When: Tuesday, May 10, 2022, 6 – 7:30 p.m.
Doors open at 5:30 PM with light refreshements.
Where: wǝɫǝbʔaltxʷ – Intellectual House, UW Campus (4249 Whitman Court, Seattle, WA)
What:
This event is free and open to the public, but registration is required and closes on May 7th, as space is limited. The Department of American Indian Studies at the University of Washington hosts an annual literary and storytelling series. Sacred Breath features Indigenous writers and storytellers sharing their craft at the beautiful wǝɫǝbʔaltxʷ Intellectual House on the UW Seattle campus. Storytelling offers a spiritual connection, a sharing of sacred breath. Literature, similarly, preserves human experience and ideals. Both forms are durable and transmit power that teaches us how to live. Both storytelling and reading aloud can impact audiences through the power of presence, allowing for the experience of the transfer of sacred breath as audiences are immersed in the experience of being inside stories and works of literature.
ABOUT THE ARTISTS
Rena Priest is a Poet and an enrolled member of the Lhaq’temish (Lummi) Nation. She has been appointed to serve as the Washington State Poet Laureate for the term of April 2021-2023. She is a Vadon Foundation Fellow, and recipient of an Allied Arts Foundation Professional Poets Award. Her debut collection, Patriarchy Blues was published by MoonPath Press and received an American Book Award. She is a National Geographic Explorer (2018-2020) and a Jack Straw Writer (2019). She holds an MFA from Sarah Lawrence College.
Natosha Gobin is a Tulalip Tribal member, descendent of Snohomish, Snoqualmie, Sauk-Suiattle, Skagit and Puyallup. Her lineage connects her to the Gobin, Young, Price and Hill families, as well as the Jones and Williams families. Natosha is a proud mother of 5 children, auntie and teacher to many. She has been learning, speaking and teaching Norther Lushootseed for over 21 years with the Tulalip Tribes Lushootseed Department, working with all ages. She is currently teaching two classes at Marysville-Pilchuck, as well as a college level course. Natosha is currently serving as the Chair for Marysville School District Indian Education Parent Committee. In her free time, she likes to spend time working with various programs offering outreach including; Seattle Clearsky Youth Group, Native Voices Arts Academy, Na’ah Illahee Foundation, and the Tulalip community driven group “Together We’re Better” with her fellow “Aunties In Action”.
