Cashmere Library splashes into Founders’ weekend with annual Family Fun Fair and Salmon Release

CASHMERE- As part of the 2024 Founders’ Days celebrations, the Cashmere Public Library is gearing up for its biggest Fun Fair and Salmon Release yet.

For the last six years, the Library has partnered with Cascade Fisheries and the US Fish and Wildlife Service to infuse Founders’ Days with a bit of educational fun in the form of a Salmon Release event centered around teaching kids about Cashmere’s unique local environment. For free, any kid can participate, name a salmon fry, and release it into the Wenatchee River.

Each year, the salmon release is accompanied by a ‘fun fair,’ a collection of partnered booths that provide fun activities and interactive experiences for families. 

Cashmere Branch Librarian, Lisa Lawless, described the fantastic growth that the Fun Fair has seen in the past years, saying, “Our first year, we just had like three or four booths, you know? And this year, we have like 26 booths. So it’s really grown quite a bit.” 

On top of the massive Fun Fair planned for the event, the Library is also anticipating a healthy crop of salmon fry, meaning more opportunities for kids to name their own fry and release it by hand. 

Lawless detailed the success of this year’s salmon crop and excitement for this year’s release, explaining, “Last year, our crop wasn’t very healthy… so we didn’t have as many to share around. But this year, we have a really good crop. I think we’ve got over one hundred salmon fry to release. So I hope we have a big turnout.”

Lawless also made an important note about the origins of the salmon fry, mentioning, “[they] come from the Yakama Nations, and I think [members of the Yakama Nations] will be down there with us this year. So we’re grateful that we can have a partnership with them to be able to have these salmon fry and, in partnership with the Yakama Nations, raise cultural awareness and bring their history into our future Family Fun Fair and Salmon Release program.” 

As the original Washingtonians, the Indigenous communities of the Yakama Nations play critical roles in helping locals understand the ecosystem and the complex effects that humans can have on it. Lawless further explained the importance of working with the Yakama Nations, making a crucial point, “I really like to involve more of the Indigenous community in what we’re doing because, really, they’re the original founders… I feel that they should be a big part of it.”

Overall, Lawless expressed her enjoyment in organizing the Family Fun Fair and Salmon Release program, sharing, “We enjoy it, and I love bringing this to the community every year. And I love that the foundation of it is our salmon release program. So it helps because it’s so great to help educate young kids about the environment and how to keep it healthy.” 

The Fun Fair booths open on June 29 at 10 a.m., and the Salmon Release is scheduled to kick off with an interactive story time at 11 a.m. All participation is completely free. 

For more information on the upcoming Family Fun Fair and Salmon Release, contact Cashmere Branch Librarian, Lisa Lawless, at (509) 782-3314 or LLawless@ncwlibraries.org

Will Nilles: (509) 731-3211 or will@ward.media