The "Txoko
Ona" Basque club inaugurated their clubhouse (June 2007) in splendid
fashion. Invited to attend was NABO president Mary Gaztambide who
provided us the following summary of the event, and then below is a
related story by the Associated Press. Click on
Basque clubhouses
to see them all.
I [Mary Gaztambide, NABO President] had the pleasure to attend the
"Txoko Ona"
Basque Club's (Homedale, Idaho), dedication of their new club center
this last weekend. What an impressive experience it was for me to
see what a group of well organized and dedicated people can accomplish
in such a short time! It was emphasized, that although the
building and the club is situated in Homedale, it is a home and a Club
for anyone interested in joining. Many
Boise
club members, among others, have become members.
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This is the exterior image of
the newly completed Basque clubhouse. "Txoko Ona" means
"good place" and that is what they have in this joint communal
building of 7,600 sq. ft.. that sits on 10 acres. The club
founded in 2000 already counts 300 members. To go the club's
website click on:
Homedale "Txoko Ona" |
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The club was formed in 2000 and four years
later ten acres of land was purchased from the railroad, at about one
fourth of the price it is worth today. Shortly thereafter, the club
members began planning a building that would be suitable to fill all of
their needs, and within two years, with many helping hands involved, the
building is a reality and being enjoyed by many in the Basque Club.
It consists of a large dining or seating
area, a large area with gaming tables and chairs to play cards with an
adjacent bar, a smaller room to serve as a classroom, restrooms, of
course, and a state of the art large kitchen, which I was told, was
requested and planned by the women. Also, is a large covered patio with
tables and chairs, and ample space in back of the building, where large
tents and awnings were placed to serve food and drink, as well as
accommodate venders After an extensive lawn area, where horse shoe pits
have been installed, sits a large amphitheater with a large concrete
floor and a grandstand for spectators, to view performing groups or
accommodate outdoor dances. They still have ample cleared land to build
whatever they see need for in the future; possibly a fronton or
structure to hold large dances.
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The inauguration was the weekend of June
16-17, 2007 that included a Basque dance performance by the
local "Herribatza Dantzariak" (meaning dancers of unified
towns). Photo Idaho Press Tribune. |
Along with the building came the friendly,
hospitable, and proud members who were also serving copious food and
drink to everyone.
Although, it is an enviable Club and
Center, those of us belonging to Basque Clubs, with or without centers,
need to dwell on what togetherness, organization and will can
accomplish! We should all look to them as an example of what is
possible!!
Zorionak
eta suerte on
to the Txoko Ona
Basque Club of Homedale!
Basque
culture spreading in Idaho
By The Associated Press; web source:
seattletimes.nwsource.com
HOMEDALE, Idaho The
imprint of the Basque culture is obvious to many living in the Treasure
Valley region: Boise is home to the nation's only city block of Basque
businesses restaurants, a market and a museum and the state has the
nation's largest population of Basque people.
Now the reach of Basque
culture is growing, with Homedale set to become the site of a new Basque
Center this summer.
A group called Txoko Ona
raised $450,000 to build the 7,500-square-foot center by holding annual
dances over the past several years. The building will include a hall,
classroom, kitchen and patio, and could open as soon as July 4.
The opening ceremony
could draw Basque people from all over Idaho and as far away as Spain,
Txoko Ona group members said.
"I don't think there's a
lot of Basque centers being built within the United States, so it's kind
of a big deal for the Basque community, and even the Basques over in
Spain," Homedale resident Danny Uranga told the Idaho Press-Tribune.
The Basque people have a
long history in Idaho, which became a central location for the Basque
people through a combination of economic and political forces. Lisa
Gabiola's grandfather was one of many Basque people to come to Idaho in
the early part of the last century to herd sheep, buying a farm in the
Caldwell area.
Many Basques left their
home region on the Spanish-French border to seek gold and silver in
California and Idaho in the 1880s. When the precious metals proved
difficult to find, they went to work herding sheep.
"The hope was that they
could make a better life here and then send for their family or send
money back to their families," Gabiola said.
Herding sheep was work
that didn't require knowing English, and the jobs were readily
available, Boise Basque Museum educator Nikki Gorrell said.
Another wave of Basque
people came to the United States beginning in the 1930s, to escape the
regime of Francisco Franco, who made it illegal to speak the Basque
language or practice Basque culture.
In the years since,
Basque people have gone into varied careers, but sheep herding helped
maintain the Basque culture in Idaho. When sheep were sold in the
winter, workers who were no longer needed required a place to stay.
Boarding houses built throughout southwestern Idaho became places where
Basque people could use their own language and traditions. Just four of
the dozens of original boarding houses remain in Boise.
"The Basque haven't
melted into the melting pot quite as much as some other ethnic groups,"
Gorrell said.
Today, Basques and their
descendants work to keep their unique culture alive, with Basque groups
in Caldwell, Homedale, Boise and other nearby cities.
Gabiola said Basques are
very proud to be Americans. But after being denied their culture by
Franco, they became even more protective of it.
"By coming here they had
a chance to bring the language back and bring the culture back without
fear of repercussion," she said.
The new Homedale Basque
center will include space for computer-based Basque language lessons.
The Basque language is ancient and has no known relationship to any
other language.
