Chelsea Self / Post Independent
Carbondale will celebrate its first Indigenous Peoples’ Day with an event Monday in Sopris Park.
The event, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. will include drumming, singing and dances, according to organizer John Hoffman.
“We will honor the delicate balance that Earth maintains for life to thrive,” Hoffman said.
The town of Carbondale officially recognized the second Monday of October, recognized federally as Columbus Day, at the trustees meeting Sept. 24. Carbondale residents Hoffman and Rita Marsh petitioned the town to adopt the resolution.
Carbondale is one of the latest Colorado cities to celebrate the day. Boulder, Denver and Durango declared the second Monday in October Indigenous Peoples’ Day in 2016, and Aspen recognized it in 2017.
Hoffman said he wants the Indigenous Peoples Day celebration to also be known as Nuche Day, (pronounced ‘nooch’), after the word Ute Tribe members use to describe themselves.
“If Carbondale carries it forward, we’ll look at Nuche Day along with Potato Day and Dandelion Day. It will help us think in those terms of the indigenous relationship with the planet,” Hoffman said.