'We Are Resilient': Denver March Powwow Returns After Being Canceled By COVID

DENVER (CBS4) -- For the first time since the pandemic started, the Denver March Powwow is back in the Mile High City.

"It's been a long two years, so you know, just wanted to come back into the circle, and ya know, at least feel healing," said Trevor Jim, who is Navajo and drove in from New Mexico.

This year the powwow is running from March 18-20 at the Denver Coliseum. For event organizers like Grace Gillette, the time away from the annual event allowed the indigenous community to do some soul searching.

"And so what brought our people through all those years ago, are bringing us through again," said Gillette, who is also the executive director of the powwow.

Throughout the last two years, COVID-19 hit indigenous populations hard, and the recent detection of the BA.2 'stealth omicron' variant in Colorado does have those like Gillette staying vigilant.

"During that time we were not able to come together, to celebrate," she said. "People are now aware that we need to be more careful, as far as sanitizing, you know cleaning up after ourselves."

But despite cases of this variant rising in countries like China, health experts in Colorado aren't too concerned about the new variant.

"With the amount of immunity we have in Colorado, including vaccine immunity, and natural immunity through infection, we're about 90% protected from 1 BA 1 and BA 2," said Dr. Jaya Kumar, the chief medical officer at Swedish Medical Center.

Kumar said currently data shows Colorado has more immunity than areas like China. Our demographics are also different. While the BA 2 variant isn't causing severe illness, medical professionals are closely monitoring it.

"We have to be ready and be ready to pivot when the time comes," Kumar said.

Kumar the best thing people can do is to continue to get vaccinated and boosted, especially if they plan on attending events with large crowds. And regardless of COVID's future, those like Jim and Gillette are continuing to push on.

"We are resilient and we are going to survive this, as well, no matter how many variants come," said Gillette.

The powwow will have a mobile vaccination bus in front of the coliseum throughout the weekend.