Indigenous Artists Gather to Celebrate Fathers’ Day and Remember Marcelo Aviles

SAN FRANCISCO — The 27th Annual Fathers’ Day Celebration honored the late Marcelo Aviles, who passed away unexpectedly in May 2026. This year’s festival season of arts performances at Yerba Buena Gardens has been dedicated to his memory.

Aviles served as programming director for Yerba Buena Gardens for 20 years and was responsible for showcasing theater, music, dance, and community events, including the American Indian Contemporary Arts (AICA) Fathers’ Day Celebration and annual Indigenous Peoples’ Day gatherings.

Many of the singers and dancers who performed at this year’s Fathers’ Day event also participated in Aviles’ memorial service in May on the Yerba Buena Gardens stage.

Janeen Antoine (Sicangu Lakota), executive director of the American Indian Contemporary Arts nonprofit organization, founded AICA in the late 1990s with an art gallery on Market Street. After years of successful exhibitions and events, rising rents during the dot-com boom forced the gallery to close.

“The Yerba Buena Center for the Arts was always supportive of Indigenous Native American events, and so we always kept a close relationship with them,” Antoine said. “Marcelo Aviles was so important to all artists. As a young man, Marcelo was just amazing. He managed to produce 2,000 events that employed 15,000 performing artists and reached approximately 1.5 million audience members before his passing. All these events were free and open to the public.”

Antoine remembered Aviles with great fondness and respect.

“Marcelo made people feel seen and part of whatever he was doing,” she said. “He was always light and filled with joy. I don’t remember him ever expressing anger at anyone he worked with, and he made relatives with all those he encountered. His spirit lives on here with all who knew him. This is a tremendous loss for his family, the staff, Board of Directors, and his friends. So our Fathers’ Day Celebration is dedicated to his memory this year. We are also remembering Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women at our event.”

The program began with an opening song by noted artist L. Frank (Tongva/Ajachmem), who also served as master of ceremonies. L. Frank offered a land acknowledgment, noting that the event was held in Yelamu on the unceded territory of the Ramaytush Ohlone people.

Aurora Mamea (Blackfoot) and Kendra “Everybody’s Talking” of the Sweet Lodge Sistaz performed several songs in their language. They were followed by powerful and heartfelt poetry from former San Francisco Poet Laureate Kim Shuck (Cherokee) and K.R. Morrison. Their poetry honored Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and addressed the ongoing crisis affecting Indigenous communities across Indian Country.

Producer Janeen Antoine shared a bookmark featuring haiku poetry written by her mother, Muriel Antoine, also known as Day Woman:

“Civilization”
Fat takers invade,
All earth’s peoples share our grief,
Dark times are passing.

“Oyate”
Relatives stand tall,
Forming strong survival bonds,
Powerful deeds done.

The poems felt especially relevant in today’s political climate.

Nihzoni Ellenwood (Nde Apache) offered an honor song for Marcelo Aviles. The two attended the Ruth Asawa School of the Arts in San Francisco together and remained close friends.

“Marcelo was a friend that I thought I would have forever,” Ellenwood said. “May the light follow you wherever you go. I see a light now. You were one of a kind, and I thank the heavens for you.”

The Winnama Ba-Kay Yachma Pomo Dancers, led by Chester McCloud and his wife, Coleen McCloud, from Northern California, performed several traditional dances and songs.

“Today we think about all the moms, grandmas, and relatives who have passed through San Francisco,” Chester McCloud said. “Some stayed because of the Relocation Act of 1956. They were promised jobs, housing, employment, and education. Much of what was promised never happened, so many returned home. Today we honor them. These songs and dances are our prayers for them.”

Manny Lieras (Diné/Comanche) performed an honor song accompanied by his daughters, Joni and Lyn, who are also powwow dancers. Lieras sings with the All Nations drum group and provided music as 12 intertribal powwow dancers performed exhibition dances.

A special performance was offered by Paul Steward and his band, Twice as Good. Steward’s young son, William, accompanied him on drums, a touching reminder of the many years Paul performed alongside his own father, Rich Steward, who founded the band.

The group’s music blends blues and rock with distinctive Pomo influences, often incorporating traditional clapping sticks and songs sung in the Pomo language. Steward was joined by Luis Garcia on bass guitar, Julius Johnson on keyboard, and Roy Gatenella on drums.

Twice as Good has performed in Bogotá, Colombia, throughout Europe and Japan, and across Indian Country.

The celebration concluded with a closing song by Kanyon Sayers-Roods, also known as Coyote Woman (Costanoan-Mutsun Ohlone from Indian Canyon). She performed the “Grandmother’s Song” in her language and reminded attendees that “today is a good day to be in community.”

It was, indeed, a perfect Fathers’ Day celebration.

Nanette Deetz is a Lakota, Cherokee, and German American poet, journalist, musician, and actress. She holds both a B.A. and an M.A. in Theater Arts and Dance from UCLA. Her articles have appeared in Bay Area News Group publications, Native News Online, Tribal Business News, Indian Country Today, Bon Appétit magazine’s COVID issue, and numerous poetry anthologies. In 2019, she received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Berkeley Poetry Festival and the City of Berkeley, California.

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