On July 30th, Blue Lake Rancheria (BLR) held the annual Elder’s Summer BBQ. Elders came by to mingle, enjoy a delicious meal, connect, and learn. Debbora Winkle, BLR Title VI Nutrition Director put together this event and provided the delicious meals. After arriving, guests enjoyed refreshments, mingled with BLR Staff, and were able to stock up on produce provided by Grace Poitras, BLR Garden Manager, and CAL Recycle Compost Interns Andrew Sorenson, Isabella Evenson, Keith Flores, and Olivia Fox, who picked the produce fresh from the Daluviwi’ community garden.
United Indian Health Services gave a presentation on Medicare and the assistance that they can provide for individuals, including transportation assistance and a parent aid program. After this presentation, Karley Rojas, BLR Native Plant Specialist, and Ysabelle Yrad, BLR Sustainability Specialist gave a presentation announcing an upcoming Soap Root & Acorn Brush Workshop at BLR on August 26th (More information coming soon). The last presentation involved Vineyard Offshore representatives Jaclyn Robinson, West Coast Tribal Lead, Lucia Ordonez, West Coast Fisheries Liaison, and Erik Peckar, West Coast Director of External Affairs speaking about offshore wind.
“The Vineyard Offshore California Team was deeply honored to have had the opportunity to participate at the BLR Elder’s Luncheon. We enjoyed spending time with the participants and listening to their concerns in regards to the proposed Offshore Wind Farm 20 miles off the coast of Humboldt. Vineyard Offshore recognizes the importance of working with the local Tribal Nations who may be potentially impacted by our project to ensure their concerns are addressed and work together to provide solutions. We appreciate the relationship we share with Blue Lake Rancheria and their amazing staff and look forward to partnering with BLR in the future.” –Jaclyn Robinson, West Coast Tribal Lead, Vineyard Offshore
After the presentations, guests enjoyed some fresh burgers and chili, served by BLR Staff. A raffle was held after lunch, and everybody ended up a winner! Special thanks to Kathy Chase from The Bead Lady for donating some native design hats, and to Vineyard Offshore for donating several of the raffle prizes and two beautiful custom cakes for the event. Following the BBQ, the Vineyard Offshore representatives toured the Daluviwi’ community garden and got to pick some fresh bouquets from the blooming fields of flowers.
Originally Published: 8/9/2025