By by Janet Little Cooper – Special to The Standard
The 36th annual Pow-Wow held at the Poarch Band of Creek Indians Reservation Thanksgiving Day and Friday proved to be a day filled with entertainment, history and heritage for the more than 2,500 people who gathered for the two-day festival.
Visitors to the two-day event were able to browse and shop the merchandise provided at the many vendor booths that encompassed the fenced-in area. The food booths were also a hit with the crowds serving food items from fried corn on the cob to a complete Thanksgiving dinner.
Finding a way to be entertained throughout the event was not a problem as the day was filled with numerous dance routines from visiting Indian tribes and the dance competititions that were held as well.
The opening ceremony held Thanksgiving Day at noon on the Mound drew a large crowd to watch the competition for the 2006 Indian Princess Contest.
Heather White was crowned Senior Princess, while Brooke Bell was named first alternate. Taylor Wiggins was awarded the crown for Junior Princess with Deidre Smith as first alternate and Hannah Gibson was crowned as Elementary Princess with Dariane Guy winning first alternate.
Billy Smith, the director of the Magnolia Springs in Flomaton summed the day during his speech in the opening ceremonies.