They exceeded their goal, raising enough additional money to give $50,000 to the Symphony to help establish the Seattle Opera, as well as $15,000 to the Council on Aging and $1,000 to the Seattle Chorale. The group was founded in 1963 to hold an auction to retire the US$35,000 debt accumulated by the Seattle Symphony's critically successful performance of Verdi's Aida at the 1962 Seattle World's Fair, the Century 21 Exposition. Janet True, president of the PONCHO board, has indicated that the gala auction will probably be replaced by something parallel to New York City's Tony Awards. However, over the years, the gala auction slowly ceased to be profitable and will not occur after 2008, being replaced by smaller art and wine auctions. The poncho continues to be a hugely popular item of clothing and its journey from South America to the west is certainly complete.The Patrons of Northwest Civic, Cultural and Charitable Organizations ( PONCHO) is a non-profit corporation in Seattle, Washington, whose annual fund-raising auction has long played a significant role in funding the arts in Seattle. Ironically, even though in history only males were permitted to wear the more lavish designs of ponchos, it seems that modern women are now taking their revenge by wearing colorful, bright and extraordinarily intricately patterned ponchos during the colder months. Ponchos have also been drawn to public attention when worn by well-known faces for example, the actor Clint Eastwood famously wore a poncho in the 1964 film A Fistful of Dollars and more recently the former President George Bush donned a traditional Peruvian poncho alongside the then Japanese Prime Minister and South Korean President at the Asian Pacific Economic Cooperation in 2008.

The Mexican poncho has two distinct styles: Although the poncho was previously a traditional clothing item born out of the necessity to keep warm and protect the body from harsh weather conditions while still having the freedom of movement to continue working comfortably, it is now more frequently worn as a fashion accessory and can be found in the majority of style outlets. This colorful cloth is widely considered an iconic symbol of Mexico. Having been worn by their people for hundreds of years, the poncho is also closely linked to Mexican culture in the form of the Sarape with pre-Hispanic and Iberian motifs. Popular among women of all ages and produced in a range of designs and fabrics, the poncho is one of the must-haves in the fashion world. Fashion item: ponchos are a prominent style piece during autumn and winter in western countries. A garment based on the poncho was even used as raincoats for US troops during the Civil War. Rain expulsion: thin polyethylene waterproof cloaks in the poncho shape are worn to protect against the rain. The poncho also held connotations of power among the Mapuche population the stepped-diamond motif (see left image) was considered to be a sign of authority and was often only worn by older men, leaders and the heads of the paternal lineage in families. The poncho itself is made by slitting a hole in a length of fabric which is then placed around the neck, allowing the material to drape over the shoulders.

Although there is contention as to the exact origin of the garment, it was the Mapuche who spread what we know today as the poncho throughout Spain and Latin America.The Mapuche are highly-skilled weavers and fashioned a number of items as well as ponchos, including headbands, dresses and shawls. The Mapuche people historically occupied half of the territory we know today as Chile and Argentina, but their presence has significantly declined and they now occupy about 10% and 0.004% of the Chilean and Argentine populations respectively. One of these indigenous populations has formed the largest group of Indians in South America, which once stood at almost 1.5 million at the beginning of the 21st Century. Popular among all the people that have lived along the Andes the poncho is also a very important cultural icon for some indigenous people. Although the origin of the word poncho is not clear it is believed to come from the Quechua puchu or Mapudungun pontro. The poncho, a well-known sleeveless garment with unsewn sides and a space for the head to pass through, has its origins in South America along the Andes Mountains.

Poncho meaning