I want to prepare you for a somewhat lyrical dreamers' post. One question arose recently, is there any good news, anything good happening in the world? Another question has arisen lately, what should be done with old Quaker villages where the populace is getting older and dwindling? What can be done about the world's children, suffering from lack of community and falling into drugs and despair? What can be done about states that consider taking care of children "socialism" and so remove funding from social programs, and let them starve?
There is a place in the far northwest corner of South Dakota, in Harding County, called the Sky Ranch. To me it's like a model, like Scattergood School. I'd fill the world with Scattergood Schools if I could, but you'll scoff at me, and tell me I don't know what I'm talking about. Well maybe that's true, and it's true of Sky Ranch too. But both places worked. So to answer the first question, if you want to know something good in the world, pay attention to those people who have saved a life, or two, or three, and kept young wayward teenagers from killing themselves and turned them into productive citizens.
The Sky Ranch used to take wayward boys, and put them on horses, and turn them loose in the rugged western sagebrush country of Harding County. It worked for fifty years. They seemed to even be free of scandal and abuse, although who knows how they treated their horses. They turned kids around. Anyone who grew up there spoke highly of the place.
It closed in 2011. States don't have that kind of money for wayward boys, someone said. It was budget cuts that did it. They didn't do anything wrong, they just couldn't afford to keep it going. There's still a Sky Ranch Foundation. They have something out there besides a large bunkhouse and a commercial kitchen. But I'm not sure exactly what they have.
I was very impressed by Scattergood School. A group of Quakers took in wayward kids, Quaker or not, and gave them a community, and a home, and they thrived. These days they have issues because of course, they would never say no to transgender kids. It's a different world than it used to be, and there's no such thing as "isolated" if you have the internet and there's no such thing as "anything" if you don't. I can't solve all the problems in the world. But I'll tell you something: it doesn't matter, transgender, gay, city, anything, every kid deserves a home and a community. And the fact that not every kid has either is the first problem we should address in this world.
So, the question of what Quakers can do about this situation. We Quakers are smart. We know how to educate kids, and love them, and not use violence. We should use our skills to set up Quaker schools in these places. We can start with the Sky Ranch (if they'll let us). Geography is not a barrier. You set up a beautiful school that saves people's lives, and people will find it, and save themselves. Kids will insist on going there.
My last point is this: We Quakers are small, you might say. We're tapped from supporting good causes around the country. True. But we're also good teachers. And we know non-violent mediating skills. We can pool our resources. And there are a lot of people like Bill Gates and Elon Musk around with billions. It's not too hard to say somebody, look, saving wayward teens is the most important thing we can do with our time and money.
Sky Ranch may not be the place; they may have other ideas. When I was looking into the place I got online and took a little virtual tour. I was impressed by the wide-openness of it, the scarcity of people, the sky even though I couldn't see it. I will see it someday; I inherited a tiny speck of land bound up in a group and, if possible, I could extract myself from it and get a thousand bucks or so. That makes it worth the trip already. But South Dakota is quite beautiful, especially Harding County. I guarantee it. A little ranch out there would get along with everybody, and would save lots of kids.
It wouldn't have to be the only one.
