Exhibit honoring Indigenous history in Chimacum Valley will be unveiled this week

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Despite the widely thought notion that Chemakum peoples are extinct, there remain many and they, along with a handful of other entities have been working to develop a photography exhibit to honor the lives and history of the Chemakum people.

The unveiling will be from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. Thursday, April 14 at Chimacum High School.

“Still Here: Portraits of the Chemakum” is composed of photos from last year’s annual summer gathering of Chemakum descendants.

Photos were taken by the League of Extraordinary Observers and Chemakum elder Rosalee Walz designed a book of the photos accompanied by text.

“We are an enduring people, and our ancestors continue in us,” said Rosalee Walz of the Woodman Chemakum family.

“These photographs are a powerful testament to the fact that we are very much alive and celebrate our traditions,” Walz said of the project.

The collection comes as a result of monthly meetings of the Chimacum History Group, a committee of the Quimper Unitarian Universalist Fellowship’s Native Connections Action Group, chaired by Maria Mendez and Barbara Jo Blair.

The group includes Chemakum descendants, representatives from local churches and school districts, the Jefferson County Historical Society, Northwind Art, and other organizations. Brian Goodman was the principal photographer of this project with assistance of League of Extraordinary Observers members Tim Lawson, Robert Tognoli, and Kerry Tremain.

In addition to the opening, the school will also be open for public viewing from noon to 2 p.m. Saturday, April 23, and Saturday, May 28.

For more information about this project, contact Barbara Jo Blair, co-chair of the Native Connections Group and Chimacum History Group and Quimper Unitarian Universalist Fellowship at ncagquuf@gmail.com.

To view more photos, go to www.leophoto.org/chemakum.