This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2008, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
At the center of Shoshone tradition is dance. And Rios Pacheco has spent a large part of his life keeping that heritage alive.
Dance reaches into many aspects of life for American Indians. Among other things, it encompasses spirituality.
For the Shoshone, every living thing has a spirit. And talking to the Great Spirit is an essential part of this life, Pacheco explained. Dance can be included in that communication.
"Individually, it can be spiritual. You start your dance with a prayer, and maybe you include your creator in it."
Pacheco, 53, is the son of a Shoshone mother and a Pueblo father. He grew up in the small town of Perry, south of Brigham City.
After graduating from Box Elder High School, he attended the Institution of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, N.M., where he broadened his understanding of indigenous traditions across the continent.
These days, Pacheco works for the Northwestern Band of Shoshone Tribal Housing Authority, but spends as much time as he can traveling to schools and powwows to show and teach Shoshone tradition.
But for many years, he and his older brother, Louis Alex, traveled the West year-round dancing and selling handmade leather and beadwork goods at celebrations and powwows. His experiences taught him that various American Indian tribes have much in common.
"The main similarity is they all have a belief in the Great Spirit and need to talk to him, no matter what stage of life they're in," he explained.
Many in the Northwestern Band joined the LDS Church in the early 1870s, something that Pacheco, who is a member, sees as complementing American Indian spirituality, rather than replacing it.
"The Shoshone believe you never lose your family," he says, referring to the hereafter. "With the LDS culture, it's the same thing."
- Christopher Smart