wiʔaac
Hello, my name is Bethany Fackrell.
I am a founding member and artist of Canoe Culture Connections LLC, a veteran, and a member of the Snoqualmie Tribe.
My passion for art started at a young age, I regained that passion in adulthood after my service in the Navy. In my transition from the military to working for my Tribe in 2017, I became an active tribal member again. I joined the tribal color guard and re-joined in cultural ceremonies, gatherings, meetings, harvesting, and an overall way of life as a Snoqualmie Tribal member.
When I regained my native childhood roots, I started to express my experiences with art on hand painted deer skin drums.
Each drum I have painted has been gifted, even as a girl I loved to gift my art, it is also a huge part of our culture. I carry on this tradition by gifting my painted drums to others even to this day. As my experiences and teachings grow so does my art, which eventually lead to the creation of the logo for the Snoqualmie Gaming Commission, my place of work. I use traditional Salish patterns in a contemporary way to bring my culture to light and to share our ways that differ from many other Native American Tribes. My art pieces offer this by spreading teachings, stories, and real experiences.
From as far as I can remember, as a child my tribe has always been a 2nd home to me and the foundation for that home is family. Memories of our office trailer, where my elders fought for our tribe’s re-recognition. Memories of us kids fighting in line to ensure our elders were feed first. Memories of gifting when we had next to nothing to give, catching salmon from night till morning, and gatherings at our sacred falls. Decades of memories, most importantly memories of my canoe family.
Some of my most honorable moments were pulling in our canoes from our home rivers to the ocean waters of Lummi in 2019, as well as being a part of the restoration of the Kokanee at Lake Sammamish. For me, it’s all about offering my hands whenever, wherever, or however I can. Raising my hands in thanks to the ones before us and our Elders who paved the path for the generations to come.