Thanksgiving at the reservation for the Poarch Band of Creek Indians looks to be a popular destination next Thursday as the sovereign nation will host its 41st annual Thanksgiving Pow Wow.

The Pow Wow will feature a lineup much like last year’s with contests including the exciting Warriors Tournament as well as the crowning of the crowning of the Indian Princesses.

The Warriors Tournament is like the dance contest, but pits one-on-one match ups in the arena in a bracket style tournament.
The intense style of the tournament along with the spirit of the competitors will make it an event that “wows” the crowd, PCI planning and events coordinator Clayton Coon said.

“Our Warriors Tournament will wow people,” he said. “It’s a great tournament that pays a lot of money. It’s like a basketball tournament in how the brackets are set up, but it pits dancers against one another. It’s a really big deal at our Pow Wow. There will be dancers from all over the United States and Canada as well.”

Other contests at the Pow Wow include the dance contest where contestants may only enter one category. In the dance contest, contestants are allowed to move up an age category with the exception of the senior adult category. Contestants in the senior adult category are allowed to move down into the adult categories and they are the only contestants allowed to move down.

The drum contest features a first-place prize of $5,000 and teams must have a minimum of five singers in the group.

Several events at the Pow are still being planned at this time with information to be released soon, according to the Web site set up for the event.

The event expects to draw a large crowd for the Pow Wow that entertains thousands each year, Coon said.

“It’s pretty much the same great Pow Wow that we hold every year,” he said. “Weather permitting, we expect to have a great crowd from all around the country to come out.”

The 41st annual Thanksgiving Pow Wow will begin next Thursday from 10 a.m. until 11 p.m. and continue on Friday from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m.

General admission is $10 for adults ages 18 and up and $5 for children ages seven to 17. For two-day wristbands, it is $15 for adults ages 18 and up and $7 for children ages seven to 17. No pets, alcohol, weapons of ice chests allowed.

For more information visit www.poarchcreekindians.org to see event schedules for the Pow Wow.