Four Corners Guides has set out to raise money for the Navajo Nation elders who are suffering terribly from the coronavirus. Find out how you can help here…

Words by Lizzy Scully (CEO, Four Corners Guides @fourcornersguides)

Our Navajo brothers and sisters (and my neighbors down here in the Four Corners) are suffering terribly from the coronavirus. I’d like to raise $2000 to send money specifically to my friend, Jon Yazzie’s chapter in Kayenta, so that food and water can be purchased and delivered to Navajo elders and others in need… If you’re a bikepacker who reads BIKEPACKING.com, you may have read about Jon last year. He’s a full-blooded Navajo and the owner of Dzil Ta’ah Adventures, a bikepacking guide service on the Nation and a partner of Four Corners Guides. These are lands that both Steve and I have regularly utilized (with permission and permits) for recreation. We’ve packrafted the Little Colorado River twice (one of the most magical places on earth), bikerafted the San Juan River, and Steve and his friends have explored miles and miles of the Nation by bike and packraft.

You can donate directly to the Kayenta chapter at KayentaTownship-nsn.gov OR, please consider donating $5, $10 or $20 on this GoFundMe page. Some things to consider…

  • 62% of Navajos live in poverty.
  • 40% don’t have running water, with many of those unable to even afford containers to hold water. Think about that? How would you feel if you couldn’t wash your hands 10 times per day, as many of us are used to?
  • And around 30% live without basic sanitation.
  • According to the LA Times, there are about 175K residents and only four inpatient hospitals.
  • Furthermore, there’s a lack of grocery stores. Where once Navajo elders would drive to bigger cities for shopping, they are now stuck at home.
  • Jon Yazzie Rider and Rig
  • Jon Yazzie Rider and Rig

If you haven’t seen the beautiful Navajo Nation landscapes, check out this article on Kayenta-resident Jon Yazzie.

FILED IN (CATEGORIES & TAGS)

Dispatch

Please keep the conversation civil, constructive, and inclusive, or your comment will be removed.