Practice your Gourd Dance and dust off your drums — it's time for a pow wow. The 15th Annual Sacramento Pow Wow begins Friday, Aug. 14 in O'Neil Park (715 Broadway) and will continue through Aug. 16.

"A pow wow," according to Master of Ceremonies Thomas Phillips, is a "coming together or gathering of our American Indian people for ceremony, song, dance and feasting." Although pow wows were created by the Algonkin tribe as a designated time and place for ceremony, it has evolved into today's meaning. In Phillip's eyes, pow wows now signify "a venue for preserving and maintaining our rich and colorful culture to pass down to the next generation."

University students were the first to recognize that the Native American culture needed rejuvenation, so they reintroduced the pow wow to the mainstream public as a method of education and awareness. "Since then," Phillips states, pow wows have spread "into local tribal and urban Indian communities and finally into Indian Casinos where they could be supported by gaming revenues." Each pow wow is different, as it reflects the work of the Pow Wow Committee that plans the event.

Although this is the 15th Annual Sacramento Pow Wow, it is only the 13th year that it has been funded by a private party. "The state of California discontinued funding for the California Indian Days and Pow Wow at CalExpo," explained Phillips. But instead of simply terminating the program altogether, the committee sought funding to continue the ceremony. This funding was provided by the Hoaglin family, who generated the needed revenue with a traveling taco stand they bring to pow wows throughout the state.

Phillips says he plans to open the first day with the "Smudge Blessing and Prayer (a type of purification ceremony intended to remove negativity) for the grounds and ceremonies followed by California Dance Groups from throughout Northern California." During the three-day ceremony there will be many events, including a Bear Dance, a religious ceremony meant to bring prosperity to the Native American people, and the Gourd Dance, an honor dance performed by the Men's Society of Protectors of the Southern Planes. On both Saturday and Sunday, all ages will compete in a variety of dancing styles, including Fancy Shawl, Jingle Dress, Old Style Traditional for girls and women, and Fancy Feather, Grass and Old Style Traditional for the boys and men. The full schedule is attached below.

One reason for the many different dancing styles featured in this year's pow wow is its inter-tribal nature. Instead of just being a pow wow for one California tribe, many different cultures will be welcomed, including the California Pomo, Wailaki, Concow, Mewuk, Maidu and Wintu.

Although it may appear that a pow wow would be an event held exclusively for Native Americans, Phillips quickly puts this notion to rest, encouraging all of the public to attend. He promises "there will be a lot of attractions and things to do and to see at the Pow Wow. There is a nominal admission fee to enter but it is well worth it." Among these attractions Phillips lists a multitude of arts and crafts vendors and a variety of different food booths, a combination that is sure to entice any Sacramento resident looking for a fun cultural distraction this weekend.

Attached is a flier for the event. The 15th Annual Sacramento Pow Wow