With support from the California Arts Council, Tia Chucha’s Centro Cultural will produce the longest-running arts and literacy festival in the Northeast San Fernando Valley: the 19th annual “Celebrating Words Festival–Written, Performed, and Sung”, held in May 2024 at Vaughn Academy for a Global Green Generation (G3)
Through a social justice and transformative healing practice lens, Tia Chucha’s cultivates a growing community of artists with programming that reflect the rich cultures and histories of the NSFV. Tia Chucha’s foundations in ancestral knowledge and Indigenous practices have strongly influenced the organization’s work, emerging programs that encourage participants to explore personal identities and culture while engaging in diverse art disciplines. Current core programs include: the Cultural Arts Series, providing eight to 12 week arts education classes; Trauma to Transformation focuses on providing cultural arts programming to systems impacted youth and adults and takes place in juvenile camps, halls, day reporting centers, prisons, and reentry homes; Indigenous in Us exposes residents to the beauty of community-based Indigenous Native Mexica teachings and practices; Coateca Collective, a culinary arts program for youth and adults, centered on promoting healthy food, culinary options, and exploring self care through cooking; One-time and Major Events consist of open mic nights, creative writing workshops, art exhibitions, film screenings, community marketplaces, an annual Dia de los Muertos workshop series, and Winterlandia, an annual winter arts celebration for families. Since 2005, Tia Chucha’s has hosted the Celebrating Words, the longest-running free annual outdoor literacy & arts festival in the NSFV. Through the independent bookstore, Tia Chucha’s hosts year round literacy-focused programs including a monthly book club, focused on books that challenge systems of oppression in a safe environment, Lil’ Readers, a bilingual and multicultural story hour and activities for families with children ages 0-5, and Author Events, featuring local and nationwide authors whose stories reflect that of our communities.