Information provided by Indigenous Nations Diversity Network. Lea este artículo en español aquí.

On Saturday, August 29, the Pavilion at Bolado Park becomes a runway. Indigenous Nations Diversity Network (INDN), San Benito County’s only year-round Indigenous cultural programming organization, in partnership with Youth Alliance, presents The Indigenous Fashion Show Gala from 3 to 9 p.m. at 9000 Airline Highway, Tres Pinos: an evening of Indigenous fashion, live performance, food, and community celebration. Tickets are $90 per person and on sale now through Eventbrite. Tables of ten are on sale now for businesses and organizations.

INDN is honored to welcome special celebrity guest actor Gregory Zaragoza (Akimel Oʼodham), known for Yellowstone, Tulsa King, and Broadway’s Macbeth. Zaragoza will walk the runway alongside a lineup of VIP models including San Benito County Supervisor Angela Curro, Youth Alliance Executive Director Diane Ortiz, Poppy Jasper International Film Festival Director Mattie Scariot, Hollister City Councilmember Rudy Picha, Andres Rodriguez, Jeanine Riddle, Lizett Rodriguez Peña, Michelle and John McKay, Cihuapilli Rose Amador LeBeau, Sally Armendariz, and Chrissy Reyes, among others.

The runway is directed by Jose “Hands” Lopez (Hopland Band of Pomo Indians), founder of Finest Feathers, and features Indigenous designers from across the West presenting work rooted in culture, land, and lineage. The lineup includes Keeli Littleleaf (Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs, Piikani Blackfeet descent) of the fashion house Ayayat, whose beadwork and couture have appeared on runways from Oregon to New York; twelve-year-old designer Athena Ray of Cochella Couture; Crystal Pagal of Indigification; and Dez Adams, with additional designers to be announced. Lopez will present his own collection and a special performance.

Guests arrive to a networking mixer before Fr. Jerry Drino opens the program with a prayer and Kanyon “Coyote Woman” Sayers-Roods (Costanoan Ohlone-Mutsun and Chumash), Tribal Chairwoman of the Indian Canyon Nation, delivers a land acknowledgment. The event takes place on the ancestral homelands of the Mutsun Ohlone people. As the evening unfolds, Calpulli Tonalehqueh Aztec Dancers fill the pavilion with drums and dance, guests sit down to an elegant dinner, and DJ Cesar Lezama opens the dance floor for the rest of the night.

Attendees are invited to dress in their cultural or traditional best to represent their heritage and their love for community. During the evening, INDN will honor Diane Ortiz, founding Executive Director of Youth Alliance, with the Woman of Leadership and Strength Award. Since co-founding Youth Alliance in 1995, Ortiz has spent three decades building free prevention, counseling, leadership, and advocacy programs for youth and families across San Benito and South Santa Clara counties. Her leadership has molded Youth Alliance from a volunteer organization into a multi-million dollar nonprofit that helps families and youth throughout the region.

The gala builds on the first-ever Indigenous Fashion Show, held at INDN’s 3rd Annual Hollister Powwow and Native Gathering in November 2025. It continues that vision of Indigenous brilliance front and center, with the community celebrated and culture lived out loud. That first show has already inspired new Indigenous runway events in the region, and INDN is proud to keep building a space where Indigenous designers, models, and youth are celebrated and seen.

“Last November we saw what happens when our designers and models take the runway: our whole community stood taller. This gala is our next step, a celebration of community, culture, and ceremony, with Indigenous brilliance front and center. Come dressed in your traditional best and celebrate with us,” said Elvira Zaragoza Robinson, INDN founder.

Event Details:
What: The Indigenous Fashion Show Gala
When: Saturday, August 29, 2026, 3-9 p.m.
Where: The Pavilion at Bolado Park, 9000 Airline Highway, Tres Pinos, CA 95075
Tickets: $90 per person on Eventbrite. Tables of ten on sale for businesses and organizations at indnsbc@gmail.com.
Notes: Alcohol and drug-free event. Free parking on-site. Guests encouraged to wear cultural or traditional attire.
Presented by: Indigenous Nations Diversity Network and Youth Alliance. Event Details:
What: The Indigenous Fashion Show Gala
When: Saturday, August 29, 2026, 3-9 p.m.
Where: The Pavilion at Bolado Park, 9000 Airline Highway, Tres Pinos, CA 95075
Tickets: $90 per person on Eventbrite. Tables of ten on sale for businesses and organizations at indnsbc@gmail.com. Tickets are $90 per person and on sale now through Eventbrite.
Notes: Alcohol and drug-free event. Free parking on-site. Guests encouraged to wear cultural or traditional attire.
Presented by: Indigenous Nations Diversity Network and Youth Alliance.