment. Physical environments are as much a part of client healing as the medical care, education, and treatment they receive. The safety of clients and staff is a top priority at the Ranch. Children cannot heal unless their basic needs are met, including their need for safety and security.
Dakota Boys and Girls Ranch is a Christ-centered residential treatment and educational center for children. At the Bismarck facility, fifty-five employees work together to help the most troubled, complicated, and amazing kids by providing best-in-class psychiatric therapy and trauma-informed care, where we look kids in the eye, walk with them, and help them become their best selves. Our on-campus school, Dakota Memorial School (DMS), provides a personalized education for kids who have psychiatric, behavioral, and trauma issues.
Great River Energy, based in Maple Grove, Minn., provides wholesale electric service to 28 distribution cooperatives, which distribute electricity to approximately 665,000 members across Minnesota. Great River Energy is committed to supporting the communities they serve and in which they operate through education, sponsorships, contributions, and economic development.