Among her many accomplishments, Juanita “Jay” Uberuaga Hormaechea is credited with teaching the first Basque traditional dancing classes in the United States. Jay’s lifelong commitment to her heritage is recognized as one of the cornerstones of continuing Basque culture in the United States.
Angie Kearns Blain, a founder of the Boise State University Women’s Center, shares her praise of Jay’s teaching style which combined dance instruction with culture and music, saying “you could see how the image of the Basque dancers being put on public display was really advantageous to creating this very positive, artful, identity of Basque people.”
The Basque Museum & Cultural Center’s Juanita Uberuaga Hormachea collection provides a valuable snapshot into the many years of Basque influence in the Boise area during Jay’s lifetime. She collected and scrapbooked information regarding Basques, including newspaper articles, photos, wedding invitations, obituaries, festival programs, activities, and accomplishments. Both Jay and her legacy are true Basque treasures.
This collection has been entirely digitized and portions of it are available on our website for research. If you would like to see an entire album, please call the Basque Museum & Cultural Center to make arrangements to come and view one of the high resolution discs.
Click below to view some samples from this collection:
