Indian Camp to Focus on Customs

Native American customs and folklore are the focus of a new weeklong program, Indian Summer Camp, at Mission San Juan Capistrano.

Designed and led by Jacque Nunez, a descendant of the local Juaneno Band of Mission Indians, the five-day session set to start Monday will feature hands-on activities for children 7 to 14 years old.

“I feel it’s important that children learn about the indigenous people here,” Nunez said. Besides, she said, “it really is a fun-filled experience.”

At the camp, children will learn songs and dances; make candlesticks, clapper sticks and gourds; build shelters; and learn tribal skills such as basket weaving and rock painting.

Nunez and guest instructors from Southern California tribes, including the Gabrielino Mission Indians, Cahuilla Nation and Chumash, also will introduce students to trades, games and activities from their respective cultures.

In addition, participants will take a field trip to San Juan Creek. As “Keepers of the Earth,” the youngsters will pick up trash along the creek and do some planting to improve the area.

Nunez was a teacher in the Capistrano Unified School District and performer at Disneyland before she started her educational program four years ago.

A ninth-generation Rios descendant, the San Juan Capistrano resident offers an educational and cultural program to student groups year-round at the mission.

Dressed in native attire of fur, a grass skirt and shell necklaces, Nunez delighted a group of students from San Juan Elementary School recently with her Indian tales and songs about life in Orange County 300 years ago.

One participant, 8-year-old Joenel Garcia, led students in a dance with help from Nunez. He declared the experience to be great fun. “I liked the beat,” he explained.

Indian Summer Camp costs $95 for each child for the week. The program also will be offered July 28 through Aug. 1 and Aug. 4 through 8.

Information: (714) 248-2049.