Cher-Ae Heights Indian Community of the Trinidad Rancheria
Native Californian arts and culture
The Cher-Ae Heights Indian Community of the Trinidad Rancheria is a federally recognized tribe with ancestral ties to the Yurok, Wiyot, Tolowa, Chetco, Karuk, and Hupa peoples. While they share similar cultural and historical traditions, each tribe has a distinct heritage. The Rancheria, just southeast of the town of Trinidad, is within the aboriginal territory of the Yurok peoples and is located in an area of great cultural significance to the Trinidad Rancheria and other local tribal entities.
The mission of the Cher-Ae Heights Indian Community of the Trinidad Rancheria is to preserve and promote our cultural and traditional beliefs; improve quality of life and self-sufficiency; uphold tribal sovereignty; create positive partnerships; and protect the environment in order to provide a healthy community, honor our elders, and guide our youth.
In 2012, the Cher-Ae Heights Indian Community of the Trinidad Rancheria received a grant from ACTA’s Living Cultures Grants Program to support offering basket weaving classes in the Yurok language, in partnership with the Yurok Elders Wisdom Preservation Project. Baskets play a vital role in the local traditional community’s way of life including ceremony, food gathering and preparation, health practices, and natural resource management. Women learning and continuing to uphold this tradition is of fundamental importance in the continuance of culture. The classes are designed to provide a forum for sharing this important women’s tradition by those who have ancestral ties within the territory of the Rancheria.