Tamkaliks focuses on friendship: Annual celebration draws big crowd

Published 3:30 pm Friday, August 4, 2023

WALLOWA — A horse procession, dancing, singing, and a peace pipe ceremony marked the first full day of the 31st Tamkaliks Celebration on Saturday, July 22.

Tribal members and nontribal members alike came to the celebration from places as far away as Kansas and Norway, said announcer and Tamkaliks Chairman Fred Hill Sr.

Hill, who has been the announcer at Tamkaliks for more than a decade, said he was grateful for the annual celebration.

“This place here is where we are able to reestablish our customs and actually keep those intact through the drums and our religious songs, and just the social aspect of it,” Hill said. “But at the same time, the family reunions, and especially for the new babies, they eventually learn who their people are, their relatives … and that is always an important part of our gatherings and kinships. As the years go by, many of the younger generations… Some of the younger children have never even known a time before Tamkaliks. But one of the main things about this gathering, as it has been established from the get-go, is the friendship.”

Horses and dances

On Saturday, 12 horses with riders rode around the Dance Arbor. A Umatilla elder sang a song that was once a protection song for a young Native boy, Hill said.

The song was sung as a memorial for those who had passed, and a riderless horse represented those who had passed.

After the horse procession, audience members seated in the Dance Arbor were invited to join in on a friendship dance in which visitors were greeted and welcomed to the celebration by tribal members.

Tribal members walked along the inside of the dance circle and shook the hands of visitors.

The group dance brought tribal members of all ages together for a shared dance before the category and age-restricted dances took place during the celebration weekend. The group dance was a hit with visitors, but the Grand Entry, during which all tribal members filed into the arbor, was the highlight of the afternoon.

Women warriors

In past years during the powwow, women warriors with ties to veterans who fought in the war of 1877 were not honored during the Tamkaliks Celebration. During recent celebrations, however — including this year’s celebration — women warriors were called forward to receive a gift.

The women introduced themselves, their tribe, and their ancestors who fought in the war. Several of the women who came up and introduced themselves were descendants of Old Chief Joseph and Young Chief Joseph.

The war of 1877 pitted the Nez Perce and several of their allies against the United States Army when long-running hostilities finally reached a boiling point after the U.S. Army forced nontreaty Nez Perce to leave their homelands to travel 126 days to a reservation four states away.

Peace pipe ceremony

Robert Wilson was given the peace pipe during a special ceremony.

Other tribal members who had once been given the honor to act as a peace pipe carrier came forward to tell Wilson their stories during what is usually a private ceremony that takes place on tribal grounds, said Hill.

Four traditional songs that are associated with a peace pipe. One is a Nez Perce song that has been passed down through many generations, said Hill.

The song is learned, carried with the carrier of the peace pipe throughout their lives, and then sung at celebrations.

“Pipes are a good thing,” Hill said. “The smoke leaves and it goes somewhere. It doesn’t go by itself; it’s your prayers, your heart, your happiness, your sadness.”

Tamkaliks history

Tamkaliks co-chairman Nancy Crenshaw recounted how Tamkaliks got started.

“In 1989, Taz Conner came and visited Wallowa, and we decided that we wanted to collaborate on having a Native American festival,” Crenshaw said.

Earl “Taz” Conner was a Nez Perce tribal member and descendent of Chief Joseph’s band. Conner dreamed of reuniting the Nez Perce with their homeland.

The celebration’s first year in 1990 was held in Wallowa High School’s gymnasium, but it grew and moved to a donated property located near Wallowa in 1992.

In 1997, a 160-acre parcel of land was purchased and became the permanent home for all future Tamkaliks events.

The parcel of land was developed over time to include the Dance Arbor, Longhouse, and other various buildings and monuments.

“From 1997 it has progressed and we call it the Homeland Project now,” Crenshaw said. “So it is not just the powwow, it is a whole project where we have programs and a lot of different events to encourage Native American arts and culture. So then we purchased this building and built the arbor and the longhouse. And here we are today.”

To see more photos from the 2023 Tamkaliks Celebration, see this story on our website, wallowa.com.