“The spirit of service is the soul of belonging.”

― Lailah Gifty Akita

About Us

Hello and welcome!

We’re Community Group Corporation of the Black Hills. We started out as a group of friends who bonded over similar sustainability practices, our concerns about the climate, and our shared goal of building a community focused on trust, mutual respect, and understanding.

We believe the best way to make a difference in our community is to combine our gifts and skills and use them for the collective good.

By starting this organization, we have had the opportunity to connect with so many other people who share our vision. If you are interested in joining us, then we’d love to meet you and work together to support our local community.

Our Mission and Values

“Through outreach and education, we will teach our communities to protect the ecosystems and natural environments of the Black Hills; while also providing equitable and healthy food sources for those communities.”

How We’ll Build It Together

Equitable Food Systems

We seek to create a sustainable and equitable food system for the residents of South Dakota to ensure our communities have access to affordable, healthy, and local food sources.

Land Preservation

We seek to acquire land within the state of South Dakota in order to rewild and conserve that land, which has been damaged through human development. We seek to create healthy ecosystems for future generations of people and wildlife alike.

Education

We seek to educate the community about land conservation and food sovereignty through providing free and accessible information to the public.

Creating Connections

We hope to create meaningful connections through full transparency, intentional conversation, and respectful interactions within our local community to best serve its interests.

Meet the Board of Directors

Callie Stainbrook

Callie is our Co-Chair and the leader of the Education and Outreach team. She coordinates incoming volunteers, builds relationships with our local business partners, and creates educational content.

Jess Huntsman

Jess is our secretary and a member of the marketing team. She keeps all of our minutes up-to-date, creates fun and engaging social media content, and strategizes our online design and presence.

John Gasper

John is our treasurer and workflow advisor. He helps us budget for events and keeps our money flow in order to ensure our organization is transparent in everything we do.

Garrett Buckingham

Garrett is our Project Discovery team leader. He oversees all project management and seeks out new ways we can better serve our community.

Kyle Stainbrook

Kyle is our Co-Chair and Grant and Fundraising leader. He oversees all workflow that helps us get funding from grants so that we can continue to provide through monetary resources.