As the rural community of Gunnison in Sanpete County, Utah, celebrated its 150th anniversary over the Fourth of July weekend, 96 children ranging in age from 2 to 17 brought history to life through song, art and their own words.

The Gunnison sesquicentennial celebration kicked off with a performance on July 3 titled "Making History," with more than 300 members of the community in attendance. The performance was the culmination of a week studying musical performance, visual arts, and creative writing under the direction of members of the Inouye family.

The Inouye family created the Inouye Institute for the Arts three years ago to honor the passing of Charles and Bessie Inouye. They came to this small agricultural community from Heart Mountain, Wyoming, where they met and married while incarcerated in the Japanese relocation camp there during World War II.



Making a home among the Mormons, Charles and Bessie Inouye farmed, raised a family, and eventually embraced The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and the values that resonated well with the family's ties to Pure Land Buddhism.

This year, in conjunction with the Gunnison sesquicentennial, the theme of the camp was "Remembering the past." The songs and dances in the performance incorporated the stories of some of Gunnison's founders, such as Louisa Mellor, who was a member of the Martin Handcart Company. For example, two students, Ten-year-old Paydenne Mortensen and 8-year-old Tiandra Taylor read letters they had written to and from Louisa:

Dear Louisa,
I am 7. My name is Paydenne. I live in Gunnison and I have a problem.
I stay up til 2:00 in the morning waching movies and I need to go to
sleep! Please help me.
Love,
Paydenne

Dear Payden,
I walked across the country. And I was all ways tired. So
maybe you should walk a cross the contry too and then you'll be tired.
So then you can go to sleep. And if you don't go to sleep fall a sleep
some were ells.
Love,
Louisa

By writing letters to ancestors and responding in their ancestors' voices, the children were able to make a personal connection to the past.

"Extended family ties and reciprocity are very important within both the Buddhist and Mormon traditions," said Mie Inouye. "In this sense, the camp is a product of our family's religious background."

"So the camp provides the opportunity of giving back to the community and gathering to work together as a family on a common project," Melissa Inouye said.

Camp Director Mika Inouye remembers her grandfather's emphasis on community. "Grandpa thought community was really important and that it was important to know where you and the people around you came from. He told us that he had read the Book of Mormon during his early years in Richfield, long before he joined the church, because he wanted to understand the people he lived with."

Each summer, more than two dozen members of the extended Inouye family return to Gunnison from Idaho, Massachusetts, California, Washington, D.C. and Hong Kong to remember their ancestors and to provide a week of classes for the youths of the community.

The curriculum has gradually expanded to include a college prep course to meet the needs of older students. Kara Reisner, one of the students in the College Prep class this year, said, "I know my reading improved and now I feel I can take a real ACT and not be scared to death."