PORT ANGELES — The Lower Elwha Klallam will unveil the tribe’s heritage center, under construction for more than a year at First and Peabody streets, during a “soft opening” Thursday, July 8.
The ribbon will be cut at a formal grand opening ceremony Saturday, July 17.
“We planned that to coordinate with the time when the canoes would be landing here for the canoe journey,” in which tribes from throughout the Pacific Northwest will stop along their journey to the July 19 gathering at the Makah reservation at Neah Bay, said Brenda Francis, tribal communications manager.
Local residents and tourists will appreciate the Elwha Klallam Heritage Center for the occasional opportunity to learn Native crafts as well as the commercial area, which may include a gallery of fine Native American art, that will be open to the public.
The tribe sees in the building an expansion of its work to help recipients of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families — or TANF — come into their own.
The facility will serve as a training center providing job skills and encouraging entrepreneurial development.
The first demo work to construct the building was done by four TANF clients, said Warren Stevens, tribal facilities manager.
“None of those people had any construction experience, but we brought them in here and in just a few days we were ready,” he said.
The net result?
“It’s going to be an exciting place,” said Beverly Bennett, tribal benefits manager for the program.
Visitors will walk into a Great Hall designed to give singers and dancers plenty of space to perform.
The Great Hall is flanked by wooden columns and dominated by a fountain decorated with a spiral of copper salmon.
Off to the left from the entrance is the commercial area, where crafts, T-shirts and other goods will be sold.
“We hope to have state-of-the-art artwork in the gallery,” Bennett said.
A craft room will be set up for classes on traditional crafts, such as beading and weaving.
Classes will be offered first to TANF clients.
If space is available, they will be opened to the general public, Bennett said,
In a state-of-the-art kitchen, dinners will be prepared and cooking classes taught.
Eric Schwartz designed the kitchen, Stevens said.
“He did a really nice job,” Stevens said. “Everything is really top of the line.”
Everything is stainless steel — even the walls– and it includes many work areas for classes, a walk-in freezer and refrigerator as well as industrial stoves and a smoker.
A computer lab will be used for teaching as well as allowing tribal members to work on resumes and search for jobs.
Other rooms will available for tribal elders who are traveling through or for other activities.
An outdoor area will be available for carving and woodworking demonstrations, Stevens said.
Copper finishes were done by Clark Mundy with designs by Al Charles Jr.
Tom Rankin — who oversaw all of the outdoor work, designing the landscape as well as the grand entrance — said that a new sign will be installed that features a wooden medallion carved by Charles.
“It is really beautiful,” Rankin said.
“It will change the whole look of things.”
TANF programs are funded federally and distributed by the state. Clients have a lifetime limit of five years of support while they learn job skills.
“We need to get them educated and teach them a skill so they can go out and get a job and be self-supporting,” Bennett said.
The center will offer the services of a employment training specialist to help job-seekers and to help in the writing of business pans.
“If their interest is to make crafts and sell them, then we will teach them to be entrepreneurs,” Bennett said.
“A lot of our people have excellent talent, but they don’t know how to get out there and sell themselves and their talent, so that’s what we want to teach them.”
One of the program’s success, Rachel Sullivan — a single mother who worked her way out of the TANF program through earning a college degree and finding employment — will cut the ribbon on July 17.
Construction began in the spring of 2009.
“We expected to open sooner than this,” Bennett said.
“It’s worth the wait, though. Everybody’s going to love that building.”
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Reporter Paige Dickerson can be reached at 360-417-3535 or at paige.dickerson@peninsuladailynews.com.
Managing Editor/News Leah Leach can be reached at 360-417-3531 or leah.leach@peninsuladailynews.com.
