The turf inside the Kibbe Dome trembled with a rhythmic beat. The rafters echoed with chants of songs older than the building itself.
Inside, hundreds of Native American dancers and tribe members celebrated a culture still alive and thriving, each step pounding into the bright green grass a reminder of a people not yet forgotten.
“It’s just important to keep the culture alive and practice it all the time. The kids need to see it and it’s just something that needs to be taught. It keeps everything strong,” said Derek Abrahamson during the University of Idaho’s 19th annual Tutxinmepu Powwow. “Everyone who comes to these, we just have a strong bond together. It’s healing for the soul.”
Leslie Kiebert | Argonaut Children participate in Sunday’s powwow inside the Kibbie Dome.
Dancers of all ages draped in intricate regalia took to the turf, demonstrating to the UI and Moscow community exactly what Native American culture looks like. Abrahamson, a UI senior and coordinator of the event, said this time of year always brings out some of the best aspects of Native American culture, from the scrumptious food to the large gathering of many tribes.
“I think it’s something we’ve always done,” Abrahamson said. “It’s a social gathering, getting everyone together and visiting.”
Meanwhile, off to the side and anxiously waiting his turn to dance competitively, stood Ashton Stadtmiller. An eighth-grader from Jenifer Junior High, Stadtmiller is a byproduct of his culture’s generosity and dedication to future generations.
Stadtmiller said he first became interested in powwows after slight pressure from his mother. After some online research, he said he quickly became entranced by the hypnotic movements of the dancers covered in beads, bells and feathers.
“There’s no wrong way to dance out there or wear what you’re wearing,” Stadtmiller said. “Usually, it’s from various family members that gift it to you over the years and help you out with your work.”
When he first started participating in powwows, Stadtmiller said he did not have much. It wasn’t until a donation from a family friend that he could begin building his regalia.
“I noticed Ashton in 2014 at a powwow in Lapwai,” said Roger Vielle. “He was just starting, he didn’t have much of an outfit, but he was willing. He got out there and danced. I gifted him a roach.”
Vielle said the roach, a traditional Native American headdress typically adorned with feathers, was just the starting point Statdmiller needed. Overtime, more family members donated items to the young dancer, until he was quite literally wearing history.
“Some of the regalia that I wear is years and years old,” Stadtmiller said. “It might even be older than I am.”
Vielle, who Statdmiller referred to as “The Veteran,” said coming to powwows has been one of his favorite pastimes in recent years. He said he does not dance competitively, but merely enjoys the moment.
“I do this for the people, for the ones that can’t,” he said. “For the ones that passed on and for the fun. I do it because I like it. I don’t want to have the influence of money cloud what I do. My goal here is just to enjoy myself.”
Vielle said UI’s powwow is just one of many on the “powwow trail,” an extensive journey that travels across the Western U.S. during the spring.
Sydel Samuels, director of UI’s Native American Student Center, said the powwow is crucial for Native American culture in the Northwest, citing the many tribes that gather in the Kibbie Dome from across Washington, Idaho and Oregon.
“It’s vital,” she said. “It’s definitely important to each of the individuals and their tribes and their communities.”
Brandon Hill can be reached at [email protected]