The Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe’s 4th Annual Leech Lake Days kicked off today, with a variety of activities for families to celebrate culture and the Leech Lake community.

There were many smiling faces out at Cass Lakes Veterans Memorial Pow Wow grounds this afternoon, as many families came out to celebrate Leech Lake Days, which is only just the kick-off to Leech Lake’s biggest pow wow event of the year.

There were about 97 different registered booths set up with a variety of information and interactive activities, ranging from tribal programs, local city projects, State Representatives, and even environmental services.

Other activities included bean bag tournaments, fry-bread eating contests, bed racing, stick games, hand-drum contests, and, of course, the inflatable bouncy houses.

Setting aside the fun activities, the whole idea behind this annual event is really about joining the Cass Lake community in both a fun and safe place for families young and old to celebrate being apart of the Leech Lake area.

Leech Lake Days will continue until Sunday, June 26th. The Pow Wow, along with other activities, will take place on Saturday, June 25th starting at 10 am until 7 pm. Sundays events will take place from 10 am to 5 pm. More event information can be found on the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe’s website.

By — Emma Hudziak