A Place of Peace : Chumash Cultural Center Promotes Understanding, Love for Land

With the sweet smell of smoldering sage wafting through the air, Chumash ceremonial leader Mati Waiya lifted a giant conch shell to his lips and blew four deep, sustained blasts.

“This is a place where elders, children and all people seeking direction can find peace in their hearts,” he said. “This is a place to learn.”

Waiya spoke to an audience of about 150 people at Sunday’s dedication of the Native American Indian Cultural Center at Satwiwa, just south of Newbury Park in the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area.

As he spoke, he waved eagle feathers over an abalone shell filled with burning sage in a ritual to purify and bless the newbuilding.

The dedication of the 1,300-square-foot, solar-powered cultural center was timed to coincide with the summer solstice, an important event in Native American lore. The center, which cost about $300,000, was created to promote understanding and respect among Native Americans and residents of Southern California.

Once complete, before the month is out, the building will display artifacts, Chumash art and other educational items to help people learn about Native Americans in general and the Chumash in particular. In addition, the center will host lectures and discussions. The site includes an ap, the traditional Chumash hut made of willow reeds.

The new building, which was begun in March, is expected to be fully operational next month.

“Satwiwa has become a major interpretive center and a destination for park visitors from around the world,” said Scott E. Erickson, acting superintendent for the recreation area.

Marilyn Sutton of Moorpark, who attended the morning ceremony, said she was pleased to have a place to learn about Native Americans from the area.

“Every culture should have some representation so we can learn about it,” she said. “This is a place where that can happen.”

Over the last eight years, Satwiwa--which means “the bluffs” in Chumash--has been the site of several powwows, or spiritual gatherings.

The rolling hills of Satwiwa, now covered in golden native grasses, were once slated for a massive residential development. But in 1982, the National Park Service purchased the land to prevent it from being bulldozed to make way for more than 600 homes.

A few years later, the first cultural center opened inside a small ranch house there, a stone’s throw from the new site.

Speakers and visitors praised the decision to preserve the land.

“We have the responsibility to care for this land because our dead are buried here. And now many of you have your dead buried here too,” Mati Waiya said to an audience that included many local residents. “We must all care for the land.”

Chumash Chief Charlie Cooke also spoke of his reverence for the land.

“It’s important for all people to come here and get in touch with Mother Earth. We are all made of dirt, nothing more.”

As children ran in and out of the ap near the new cultural center, adults in the audience reflected on the chief’s words.

“It’s important to learn how to coexist with your environment,” said Renee Barron of Alhambra. “So much land has been ruined by overdevelopment.”

Debbie Harlander of Venice said she too enjoyed the open space around the new center.

“It’s truly a place of peace,” she said. “I think I’ll be here quite often.”