BOX ELDER, S.D. — What began with five Indigenous women riding together to honor missing and murdered loved ones has grown into a nationwide movement that brings awareness, financial assistance and hope to families impacted by violence.

Medicine Wheel Ride, an Indigenous women-led nonprofit based in Box Elder, will hold its seventh annual Sturgis Rally event Aug. 9, following a cross-country motorcycle ride that begins in Los Angeles and includes community events along the way before ending in the Black Hills.

Executive Director Lorna Cuny founded the organization after searching for other Native American women riders in 2019. What started as a small gathering evolved into a national ride shaped like a medicine wheel, with participants traveling from all four directions across the United States and Canada before meeting in Topeka, Kansas. Today, the nonprofit includes members from across the United States and Canada who use motorcycles to raise awareness for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Relatives while also supporting survivors of domestic violence, human trafficking and other families affected by violence.

For Cuny, the mission is deeply personal. She said her uncle, Tim Bull Bear, was one of several Indigenous men found dead along Rapid Creek during the summer of 1999, a tragedy that left her family without answers. Watching her mother lose a brother and her cousins grow up without their father inspired her to create an organization dedicated to ensuring families do not face tragedy alone.

Medicine Wheel Ride has expanded beyond raising awareness by providing direct assistance to families throughout the country. The organization offers financial support of up to $3,000 for qualifying needs, including funeral expenses, travel for court hearings, memorials, advocacy and awareness campaigns. Cuny said the nonprofit has recently helped a Sioux Falls family purchase a headstone for a murdered child, provided shirts for a family attending a homicide trial in Oklahoma and assisted families traveling to court proceedings.

Partnerships have also allowed the organization to help locate missing people. Cuny described working with organizations in California and Montana to help find a missing young woman from the Blackfeet Nation who had become stranded after entering a fraudulent drug treatment program. She said the collaborative effort reunited the woman with her family, highlighting the importance of building relationships with organizations across the country.

The ride has also attracted support from Harley-Davidson. After Cuny contacted the company several years ago seeking sponsorship, Harley-Davidson became a major partner by providing motorcycles, event support and use of Outlaw Square during the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally. The partnership has also helped transport motorcycles for previous rides beginning in Texas and Seattle.

This year’s journey begins with a community kickoff gathering in Los Angeles, followed by a stop in Denver before riders arrive in the Black Hills. On Aug. 9, participants will gather for prayer at Bear Butte before riding into Deadwood’s Outlaw Square for a celebration of Indigenous culture, resilience, music and dance. Cuny said the goal is to ensure Indigenous communities are recognized for their strength rather than only for the tragedies they endure.

The organization’s mission became even more personal this year after Cuny’s niece was murdered in Kyle. Medicine Wheel Ride organized an honor escort to her funeral, with Cuny’s sister riding on the back of her motorcycle while members presented the family with a red shawl symbolizing love, remembrance and community support. Cuny said experiences like that reinforce the organization’s belief that healing begins when people show up for one another.

The public is invited to participate in the Aug. 9 ride or attend the events in Deadwood. Registration is available through the Medicine Wheel Ride website, and the first 100 registered riders will be entered into a drawing for a set of Michelin motorcycle tires. Families seeking assistance can also apply through the organization’s website, where requests are reviewed based on the group’s mission and available resources.