The Puget Sound Welsh Association
 
PUGET SOUND WELSH ASSOCIATION MEMBERSHIP
Mailing Address: 
PO Box 19344, Seattle, WA 98109
President: Brian Parry 
(206) 524-0854
History and Mission of PSWA

The Puget Sound Welsh Association:

  • Is dedicated to preserving the history and promoting the heritage of the Welsh in the Puget Sound region and surrounding environs. 
  • Mirroring the contributions on a national level, the Welsh have a long history in the region and have been influential contributors in all aspects of local industry, politics and education.
  • Started as an umbrella group coordinating the activities of the various Welsh clubs in the Puget Sound area.
  • Is moving into the role of organizing and coordinating social events for members, and promoting cultural and intellectual events highlighting Welsh heritage and contributions to the community.
  • Interacts and coordinates activities with the Welsh societies in adjacent localities including Vancouver and Victoria, BC and Portland and Corvallis, OR. 
  • Currently has over 130 members on the active mailing list and a further 500 addresses of interested persons with Welsh backgrounds.
  • Publishes a newsletter, Y Ddolen (The Link), keeping members informed of current activities, both within the Society and in Wales.  Articles discussing aspects of Welsh heritage are often included.
  • The Mission of PWSA recently changed to become more of an organizer of social activities, rather than just an umbrella group. 
Annual events:
Gymanfa Ganu (Gah-mahn vah Gahn-ee), or hymn singing festival, held in early October.

 Continuing the unbroken tradition of the Welsh, dating back to 589 AD, presenting a concert celebrating the life of Dewi Sant (Saint David), the patron Saint of Wales, (Feast Day 1st March).  The concert, usually the first Sunday in March, frequently showcases world-renowned vocal soloists from Wales.

 Welsh Heritage Day at Black Diamond Museum usually held in early June. 

 Participate in the Highland Games Festival at the King County Fair Grounds every August
 
Other Activities:
 Provide financial sponsorship of research and other Welsh activities from the scholarship fund. 

 Sponsorship has included: 

  • Supported a project researching Welsh Pottery.
  • Provided a grant to the Black Diamond Museum for the collection preservation and dissemination of the history of the Welsh in Black Diamond.
  • Financial support to Band y Ddraig Goch to make a CD.
  • Provided scholarship support for a student to attend the University of Wales, Aberystwyth.
  • Granted money to support a compilation and publication of the first part of the oral history of the Welsh in Puget Sound.
Typical Activities:
  • Organized the first and ninth Pacific Northwest Welsh Weekend Festivals in Bothell (1991) and Tacoma (1999).
  • Organized the four-day North American National Welsh Festival in Bellevue in 1994.  Over 1500 Welsh and persons of Welsh descent from all over the USA, Canada and Wales attended.
  • Sponsored concerts by Male Choirs from Wales in 1991, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1998 and 2000.
  • Sponsored concerts by folk music groups from Wales in 1994 (twice), 1996, 1997, 2000, 2002, 2003 and 2006.
  • Sponsored special musical artists from Wales for the annual St David’s Day Concert.
  • Sponsored a seminar speaker at the 2003 North American Festival of Wales, in Richmond, BC and organized the first Welsh Film Festival at a National gathering.
  • Participated in a creating an exhibit "Everyday Americans, the Welsh in Washington State" through a grant from Washington Humanities and the Museum of History and Industry.  The Exhibit will tour museums in Washington State through out  2007.

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