Native Dances bring a heartbeat to Chenowith Elementary
Lucille Begay, Ajay Rundell, Courtney Fasthouse, Ted Walsey, Wesley Walsey, Nick Reyes, Dillon Begay and Mairéad Beane Kelly were together this morning, Nov. 17, at Chenowith Elementary as Native American Dance enlivened the entire student body at it’s Friday Assembly.
By Tom Peterson
The Dalles, Ore., Nov. 17, 2023 - Chenowith Elementary students could feel the collective heartbeat of the Columbia this morning.
Dancers Dillon Begay and Courtney Fasthouse put fleet feet to the gym floor as the drums rang out and vibrated through the entire student body.
Giant hammering beats followed rhythmic cadence in the drum circle as Nick Reyes, Wesley Walsey and Ted Walsey brought the gym to life.
“It’s the heartbeat to our culture,” Lucille Begay told the students as the group presented several dances and gave insight into Native American Heritage.
Begay is the Native American Liaison at Columbia Gorge ESD. She said the dances were performed at pow-wows throughout the region and into Canada, noting the three primary Indian Reservations locally were the Warm Springs, Yakama and Umatilla.
Dillon, 31, said he was dancing before he walked and the styles of dance lean into fishing, hunting and gathering food.
“I love seeing students be part of this,” Lucille Begay said after the dancing, noting she watched as students began to move to the beat of the drum.
It’s been quite a week at Chenowith Elementary, the district’s dual-language school.
“We’re really focusing on raising kids social awareness,” said Principal AJ Rundell.
The school is ritualizing the celebration of cultures with assemblies on Fridays, said Mairéad Beane Kelly, dean of students.
“It’s a more dynamic experience,” she said, noting students also had a “Travel to Mexico” on Thursday, Nov. 16, where the entire program was a Spanish language immersion.
