Pateros Annual Salmon Bake and Cultural Celebration

 The Annual Salmon Bake and Cultural Celebration gave back to the community this weekend with music, art, and delicious food. Proceeds from the event benefit community support programs offered by the Resource Center. For more information about the Resource Center in Pateros, visit www.crcpb.org. As a 501(c)(3) organization, all donations are tax deductible.

As large fillets of fresh caught Copper River salmon sizzled over the new salmon bake oven, visitors strolled around the new Methow Monument, posing for photos by the teepee and fishing sculptures. Elsewhere in the park, people visited under shade trees while enjoying music by Arnold Cleveland and friends.

Kids sat around the Arts and crafts table, practicing different beading styles they learned from Linda Saint. Linda teaches arts and crafts to

residential students living in the dorms at the Pascal Sherman Indian School located in Omak. “I’m the Dorm Mom,” she laughed. Linda is also known for her intricate beadwork, which was also on display at the cultural celebration.

Baskets, hats, and pouches woven from native plants could be found at the Sinkietqu Okanogan Basket Weavers booth. Elaine Emerson Timentwa talked about how she uses wild cherry bark and bear grass to weave traditional symbols into cedar root baskets. “My mother used this pattern to show pit houses,” she explained as she ran her finger along the design, “here was the door, and there the ladder.”

Arnold Cleveland took a break from entertaining the crowd to talk about different flutes he had brought along. His favorite was carved from walnut burl with delicate inlays of turquoise. Another flute resembled a rifle, and ended with a rubber stopper. “This one here I got from an Apache who would sit and play, and then use it as a cane.” The flutes were laid out on a white table covered in colorful sketches. When asked about the table, he said, "This is when I biked across America!” A marathon runner who has always been active, Arnold turned 70 years old and decided to go for a lengthy ride. He started in southern California and biked up the coast to Newport, Oregon. From there, Arnold continued east to Maine. Gail Price, Arnold’s musical partner, drove the support vehicle. “Whenever we stopped, Gail would haul out the table and draw a picture of what we saw that day."

Courtesy of Cheryl Grunlose Artist Facebook Page

Artist Cheryl Grunlose was on hand to show off her stunning ledger art. Drawing upon her family’s collection of traditional regalia, and her graphic design training, Cheryl creates colorful tableaus on early 1900s printed records. Speaking about her path as an artist, Cheryl spoke as a military vet with multiple degrees in art history, museumology, and business, “When I started, there were doors shut to me, but I didn’t care. I kept going. You have to love art.”  

Stan Gough from Eastern Washington University manned the archaeology booth. Large posters showed images from excavated village sites from around the region dating back to 10,000 years ago.

In other news, the Restawhile is looking to hire summer-time help. Anyone interested in a Pateros High School Class of 1957 reunion during Apple Pie Jamboree should email Marlene Miller Kaucher at nanamark@aol.com.