As the ongoing protests by members of North Dakota’s Standing Rock Sioux continue to make headlines across the country, a group of volunteers from Dowagiac and beyond are stepping up to help.

Dowagiac IT3 owner and frequent local philanthropist Brian Antisdel recently organized an effort to collect clothing and other items to assist residents of the Standing Rock Indian Reservation. From now through Friday, people may donate winter clothing items, such as jackets or gloves, to the downtown computer repair store, located at 146 N. Front St.

Antisdel, a member of the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi, organized the relief effort Saturday night, shortly after receiving a call from an old friend asking if the business owner — who also organized a water drive for the residents of Flint last December — could put together an effort to assist the Standing Rock tribe, Antisdel said.

Members of the Standing Rock Sioux, along with other Native Americans, have organized protests against the construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline — an oil pipeline that would run from North Dakota to Illinois — for several months, stating that the proposed structure could contaminate waterways and disturb land the tribes consider sacred.

Many opposing the construction have lived in tents and have had to deal with adverse weather conditions in recent weeks, Antisdel said.

“It is like a warzone there, so we are going in to help, just like the Red Cross would,” Antisdel said.

Since kicking off the effort, around 75 people have volunteered to help, Antisdel said.

On Friday night, the business owner and several others plan to take the collected items and travel to the Standing R    ock  Reservation, where they will distribute the materials to members of the tribe.

“From there, we will go and do what we can,” Antisdel said. “Cook meals, pick up trash — anything we can do to help the situation, to do something for the townspeople.”

The team will return to Dowagiac by the following Monday, though they plan on making additional trips throughout December, Antisdel said.

“We are going there to help, not to protest,” Antisdel said. “If a police officer needs something, we will give it to them, too.”

People interested in donating to the effort may contact staff at Dowagiac IT3, at (269) 462-9070.