
The Muckleshoot Easter Weekend Sla-Hal celebration returned to the White River Amphitheatre April 3–5, bringing together families, players, and visitors from across Indian Country for a weekend of community and competition.
Throughout the weekend, the grounds were filled with songs, laughter and visiting as families gathered around the games and spent time together. Saturday’s main stick game tournament drew large crowds as teams competed for cash prizes, while open games continued throughout the weekend.
Sla-Hal, also known as the stick game or bone game, has been played by the Muckleshoot people and other Coast Salish Tribes since time immemorial. Long before modern casinos, the game was one of the earliest traditional forms of gambling among Native people and continues to bring communities together.
Topping things off was Sunday morning’s Easter egg hunt, which brought smiles to all the youth.
Photos from the weekend captured moments of competition, celebration and families enjoying time together during another successful Easter Weekend Sla-Hal gathering.
On September 30, 2026, the Muckleshoot community gathered in solidarity and reflection at the annual Every Child Matters Dinner, an evening dedicated to honoring the survivors of residential and boarding schools.
Muckleshoot Indian Tribe employees took to the field on Sept. 28 for a softball game. The GS-Cemetery department came away with the win.
"[Columbus'] very own words defending and justifying his rule of cruelty and its root economy directly based in the human trafficking of young Indigenous children and girls… even in his own time, his acts were seen as evil and heinous..."
Muckleshoot Tribal Vice Chairman John Daniels Jr. joined community members, project partners, and local leaders Oct. 15 in Seattle for the groundbreaking of Rainier Rising Early Learning Center, and the Mount Baker Redevelopment.
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