SEATTLE (July 12, 2024)—The annual Salmon Homecoming event held every September on the Seattle waterfront will be cancelled for 2024.

The board of directors for the Salmon Homecoming Alliance, which hosts the event, made the announcement this week.

“The board had to make the hard decision to cancel this year’s event, in large part to ongoing construction happening in downtown Seattle,” said Justin Parker, board president of the Salmon Homecoming Alliance.

The restricted accessibility to Pier 62 on the waterfront and difficult logistics made it hard to justify the planning to ensure a successful event, he said.

The celebration honors the fall return of salmon to the Pacific Northwest while sharing Native American culture with the public through traditional celebrations and environmental education activities. It also emphasizes the importance of salmon to the region and how the health of salmon populations is connected to everyone.

The three-day event normally takes place in mid-to-late September with a two-day educational component at the Seattle Aquarium on Thursday and Friday for about 1,000 4th and 5th graders from regional schools. On Saturday, there is typically a public event with a canoe welcoming, pow-wow, cultural presentations and a salmon and fry bread meal.

While the public event will not happen in 2024, the Seattle Aquarium will work with schools throughout the year to bring students to the aquarium and engage in Salmon Homecoming-related activities.

“The Seattle Aquarium is excited to provide opportunities for school groups visiting the Aquarium to learn about the importance of salmon culturally and in terms of our ecosystem, in support of the Aquarium’s mission of inspiring conservation of our marine environment,” said Darcie Larson, member of the Salmon Homecoming Alliance board.

The board plans to resume the usual celebration next year.

“We look forward to planning a good event for September 2025,” Parker said.

The Salmon Homecoming Alliance is a 501(c)3 nonprofit foundation established to organize, plan, develop and facilitate programs and events associated with Salmon Homecoming. Board members represent a variety of governments, associations, foundations, and industries. The nonprofit’s objectives are to provide opportunities for tribal and non-tribal communities to come together in a positive atmosphere, learn from one another, and explore ways to support the cooperative spirit in salmon restoration and protection.

For more information:

 Justin Parker, Board President, Salmon Homecoming Alliance – jparker@nwifc.org

Darcie Larson, Board member and School Days contact, Salmon Homecoming Alliance – D.Larson@seattleaquarium.org

Download a PDF of the announcement here FINAL – Salmon Homecoming 2024 cancelled (PDF).