FATHER’S DAY POWWOW
Hundreds of American Indian dancers, drummers, artists, craftsmen and cultural enthusiasts will converge on Carson City this weekend for the annual Stewart Father’s Day Powwow.
The event, which is free and open to the public, includes competition dancing, drum circles and a host of auxiliary activities, including a fun run. The events will be held on the Grass at the former Stewart Indian School, 5500 Snyder Ave., in Carson City.
Sherry Rupert, executive director of the Nevada Indian Commission, said the event draws participants from tribes around the West and visitors from around the world – some coming from as far as Germany to attend the powwow.
The three-day event will kick off Friday with grand entry scheduled for 7 p.m. It includes two sessions on Saturday, from 1-5 p.m. and 7-11 p.m. and will wrap up on Sunday with festivities from 1-4 p.m.
Gridley Hilpert of Sun Valley will serve as the Powwow’s Master of Ceremonies and Hank Johnson of Hungry Valley is the arena director.
The inaugural Color Fun Run, which is being sponsored by the Washoe Tribe and benefits the Stewart Recreation Program. The cost to participate is $20 for individuals; $10 for youths or $80 for teams of 5.
The race will start and finish at the Stewart Community Wellness Center (better known as the gym) and will be run around the school’s campus. Registration is at 8 a.m. and the run starts at 9 a.m. For more information about the fun run call Filomena Smokey at 775-883-7794.
Two events that will be held preliminary to the Powwow include a Stewart Alumni Reception on Thursday and an art reception for the Great Basin Native Artists on Friday.
The alumni event honors a female, male and posthumous Stewart Indian School alumni. It will be held at the Carson Plaza Events Center, 801 S. Carson St., beginning at 5:30 p.m. For details, call Chris Ann Gibbons at (775) 687-8333, e-mail cgibbons@nic.nv.gov.
The Great Basin Native Artists event, which is hosted by the Carson City Visitors Bureau, takes place in Building #1 (the former Administration Building) at Stewart Indian School from 5-7 p.m. on Friday. Exhibiting artists include Linda Eben Jones, Joyce McCauley, Steve Nighthawk, Tork Rains and Scott Tyzbar.
FORT CHURCHILL PHOTO CONTEST
Fort Churchill State Historic Park announces its third annual amateur photo contest.
Visitors to Fort Churchill and Buckland Station are invited to submit photos of scenery, plants, wildlife and cultural resources found within the park. The top three winners will receive a Nevada State Parks Passport Permit, good for free entrance to any Nevada State Park for an entire year.
Entries must be submitted as an 8 x 10 or smaller photograph and dropped off at Buckland Station on Saturdays and Sundays from 10 a.m.–2 p.m. or mailed to Nevada State Parks, Fort Churchill Photo Contest Entry, 16799 Lahoantan Dam, Fallon, NV 89406.
Entries are due by Oct. 1, and will be on display for public voting at Buckland Station from Oct. 7-Dec. 31.
NEVADA ARTISTS
Nevada artists Scott Hinton and Paul Ford share a common concern for the environment, though they express their views in unique and contrasting ways.
Hinton, a photographer and educator who serves as the coordinator of photographic research at the University of Nevada, Reno, has spent the past 20 years documenting urban sprawl through the use of panoramic photographs.
Ford, who graduated from San Diego State with a degree in sculpture and print making, has incorporated a lifelong interest in anthropology into his artwork. He mixes natural elements, such as sand and sticks – along with some unnatural elements – plastic bottles and other man-made objects – into his art.
Both artists have been honored with Governor’s Arts Award commissions and their work is being shown together at a new exhibit titled “Environmental Perspectives” at the Nevada Arts Council’s OXS Gallery in Carson City.
The exhibit will be in place through Aug. 18. Managed by the Nevada Arts Council’s Artist Services Program, the gallery is located at 716 N. Carson St., Suite A, Carson City and is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is free.
An artists’ reception and talk is scheduled for Aug. 8 from 5 to 7:30 p.m.
Hinton said his ongoing fascination with panoramic photography started with the first photo he made in 1995.
His landscape research documents and advocates for open space preservation in a time of development densification and growth transformation in the once unspoiled scenic vistas of the rural American West.
Ford uses materials in his art to emphasize the challenging environmental circumstances the planet faces.
“There is a high level of certainty the environment is at risk, whether it be simply our backyards or the planet itself,” Ford said. “For nearly 50 years I have studied the objective, scientific research on climate change and have made art about the impact of the human era. At present, global warming is accelerating at an alarming pace yet, at the same time, the environmental progress that has been made during the last five decades is being challenged. I chose to come out of retirement and again use art as my pen to express myself for what I perceive as the greater good.”
The Nevada Arts Council, a division of the Department of Tourism and Cultural Affairs, was founded in 1967 as the state agency charged with ensuring that state and national funds support cultural activity and encourage participation in the arts throughout Nevada.
Visit http://nvdtca.org/nevadaartscouncil/ for more information.
V&T RAILROAD
Get your tickets for V&T Train Rides now. This year features the return of an all-new Dinner & Melodrama Train Ride, plus a new Dinner & Murder Mystery Train Ride and the ever-popular Toast of the Canyon Wine Tasting Train!
But of course, you can still take the fully-narrated excursion into historic Virginia City to explore one of the country’s largest National Historic Districts, too. For information call 877-724-5007.
NORTHERN NEVADA RAILROAD
As the Nevada Northern Railway Museum rumbles back to life for its 30th anniversary excursion season, the working historic railroad brings back visitor favorites and adds new events guests will love.
The Nevada Northern is unique among railroad museums, not only offering visitors the chance to see history, but to experience it as it was a century ago with rides and other events on this living, working railroad.
New for 2017 is the Pony Express Limited in June, with special, celebratory postage, Pony Express horseback riders and photo opportunities.
Also new this year is a train ride taking advantage of one of the wonders of the solar system – a solar eclipse excursion on Aug. 21 called the Eclipse Express. Departing at 9:15 a.m., special eclipse viewing glasses will be on.
For more information and a complete schedule, go to www.nnry.com.
KELSO’S NEW RELEASE
A new release, “Andy and Spirit Go on a Day Count,” is written by Fernley author Mary Jean Kelso. It is the sixth in a series for children that features a wheelchair-dependent boy and an albino therapy horse. The illustrations were painted by award-winning artist KC Snider.
A longtime resident of Nevada, Kelso has written about 30 books. She has won several awards for her writing.
Kelso is a member of Made in Nevada, the Fort Churchill Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution, The Catherine Cynthia Overton (Kelso’s second great grandmother) Chapter of The Daughters of the Republic of Texas, The Alamo Defenders Descendants Association and The Alamo Society.
Kelso’s books, including “Andy and Spirit Go on a Day Count,” are available through the regular online outlets, at www.guardianangelpublishing.com, and her website, www.maryjeankelsoauthor.wix.com/mjkel. Contact Kelso at mjkel@aol.com or look for her at author signings locally.
She will be signing at The Lights of Christmas’ “Christmas in July Craft Show” at the Fallon Convention Center on July 22. Proceeds from booth rentals are donated to Toys for Tots and seniors in need.