The second annual Komasket Powwow is ready to ignite the Okanagan Indian Band's arbour with songs, dance and celebration.
This year's powwow will take place over three days from Friday, June 7 to Sunday, June 9, a step up from last year's two-day event. The traditional powwow presented by the Okanagan Indian Band (OKIB) will take place at the arbour in Komasket Park off Westside Road.
Anyone is invited to take part in the free events, which will include traditional dancing, live music, arts and crafts, cultural workshops and plenty of Indigenous food.
Organizer Viola Brown said the first Komasket Powwow last year was hugely successful in bringing the powwow tradition back to the area.
"We had a great turnout, it exceeded my expectations," she said, adding there was participation from people and First Nations from far-flung places, including Ontario, New York, Washington and Oklahoma.
Grant Louis, another organizer who had a vision for reintroducing the powwow tradition in the community, said the dancing and other performances on tap this weekend promise to be "quite powerful."
"Our powwow is a celebration of culture and identity and connecting to ourselves and reconnecting our community to one another, so we're open to everybody," Louis said.
There will be more than 50 craft vendors and 10 food vendors at the powwow, which is expected to host more than 1,000 people over the three days.
Last year's event saw participation from 179 First Nations from across Canada and the U.S., and this year's celebration could prove to be even larger.
Brown said she's looking forward to seeing "people, communities and nations come together in celebration post-COVID, reconnecting, seeing old friends and making new ones.
"It's just so impactful having our people come together in a positive way ... after a lot of hardship in our community."
Last year's powwow was in honour of Emery Robins Sr., who was a founding member of the band's powwow committee when it held its first powwow in the 1980s.
"He brought powwow back to our community, so I want to keep it going," Louis said.
The action runs from 7-10 p.m. Friday, 1-11 p.m. Saturday and 1-7 p.m. Sunday.
