Basque in the joy of annual festival

It's Memorial Day weekend and, in Bakersfield, that means the return of the Kern County Basque Festival. Although the popular gathering doesn't need any extra buzz, this year's event celebrates the 50th festival held at the club on South Union Avenue as well as the 80th anniversary of the local organization itself.

Over three days, the Basque community (and guests) will recognize local honorees, enjoy performances by musicians and athletes from the Basque country as well as local dancers and other groups from throughout the state, a mus tournament, cooking contests and, of course, plenty of food and red wine.

The gathering will also include the annual convention of NABO (North American Basque Organizations), which is held each year at a different Basque festival around the country.

Club president Louis Iturriria said the local group is happy to host the convention and recognize members who have made these gatherings possible.

"The Kern County Basque Club is one of the founding clubs, one of the founding members of NABO. We were actually recognized last year — it was NABO's 50th anniversary — and we were recognized as being one of the founding clubs.

"We are always proud to host different activities for NABO, whether it's their convention or their music camp for youth. Since we have a court at our clubhouse, we can host handball tournaments or pelota tournaments. Mus tournaments — any opportunity we have to host a NABO event we do that. And that wouldn't be possible without members like these who really work hard to make those events here in Bakersfield happen."

Five individuals will be recognized at the 2024 Al Erquiaga Bizi Emankorra, or lifetime achievement award:

? Steve Bass, known as the "historian of the Bakersfield Basques," who was an active member and co-authored the 2013 book "Basques of Kern County":

? Lourdes Iturriria, who has brought her culinary expertise to Basque picnics, NABO Udalekus (youth camps), club events and the Basque booth at the Kern County Fair, as well as serving as a dedicated seamstress for the Basque dance program;

? Marianne Laxague, co-owner of Pyrenees French Bakery who has donated her time and delicious bread for Udaleku meals, various club events and numerous Basque festivals in California in addition to serving the club over the years as an officer, director,and NABO delegate;

? Jenny Maitia Poncetta, who has hosted convention meetings and provided meals for attendees and visiting performers from her family's restaurant Wool Growers in addition to holding roles in the club and as a past dance instructor and dancer in Bakersfield's Basque dance programs; and

? Joxe Recondo, whose strong relationship with pelota organizations in the Basque Country has helped bring handball players to exhibit their talents at clubs in Bakersfield, San Francisco, Chino and beyond, along with his passion for the card game mus, playing in various tournaments.

The awards will be presented Friday at Cal State Bakersfield's Dore Theatre at an event that will also include a performance by Esti Markez Taldez from the Basque Country.

Honorees will also be recognized on Saturday at the club, Iturriria said.

Festivities that night will also include dance performances by the local group and visiting dancers from Chino, San Francisco and Fresno and music by Glitterfox, featuring singer Solange Igoa who is originally from Bakersfield, and returning Basque act Luhartz.

The weekend will also include contests for the best gateau Basque, a dessert, and txerriki, aka pork sausages such as tripota, lukainka and chorizo.

NABO president Jean Flesher said, "Many European cultures have a tradition of killing pigs in wintertime and preserving it so they had food for the whole year. And the Basque also have their typical chorizo sausages and other kinds of sausages, blood sausages and stuff, so it's become a big tradition to have little competitions between different people who make them. ... It's a pretty neat thing that we do every year now at the convention."

Along with gathering to celebrate, Flesher said these events help reinforce the importance of supporting and sustaining the Basque community for future generations.

"We have a strong core group and we're still going strong, so that's why we're trying to at the NABO level create different programs to reinforce that and keep it going for another generation. We have a great example in Argentina, where most of their kids are fifth-generation Basque. Their clubs are doing great and still very strong with lots of members. So that's what we're trying to maybe build on that model or trying to find our own model.

"We need to come up with some programs to get our kids really interested in, and our grandkids, at this point. I mean, our kids are either in it or they're out of it now, but we're still very, very strong in Bakersfield, San Francisco, the L.A. area. We're strong Basque communities."

Dr. Steven Gamboa, who serves as director of the Institute for Basque Studies at Cal State Bakersfield, agrees that a foundation is key. The CSUB program hosts programming each year as well as offers courses in the language (Euskara) and Basque culture at introductory and advanced levels.

Next month, Gamboa will take his first batch of students to study abroad in the Basque country.

The university is also hosting Basque video artist Mikel Otxoteko, who is working with students on a project.

Support at the academic and community levels will continue to help the Basque culture thrive locally and beyond, Gamboa said.

"That generation, the last who came over from the Basque country in Europe, they're all in their 70s and 80s. And so the question is, does a community like this, does it continue, does it endure? And that's what we're trying to make sure that we are, you know, working together to make happen.

"Nothing lasts forever. Eventually everything ends, but if it's something that we value and something that we appreciated growing up and want there for our kids, then, you know, we have to do what we can to work together to make sure that it's still here and still alive and still something they want to be part of."