Maypole, magic and community: Pagan holiday Beltane returns to Spokane

The Children of the Crossroads Coven of Spokane is hosting its annual Community Beltane celebration Saturday at Friendship Park, 606 E. Greta Ave. Beltane is a pagan holiday celebrated by various non-Abrahamic religions, including Wicca.

Lola Stardust, the high priestess and founder at the Crossroads Coven, explained that Beltane functions as a Gaelic May Day, offering a moment to welcome in the upcoming summer months with an implication of the seasonal deities that are worshiped in the Wiccan religion.

“It’s celebrating the unification of the god and the goddess coming together and creating life,” Stardust said.

“It’s a great celebration of life and the great weather with the change of the season,” Stardust said.

This year’s festivities include the Maypole dance, several vendors and a variety of workshops. Stardust will be leading a workshop on movement, while another woman who specializes in symbology and animal communication will be leading one of her own.

Stardust said this event isn’t exclusively for those who practice Wicca.

“We do this in a public park,” Stardust said. “So when people come by and ask what we’re doing, we want to be very welcoming to them. You don’t have to be a witch to celebrate with us.”

Fiona Greenwood, one of the members of the Beltane planning committee, is looking forward to being reunited with fellow witches during Beltane.

“I love when the community comes together,” Greenwood said. “Life is often very busy. Beltane is often one of the only times I get to see all my friends.”

Greenwood’s hope for the Beltane festival is that all participants, whether they’re returning to Beltane or attending the celebration for their first time, have an experience they are able to take something tangible from.

“My biggest goal is for people to have a very magical experience,” Greenwood said.