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After a six-year pause, the resounding, powerful echo of drums was once again heard across campus. On May 16 and 17, the 50th Annual Spring Powwow returned to Eastern Oregon University, filling the Fieldhouse with color, music, and dance.
This year, the special celebration was more than a milestone; it was a homecoming.
For many students, alumni, and friends, the Powwow has always been a place to reconnect, honor traditions, and carry stories forward. This year, it was also a return to something sacred that had been missing since 2019. The Powwow welcomed dancers, families, alumni, and community members from throughout the Northwest to celebrate heritage and healing
“There are so few of us here, so it feels good. It helps to heal my spirit with dance,” said EOU senior Sara Dowty, a member of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla, who graduated in 2025. “When I’m dancing, I’m sending up prayers.”
Sara’s words were a reminder that this wasn’t just a performance, it was ceremony.
The Powwow was originally launched in the early 1970s by the Speel-Ya Club as part of EOU’s Native American Arts Festival. Kathy Burke ’16, a proud EOU alumna and current Alumni Association board member, remembers those early gatherings vividly. Her father, Peter Quaempts, a Native American educator and artist, helped bring the original event to life.
“We used to have the arts festival all over the lawn,” she recalled. “I still have the original program my dad created, with his artwork on the cover.”
For Burke, attending this year’s Powwow was personal. She sponsored an alumni special and donated blankets and jewelry in honor of her father.
“It’s meaningful,” she said. “And hard, too. So many of our people are gone. But we still dance for those who cannot, and we carry on our traditions.”
The meaning of the Powwow, she said, lives in the details, the regalia worn by dancers, each piece tells a story.
“It’s about practicing our culture—our regalia, our feathers, everything we wear has meaning,” Burke said. “My dad used to say it takes a lifetime to make your outfit. You add to it as you move through different stages of life or as you earn something. That’s why it’s so meaningful. Much of our regalia is very old—passed down through generations.”
Fred Hill, master of ceremonies and a respected elder, reflected on the broader legacy of the Powwow and the importance of maintaining Native visibility on campus.
“It’s a long-standing tradition, 50 years says a lot about the strength of the organization,” Hill said. “The important thing is that it has created a space for Native students to have a presence here. The Powwow isn’t just a celebration; it’s about promoting higher education and encouraging our young people to continue their academic journey.”
Hill spoke to the deep emotional and spiritual resonance of the event.
“Our spirits long for drumming and singing,” he said. “There’s a spiritual aspect to it, the songs we share, we don’t get to hear every day. They’re offered prayerfully. That’s the healing.”
“Sometimes our students can’t get home to attend longhouse services,” he continued. “But hearing these songs brings inner strength. It reminds them of who they are.”
This year’s event is the result of months of student-led planning, coordination, and fundraising. Under the guidance of Pepper Huxoll ’01, Native American, Indigenous & Rural Programs coordinator, students traveled to Pendleton to learn from experienced organizers and ensure the Powwow’s traditions were honored.
“It’s been a rebuilding process,” Huxoll said. “We hadn’t had a Native American program coordinator for five years before I came on. But these students, especially Speel-Ya, have stepped up. This Powwow is their achievement.” Huxoll herself is an EOU alumna and was a member of Speel-ya as a former student.
The event featured grand entries, traditional regalia, and songs in celebration of graduates, elders, and veterans. The Fieldhouse transformed into a sacred space filled with social connection and joy.
For many, the location itself added to the experience.
“It’s a nice space to have it in,” Burke said. “I’m just happy to be here, to be a part of it again. It’s beautiful.”
As Sara Dowty said, “It puts us on the map.” For many, it also brought healing and a renewed sense that EOU is a place where these traditions can continue to grow. The 50th Annual Spring Powwow is more than a number on a calendar. It’s a symbol of resilience, a celebration of a culture that continues to thrive.
For EOU, it reaffirms a commitment to Indigenous students and communities that stretches back generations and will continue into the future
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