LOGAN, Utah — When a Navajo student returned to Utah State University after a break of a few years, he asked about the Pow Wow he attended as child. The student did not like the answer, but that was the beginning, not the end of the tradition.
Drums, dancing, and vendors. That was Pow Wow.
"This is a time for us all to just get along, celebrate life and just reminisce on how great life was, could be, and will be," explained Kristofer Pfeiffer, secretary of the Utah State Native-American Student Council.
However, the celebration stopped in 2018 and hadn't returned.
"Lack of funds or lack of engagement, but I think the majority reason was COVID," Pfeiffer listed as the reasons for the long break.
Whatever the reason, Pow Wow's disappearance made Pfeiffer and other students sad.
"We’re not like Salt Lake where they have like multiple universities and an Indian Urban Center," explained Stacie Denetsosie with the USU Native-American Cultural Center. "And so with the Pow Wow gone, I think that the community was like 'Where do we gather? Where do we celebrate together and reconnect?'"
The answer was to bring back the Pow Wow, which usually takes a year of planning.
Denetsosie said they planned this year's return in about four months. And if the 47th version looks like this 46th, it will be because they gathered more than 50 volunteers and prizes.
"I think over $10,000 in prize money to be won at our Pow Wow, that my students fundraised, so that’s pretty cool," said Denetsosie.
It's all because the students say the event is important.
"It gives you some meaning, some existence, it ties you back to your ancestry, your cultural identity," said Pfeiffer.
"It’s important for people to know that indigenous peoplE are still here and we are thriving," added Denetsosie.
Saturday's event at Nelson Field House is free open to the public, but organizers say to stay culturally-sensitive, they ask attendees to listen to the MC, and while it’s fine to take wide-shot photos of dancers, photographers should ask for permission if they decide to single out one person.
"We want people to come to out, and we want to celebrate together," said Denetsosie.
