Esselen Tribe of Monterey County Autumn Harvest Fundraiser

Individual Ticket $30 / Family Ticket $50

*Please note if you will be joining for dinner from 4-7pm*

*Event is outdoors with cover and will be hosted rain or shine.*

November is Native American Heritage Month, a time to honor the many cultural traditions, histories and contributions of Native people. Heritage Month is an important time to educate and raise awareness about tribes, as well as the challenges Native people have faced, both past and present, and the ways in which they have worked to create effective change. In honor of the local Esselen Tribe of Monterey County, a fundraiser will be hosted as a call to action to raise awareness about the Tribe’s history, traditions and current projects, as well as a celebration of our local community.

In community with local nonprofits, businesses, farms, schools, artists and other community members, the Autumn Harvest Fundraiser for the Esselen Tribe of Monterey County will establish an annual gathering in sustainable community connection through celebration, education and immersive activities highlighting and benefiting the Esselen Tribe of Monterey County (ETMC). The events will bring together many different elements of Monterey County and seek to focus on community collaboration with an emphasis on fundraising for projects and work highlighted by various Tribal members and their community partners. The event will include daytime and evening programming to encourage inclusivity and involve children and adults, as well as sustainable programs and events involving local food, art, craft, education and more. The Autumn Harvest Fundraiser will take place on Sunday, November 20th, 2022 at Hacienda Hay & Feed in Carmel Valley and will be open to ticketed guests from 12-7pm. The Marketplace and daytime programming will run from 12-4pm and a community meal will take place from 4-7pm.

The Esselen Tribe of Monterey County is first and foremost a Tribal Group working toward continuing cultural traditions and preserving the cultural heritage of the historic tribes that are located within Monterey County. The Esselen Tribe of Monterey County is also registered as a Non-Profit Organization and was founded with the goal of continuing cultural traditions and preserving the cultural heritage of the historic tribes that are located within Monterey County, along with protecting and preserving the recognized and unrecognized sacred lands and archeological sites. The Mission of the ETMC is to preserve and to protect cultural heritage and ancestral sacred sites, namely of the Esselen, Rumsen, Chalone, Sureño, Chunchunes and Guatcharrone people, which includes but is not limited to the villages of Achasta, Chalon, Echilat, Ensen, Excelen, Esslenajan, Ixchenta, Jojopan, Kuchun, Pachepas, Sargenta-Ruc, Soccoronda, & Tucutnut, located within sacred pre-historic and historic tribal lands of Monterey County, California.

The daytime event will feature stations and activities set up outdoors around an outdoor kitchen and fire pit with activities that are included in ticket fee. These will include art, crafts, music, movement, floral arrangements, meal preparation, cooking and more. Several talks and activities will be hosted by local organizations and nonprofits, such as Big Sur Land Trust, Carmel River Steelhead Association, Bioneers, Hastings Natural History Reserve and Ventana Wilderness Alliance. In a separate area, there will be an Artist Marketplace, featuring items for sale from local artists and vendors. A percentage of these sales will be donated to the ETMC.

The Tribe will begin the day with an Opening Ceremony, which will be followed by a variety of local musical sets and speakers, as well as an artist marketplace featuring local art and wares. Many activities will be centered around the fire pit and kitchen, as we work towards building a community meal. Small bites will be prepared and offered throughout the day as we work towards a larger dinner preparation. The event will include blessings, prayer and song, as well as floral arranging, decorating, storytelling and more. Potential cooking tutorials and meal preparation will be hosted by local chefs.

After a day of community working together, guests and participants will share in a family-style harvest meal followed by a Closing Ceremony. The evening dinner event will include a silent auction (which runs until 5pm) of locally-donated items. Speakers of the event will include Tribal members and community partners, such as Big Sur Land Trust, Carmel River Steelhead Association, Bioneers, Ventana Wilderness Alliance, Hastings Natural History Reserve. Media during the event to include local photographers and videographers, as well as press. Ticketing for the event will be as follows: Children (Free); Family (Household) Ticket $50; Individual Ticket $30; Volunteers (Free). All donations and proceeds will benefit the Esselen Tribe of Monterey County. Event artwork generously donated by artist Obi Kaufmann.

Esselen Tribe of Monterey County

The Esselen Tribe of Monterey County is first and foremost a Tribal Group working toward continuing cultural traditions and preserving the cultural heritage of the historic tribes that are located within Monterey County. The Esselen Tribe of Monterey County is also registered as a Non-Profit Organization and was founded with the goal of continuing cultural traditions and preserving the cultural heritage of the historic tribes that are located within Monterey County, along with protecting and preserving the recognized and unrecognized sacred lands and archeological sites. The Mission of the ETMC is to preserve and to protect cultural heritage and ancestral sacred sites, namely of the Esselen, Rumsen, Chalone, Sureño, Chunchunes and Guatcharrone people, which includes but is not limited to the villages of Achasta, Chalon, Echilat, Ensen, Excelen, Esslenajan, Ixchenta, Jojopan, Kuchun, Pachepas, Sargenta-Ruc, Soccoronda, & Tucutnut, located within sacred pre-historic and historic tribal lands of Monterey County, California.

Big Sur Land Trust

Big Sur Land Trust is a private non-profit 501(c)(3) governed by a board of trustees, operated by a professional staff and supported by hundreds of members and volunteers. Their work is funded by generous private donations and public conservation funding.

Big Sur Land Trust’s conserved properties include diverse habitats that span rare sensitive dunes in Marina, majestic redwood forests in the Santa Lucia Mountains and in Big Sur, expansive oak woodlands, grasslands, and river corridors form Arroyo Seco to the Gabilan Mountains. And in 2017, we added our first urban site at Carr Lake in Salinas.

Bioneers

Bioneers is an innovative nonprofit organization that highlights breakthrough solutions for restoring people and planet. Founded in 1990 in Santa Fe, New Mexico by social entrepreneurs Kenny Ausubel and Nina Simons, they act as a fertile hub of social and scientific innovators with practical and visionary solutions for the world’s most pressing environmental and social challenges.

A celebration of the genius of nature and human ingenuity, Bioneers connects people with solutions and each other. Their acclaimed annual national conference and local Bioneers Network events are complemented by extensive media production including a vibrant online media presence, award-winning radio and podcast series, book series, and role in third-party media projects such as Leonardo DiCaprio’s movie The 11th Hour and Michael Pollan’s best-selling book The Omnivore’s Dilemma.

Their dynamic programs and initiatives focus on game-changing initiatives related to Restorative Food Systems, Biomimicry, Rights of Nature, Indigeneity, Women’s Leadership and Youth Leadership.

Carmel River Steelhead Association

The mission of the Carmel River Steelhead Association (CRSA) is the restoration and conservation of the federally threatened steelhead fishery on the Carmel River and its watershed. The primary goal is to return the Carmel River watershed to as natural a state as possible so that it will maintain an annual run of adult steelhead in excess of 2,000 fish. One extremely important annual project is the rescue of fingerlings in the lower river and tributaries as water dries up in the summer. Since the organization’s formation, CRSA members have volunteered an average of 500 hours per year and rescued approximately 10,000 young steelhead per year. These tiny fish are put in the lagoon or areas of the river where there is a chance for survival.

Since its founding in 1974 the CRSA has accomplished much to benefit the native steelhead of the Carmel River.

Hastings Natural History Reserve

Hastings is a Biological Field Station of the University of California, Museum of Vertebrate Zoology (MVZ) and Natural Reserve System. It provides provide the wildlands and facilities to conduct university and graduate level studies of natural systems in the upper Carmel Valley, Monterey County, California. An area of about 2,500 acres, Hastings was set aside in 1937 to be managed with minimal disturbance. In 1971, Hastings was added to the UC Systemwide Natural Reserve System.

Ventana Wilderness Alliance

The mission of the Ventana Wilderness Alliance is to protect, preserve, and restore the wilderness qualities and biodiversity of the public lands within California's northern Santa Lucia Mountains and Big Sur coast.

Shylah Ray Sunshine

An Algonquin native of Canada, Shylah Ray Sunshine is an award-nominated influential vocalist, musician, mother, and Soul Voice Singing coach. Coming from humble roots, she dreamed of becoming a pop star and began her self-taught journey of singing, piano, and percussion at a young age.

Shylah’s musical sound and style are a blend of Neo-Soul, R&B, Blues, and Hip-hop, enrapturing audiences with her gospel-like voice, sensual tones, and ultra-moving lyrics. Inspired by her lifelong idols Whitney Houston, Lauryn Hill, Fela Kuti, and Bob Marley, Shylah’s music is most frequently compared to and influenced by the vocal style and spiritual deliverance of Alicia Keys and Erykah Badu.