Harvest Pow Wow in Naperville honors Native American culture
Hours before the autumnal equinox ushers in the fall season, the 25th annual Harvest Pow Wow will highlight and celebrate Native American culture through dance, song, arts and craft demonstrations, and other entertainment on the grounds of Naper Settlement.
The two-day celebration begins Saturday, Sept. 21, and continues Sunday, Sept. 22, in the museum village near downtown Naperville.
Dancer Laura Grizzlypaws returns this year with a bear dance that she will perform at 3:30 p.m. Saturday and 1:15 p.m. Sunday.
“It's a sacred dance. It's a personal dance,” said Joseph Standing Bear Schranz, founder and president of the Midwest SOARRING Foundation, the nonprofit group that presents the event.
Schranz said Grizzlypaws last performed at the Harvest Pow Wow about five years ago.
“She was really well-received. She's got a full-sized grizzly bear hide,” he said, which she wears as she dances.
Also back this year will be the stallion that made its debut at last year's event, Schranz said. The horse, a Tennessee Walker golden palomino named Lakota, proved a popular attraction.
Canadian artist Jaime Black will perform a Red Dress dance both days.
“She started what is called the Red Dress movement. It deals with domestic abuse and human trafficking,” Schranz said.
He said the movement is aimed at calling attention to and ending violence inflicted on indigenous women.
“We want to kind of highlight that and make people aware so we can stamp that out,” he said.
Schranz said the pow wow is centered around Native American culture in both North America and South America. Both days will include Aztec dance performances scheduled for 11:30 a.m.
There will be a grand entry of all dancers, with a special ceremony honoring military veterans, at 1 p.m. Saturday and 12:30 p.m. Sunday.
“We're going to have a military vehicle outfit that's going to bring military Jeeps. We don't honor war, but we do honor veterans,” he said. “We want to make it crystal clear we're not highlighting war.”
The pow wow also will have archery demonstrations from the Joliet Archery Club on Saturday, a canoe exhibit, vendors offering native food, a solar energy display, children's crafts, a tepee on display and live raptors, including an American bald eagle, presented by Save Our American Raptors, a nonprofit group dedicated to the welfare of native birds of prey.
Schranz said the Harvest Pow Wow is one of the most popular in the area.
“We're really growing. This will be our 25th annual. The grounds are beautiful, it's just a great time. I don't know if people are aware of how rare pow wows are, because of the cost and complexity,” he said. “The money we make we use on our projects. This is a continual outreach.”
25th annual Harvest Pow Wow
When: 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 21, and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 22
Where: Naper Settlement, 523 S. Webster St., Naperville
Admission: $12 for adults; $9 for seniors 62 and older; $7 for children ages 3-12; free for kids younger than 3
Info: harvestpowwow.com