Latest News Updates
Latest News Updates
The proclamation was presented to community members and Chumash Tribal Council representatives — Matthew Vestuto, Eza Lopez, and Mal Lopez — in recognition of their dedication to highlighting and safeguarding cultural identity through language.
The City of Port Hueneme proclaimed February 21, 2025, as “International Mother Language Day,” underscoring the importance of preserving and celebrating our diverse linguistic heritage.
The Living Legacy of the Chumash People
The Chumash have lived alongside the winds, tides, and oak-strewn hills of what is now know as California’s Central Coast and Channel Islands since time immemorial. We have rich cultural heritages that gift us with teachings of our languages, ecology, basketry, foods, watercrafts, and so much more.
The ocean has a special place in our Chumash cultures. We are master tomol builders — navigating the oceans in plank canoes crafted with loving care—to trade, gather, and connect across islands and mainland shores.
The land is our relative. We honor xutaš (Mother Earth) and shape our lives around her rhythms. We gather with gratitude, hunt with humility, and offer our songs to the sun and sea. Villages were vibrant centers of storytelling, artistry, and spiritual ceremony, all woven into a deep stewardship of the land.
Our contributions are measured in balance—maintaining ecosystems, tending oak groves, managing fire, and passing down generations of ecological wisdom.
We are reclaiming our ancestral gifts. We Chumash people are still here, still listening to the wind, still protecting the sacred. Lulapin Chumash Foundation is dedicated to facilitates Chumash cultural education and community connection.
Strengthening our community.
The Lulapin Chumash Foundation is a big-tent, Chumash-led, non-profit serving the various tribal bands as well as unaffiliated Chumash individuals and families.
We are dedicated to building an empowered and healthy community through education/events, economic development and ecological stewardship.
Echoes From the Land and Sea
Beyond the Boat Ride - Stories from the island that Stay With You
