North Fork Indian Fair Days full of motion

Volney Dunavan / Special To Sierra Star

(Updated: Thursday, August 14, 2008, 5:46 PM)

Last weekend's Indian Fair Days in North Fork brought to light many elements involving the Sierra Mono Museum, which puts on the Indian gathering.

Mono Tribal Elder Ron Goode was honored by the board of the museum for his many years of dedicated service to the organization. Goode, a collector, storyteller, teacher, archaeologist, ethnographer and soapstone carver, just finished a two-month special showing of his collection at the museum. On display were household, trade and recreational artifacts hand made from local stone, quartz, obsidian, soapstone and other natural objects. The honor conveys lifetime membership in the museum to Goode.

Indian Fair Days princess is North Fork resident Renee Cabada. The 14-year-old will be a sophomore at Sierra High School and hopes to go to U.C.L.A. and become a pediatrician. "I want to go to all the pow wows and get more into my culture," she said. She is Mono and Chukchansi, and enjoys playing on the Sierra softball team as well as dancing.

Kayahna Sherman, age 10, was named mini princess and Arcie Jackson, age 5, was selected tiny tot.

Raffle prize winners were P. Bernard of Madera (basket); Nancy Carr of Oakhurst ($500); Mary O'Reily of Millbrae (TV/DVD); and Jed Davis of North Fork (beaded collar).

All proceeds from the pow wow benefit the museum operations as well as curation and language projects.

Active and associate memberships in the museum cost $25 a year, which includes a subscription to Nuk a Hee, the full-color newsletter, as well as free admission to the museum, a 10 percent discount on all gift shop purchases and dinner at the annual membership celebration dinner. There are also craft days which are open to museum members. Active members must be Mono and may vote and be on the board. Associate membership is open to all.