Why donate?
We hope you and the organizations you are part of will donate generously to the Native organizations we are raising funds for, but we do not view this as a form of charity.
Instead this is one way we can stand with our Indigenous neighbors in their efforts to restore rights, respect, and land.
As a beginning act of repair and restorative justice in response to 400 years of European settlers and descendents taking of Native peoples’ homelands and cultures, please consider making a substantial donation to help these peoples preserve their cultures and reclaim some of their un-ceded lands.
Many congregations are making donations as a community to this work in recognition of this 400th anniversary of the beginning of European colonization in the Northeast.
There are three possible ways to donate to this project:
1. Checks can be made out to:
“ICFC” (for Interfaith Council of Franklin County) – with the memo “400 Years”
Mail checks: to ICFC (400 Years), P.O. Box 1171, Greenfield, 01302.
Note: Donations made via ICFC are tax deductible. Those made via the other two routes below are not.
2. Via credit card at riseupandsing.org/400years
3. Venmo to @HoppingTree – memo “400 Years” (via Hopping Tree Sangha in Amherst)
100% of funds that we collect via any of the methods above will be go to Indigenous cultural preservation and restoration of Native lands in the Northeast – divided equally among these four organizations:
Native Land Conservancy – nativelandconservancy.org
“NLC was founded in 2012 in Mashpee MA and is the first Native-run land conservation group east of the Mississippi. After centuries of hardship and economic struggle, it is only now that we can finally attend to the important work of protecting sacred spaces, habitat areas for our winged and four legged neighbors and other essential ecosystem resources to benefit Mother Earth and all human beings. All land is sacred in our eyes and worthy of special care: thus our reasons and interest in rescuing and preserving ancient ancestral village sites where our ancestors once lived and worked. ”
Ohketeau Cultural Center – ohketeau.org
“Ohketeau (the Nipmuc word for a place to plant and grow) serves as a place of creation and growth where ideas are born, nurtured, and lived out. Not only does this space allow for creative projects, but provides is a safe haven for Indigenous community. We have a physical meeting space in Ashfield MA and offer a variety of programs and workshops from traditional subjects such as regalia, drum making, herbalism, medicine and weaving to contemporary performances with Indigenous focus.”
Northeast Farmers of Color Land Trust – nefoclandtrust.org
“NEFOC Land Trust is a hybrid model land trust, bringing together a community land trust commons model for farmland preservation and a conservation land trust model to conserve and steward ecosystems with the goal of manifesting a community vision that uplifts regenerative global Indigenous, Black, and POC relationships with land, skills, and lifeways. The Northeast was settled prior to 1776 and is primarily unceded (lack of treaty) territory, stolen from Indigenous peoples and settled without consent. Our aim as a land trust is to repair that harm, not replicate it, by working alongside Indigenous communities to listen and learn through open conversations with respect to their wishes for land in their territories. We are proud to center the voices and sovereignty of those who have carried relationships with and responsibilities to the land we all call home.” The Executive Director of the land trust is Stephanie Morningstar of the Oneida Nation.
Nipmuk Cultural Preservation, Inc. – facebook.com/nipmukculturalpreservation
“NCP is a Nipmuk owned & operated non-profit developed to support advancement of Nipmuk people. Our mission is to advance the Nipmuk community through development and promotion of community, educational, and economic programs which support our culture & history. This includes identifying sites & artifacts important to our history and to monitor their disposition and preservation. We are developing education programs designed to strengthen the understanding of our people. We are in the process of procuring a 42 acres of land in West Brookfield MA and developing a Nipmuk Community Center.”
Donating directly to these Native projects: You can make donations directly to the first 3 groups above on the organizational websites above. If you wish to donate directly to Nipmuk Cultural Preservation, Inc., you can make a check out to “Nipmuk Cultural Preservation, Inc.” and mail it to 197 Scott Rd Oakham, MA 01068 Attn: Cheryl Stedtler.