Soap Lake Sundial Washington

SOAP LAKE — Hot, sunny weather bathed what’s being touted as “The World’s First Human Figure Sundial,” during its dedication in Soap Lake before an estimated 400 people Saturday.
The ceremony at the city’s East Beach Park was a culmination of 15 years of work by volunteers from the Soap Lake Garden Club.
The goal of the $500,000 project was to create something lasting for the world, not for one single person or group, explained Raymond Gravelle, the club’s sculpture project manager.
The project will also bring attention to the “healing waters” of Soap Lake, drawing people from all over the world, he said.
Soap Lake has long been known for its “healing waters” because of the high mineral content in the lake, which attracted World War I soldiers to the area seeking a cure for Buerger’s disease.
The area was also known as a mineral spa during the end of the 1800s, according to Soap Lake’s Web site.
Saturday was a day of celebration and a day of reconciliation.
It was the first time the Colville Confederated Tribes participated in a city event since they were asked not to return in the 1960s, Gravelle said
Gravelle said they were thrown out of town because of rowdiness and unruliness, but there are many stories about what transpired.
“They told me they felt so welcome as a result of this event,” Gravelle said during an interview. “I really think that 30-year reconciliation was the highlight of what happened.”
Deb Louie, of the Colville Confederated Tribes, said he didn’t know the reason why and remembered visiting the area as a child.
Louie also recalled being asked by an old woman to fill jugs of Soap Lake water to take home.
Being young, he didn’t ask the significance of the action, but learned the tribes used the water for certain things, he said.
Today, Louie said he thinks they can bring people together to Soap Lake once more by working in conjunction with the tribes.
Project artist David Govedare, of Chewelah, Wash., said he was “grateful the tribe has come here to acknowledge this. There’s no words to express that. We’re glad you’re back.”