Now celebrating its 16th season, the Lummis Days program has become a signature cultural entity in Northeast Los Angeles, bringing people with diverse cultural and social identities together to celebrate mutual history, share their arts and foster a sense of community and place.
The family-oriented festival and the many other events that are included in the Lummis Days program enjoy popularity and prestige within a broad segment of the community. They offer sponsors an opportunity to build exposure and good will within a proven and highly positive environment.
With early support from community groups, the Lummis Days program was initiated 14 years ago as a free multi-cultural festival that included music, dance, poetry, art and history. The Lummis Days program—no longer a single “Day”-- has grown to include seminars for LAUSD teachers, free poetry readings, free writing workshops in local libraries and art exhibitions, as well as the annual festival on the first weekend in June. The Lummis Days program is presented by the non-profit (501©3) Lummis Day Community Foundation.
Supporters have included the neighborhood councils of Northeast Los Angeles, Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs, the Los Angeles County Arts Commission, the Highland Park Heritage Trust, the Arroyo Arts Collective, Poets & Writers, Inc., PEN Center U.S.A., Uptown Gay and Lesbian Alliance, the Mayor’s Office, City Council Districts 1 and 14, public radio station KPFK and individual donations.
Specifically, sponsorship funds enable the organizers to expand their events and enhance the entertainment. The group’s plans to expand the program’s reach and capacity require improved transportation among venues, payment of additional site fees and the rental of additional equipment.
The Lummis Days Festival has grown from year to year. The 9th Annual Lummis Day Festival was notable for increased community involvement, outreach, educational value and solid attendance at its several events. Over 150 artists participated and over 250 volunteers took part. Media coverage helped boost awareness and attendance.
In 2019, approximately 5,000 visitors arrived over the Festival weekend to locations at Occidental College, Avenue 50 at York, Lummis Home and Sycamore Grove Park for events that included a film screening, a poetry reading by prominent authors, music and dance performances representing Northeast L.A.’s rainbow of cultures, puppet parades and performances and a stage for performances by children and youth groups.
