Islanders can give thanks the Old Coyote way

Published 8:00 am Wednesday, November 1, 2006

Suquamish artists and educators Steve and Rita Old Coyote host a get-together.

Steve and Rita Old Coyote share their perfect Thanksgiving recipe:

Mix a large family with many years of laughter, and you get a whole lot to be grateful for.

Steve, a Suquamish tribal artist and educator, and his wife Rita are grateful for each other, their four children, and their eight grandchildren – so grateful that they decided to start celebrating Thanksgiving early this year.

Everyone is invited to partake in the festivities.

“This day to me is about sharing who we are,” Rita said.

This Sunday, the Old Coyote family will present “Giving Thanks,” a Thanksgiving celebration in Island Center Hall. The event is sponsored by the Bainbridge Island Metropolitan Park and Recreation District.

The day-long celebration will feature Steve’s wood carving work, storytelling, dancing, and Northwest Coastal music by the Suquamish Canoe Family band.

The art show is scheduled for earlier in the program, with the entertainment set to follow in the evening. There’s more in store, but Steve and Rita won’t give it away.

“We aren’t big planners,” Rita said. “I might teach a song, but at the last second I might do something else. We want it to be a surprise.”

Steve and Rita embrace spontaneity. “I love life and I live it to the fullest,” said Steve, who has been making the most of his recent retirement from carpentry.

Recently, their free spirit – and their Ford van – has taken them on an extended trip throughout the Southwest. They didn’t need a MapQuested itinerary.

“There were so many cool and interesting things to see,” Steve said. “If you’re jetting around you never see it all – we took our time.”

The couple has traveled in this style ever since they met at a United Indian Tribes ball.

“We fell in love, laughing – we had loads of fun,” Rita said.

Their laughter is contagious. As they discuss the Thanksgiving celebration, the topic takes a back seat to Steve’s constant jokes, and Rita’s accounts of family antics. But as the laughter settles, they reveal their more serious side.

“We would rather do than have,” they agree, as they explain the philosophy that carries them through every experience.

Steve illustrates their principle with an example.

“Say I have a mask worth $750 and was set on selling it,” he said, “then someone will do something special for someone else, and we’ll go give it to him. It means the same thing, whether we got that $750 or we put it into motion with something good happening in the world.”

Guests at the family’s Thanksgiving celebration are sure to get a sense of the Old Coyote way through the artwork and storytelling.

Steve has been carving for 30 years, and his art tell volumes about his past and his present.

While most Northwest Coast carvings are smooth, Steve’s are rough.

“You can see the nicks in them and it reflects his life, where he learned,” said Rita, of Steve’s woodwork.

Steve will regale guests with stories that are guaranteed to entertain, but will also gently teach lessons of compassion, acceptance, and sharing.

“I look at my husband and see a powerful man, whose life has been hard, but in his life he has learned all this compassion,” Rita said. “People listen to him and they hear the message.”

The Old Coyotes feel strongly about spreading the words that they live by.

“I really believe that compassion will be the saving grace of the world,” Rita said.

Although Steve and Rita live with their family in Suquamish, they have partnered with Bainbridge Island Parks for many years to share their cultural classes and performances with the community.

But this is their first time hosting a Thanksgiving celebration, and they are excited.

“I have to admit, I’m a little nervous,” Rita confessed, but her anticipation overshadows any apprehension. She and Steve are particularly looking forward to watching her children and grandchildren participate in the day’s festivities.

“My buttons just pop all over the place when I see them out there singing and dancing,” Rita said.

“I’m so proud.”