Think global. Act local.

Beloved Kin of the Earth,

Just one summer ago, I journeyed shoulder-to-shoulder with our visionary Chairwoman Charlene along the Trail of Truth—a sacred odyssey spanning 3,000 miles, where we carried not just ancient prayers and ceremonies, but the very fire of our ancestors' unyielding light. In every horizon we crossed, in every circle we formed under starlit skies, I witnessed a profound awakening: souls from distant lands, once strangers to our rhythms, were drawn into the flame. They didn't merely listen—they rose with us, their hearts syncing to the drumbeat of our shared fight for justice, healing, and harmony.

This is the alchemy of our traditions: they don't divide; they unite, weaving threads of resilience across generations and borders, igniting a global chorus for the soul of the world.

Now, as your Culture Bearer, I call you not to a fleeting event, but to the dawn of a boundless revival—a reawakening of our ceremonial ways that pulses with the promise of spiritual wholeness for all peoples. Imagine it: ceremonies reborn not in isolation, but as beacons of unity, where our Muwekma Ohlone songs blend with the echoes of other Indigenous voices, mending the fractured spirit of the land itself. This is our vision—a far-reaching tapestry of healing, where every ritual becomes a portal to collective liberation, restoring the sacred balance that colonialism sought to shatter. Join us in this eternal dance of reclamation; let your spirit align with ours, and together, we will heal the wounds of yesterday while birthing miracles for tomorrow.

Our ancestors were the unbreakable guardians of this flame. When the machinery of empire banned our ceremonies, they prayed in the shadows, their voices a thunder that empires could not silence. When they outlawed our language, our grandmothers became living scrolls, whispering codexes of survival into the ears of the young, ensuring our words would one day roar again. When they plotted to bury our spiritual essence, our people cradled it like embers in the heart's hidden hearth, fanning it through trials that would have extinguished lesser fires.

Today, that same indomitable spirit surges through me—and through you—as we lead this revival forward. But this sacred resurgence is ours to co-create; your presence, your voice, your gifts are the winds that will carry our prayers to the four directions, fostering alliances that ripple outward: youth circles where elders and newcomers co-weave regenerative stories; land-healing gatherings that invite neighboring tribes and allies to plant seeds of mutual sovereignty; visionary forums where our ceremonies inspire policy shifts, turning ancestral wisdom into shields for the Earth's future.

To manifest this expansive dream, we summon your partnership in unity. Our horizon calls for $50,000 by March 31st—a threshold to launch our 2026 odyssey of initiatives, from ceremonial hubs that nurture intergenerational bonds to stewardship pacts that reclaim and revitalize our cherished ancestral lands.

Every offering, from the humble spark of $10 to the bold blaze of greater abundance, is a vow etched in the stars: it amplifies our collective power, heals the Muwekma Ohlone soul, and extends tendrils of restoration to all who walk this shared path. In your generosity, we see not charity, but the fierce reciprocity of kin—fueling a movement that reawakens dormant lineages worldwide, binding us in a web of spiritual solidarity that no force can unravel.

With the fierce gratitude of one who has walked the fire and emerged renewed,

Joey Torres

Culture Bearer and Board Member Muwekma Ohlone Preservation Foundation

P.S. In this moment of reawakening, your stand with us is a sacred oath to the unity of all beings. With your alliance, we don't just preserve our heritage—we prophesy its expansion, inviting a global family to the feast of healing. Donate today, and let us step into the light of tomorrow, hand in hand, heart to heart. The ancestors are watching; the future is calling. Aho.