Savor the Salt is a free celebration of the Great Salt Lake happening at Millcreek Common on Thursday, Oct. 10 from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. on the sixth floor of Millcreek’s city hall building.

The Great Salt Lake is a unique and vital part of our state and community events like Savor the Salt hope to open our minds to find creative ways to save our lake.

“Saving the Great Salt Lake is not a science problem, it is a value problem. To change people’s paradigm or perspective, you do it through storytelling, art, music or mediums that change your heart,” said Elder Darren Parry of the Shoshone tribe and former chairman of the Northwestern band of Shoshone Nation. 

Parry is an author, storyteller, public speaker and educator. He currently teaches indigenous perspectives to the environment at the University of Utah and will be speaking at Savor the Salt.

“Native Americans have a relationship with water, we consider it like a relative. My grandmother, Mae Timbimboo Parry, always called the Great Salt Lake my other grandmother and when you look at water or land as a relative and not a commodity, you treat it differently,” Parry said.

“My grandmother would take me on plant walks on the island and show me which plants were edible and the ones that were used for medicine and so I grew up looking at things through a different lens. When we would leave the island, we would sing a healing song to make sure our grandmother, the lake, would be healthy.”

The Shoshone people have a long history with the lake. They believed the lake had healing powers and they harvested salt on the north end of the lake and used the salt to preserve food and even traded the salt with other tribes. 

“I saw the lake when it was too full and I have seen all kinds of levels throughout my life. We are in a sad place now with the lake,” Parry said.

“We can give people the facts and data all day on how to save the Great Salt Lake but we need to incorporate values into our decisions. As long as we value the development that is taking water from the tributaries that feed the lake then there will continue to be less water going to the Great Salt Lake.”

“What gives me hope is the groups that are focused on saving the lake and the youth of today. So many people out there are advocating so I think the lake will be OK,” Parry said. 

“Events like this make your heart feel and when you feel you act,” Parry said. “People are paying attention now. It is not too late but we still have some work ahead but we have got to save it!” 

Parry will be speaking at Savor the Salt and will share the creation story of how the Shoshone people came to be. He will also be singing the healing song his grandmother taught him many years ago.

There will be live music from local bands Rodeo Bones and The Sandman Blues Band performing at the event along with special guests and food.  λ