St. Charles Madras schedules Native Market and free community meal for Nov. 11

MADRAS, Ore. (KTVZ) -- St. Charles Madras will host a Native Market and free community meal on Wednesday, Nov. 11, in recognition of Native American, American Indian and Alaskan Native Heritage Month.

The public event will take place on the St. Charles Madras hospital campus and is open to community members from across Central Oregon.

The celebration will feature more than a dozen local vendors, including artisan vendors from the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs. Attendees will be offered complimentary fry bread tacos and other traditional cultural foods.

The Native Market will be open from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., while the complimentary meal will be served from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

The event is funded through donations to the St. Charles Foundation, starting with an initial gift from Dr. Steve Gordon, the former president and chief executive officer of St. Charles Health System. Gordon created

"Together at the Table," a dedicated St. Charles Foundation fund designed to support an annual community meal. The initiative was inspired by Gordon's experience during the dedication of the hospital's land acknowledgment statement in Madras, where a community meal served more than 400 people.