Pocumtuck Festival Celebrates 13 Years of Native Heritage

For 13 years, a festival in Turners Falls has proven that healing and celebration can happen in the same space.

The Pocumtuck Homelands Festival returned to Unity Park on Saturday, drawing hundreds to celebrate Indigenous music, art, and culture. Hosted by the Nolumbeka Project, a nonprofit preserving Native American history in New England, the festival stands on sacred ground where healing continues from the Great Falls Massacre of 1676.

That tragedy saw 300 Native women, children, and elders killed in a surprise attack. In 2004, the town of Montague and members of the Narragansett Tribe held a formal reconciliation ceremony, committing to local healing. The annual festival keeps that promise alive.

Tom Porter, spiritual leader of the Mohawk community of Kanatsiohareke, welcomed attendees in the Mohawk language. He called the gathering "the best assembly in the world."

Jennifer Albertine from No Loose Braids, a Nipmuc-led nonprofit, shared how her organization is building an educational cultural center in Ashfield. The goal is teaching Indigenous youth about land stewardship and ancestral traditions.

Ieasha Garate, a Nipmuc land steward attending her first festival, brought her own powerful perspective. Her father couldn't speak their native language, but her children ages 17 to 25 are growing up connected to their heritage in ways he never could.

The Ripple Effect

Eddie Cuevas traveled from Connecticut with his business Taíno Trinkets, sharing Caribbean Indigenous culture often mistaken as purely Spanish. His merchandise carries the phrase "We Are Still Here," a reminder that Taíno people survived attempted erasure.

Cuevas finds his greatest reward in helping young people discover their Taíno roots. "You can't build a house without a foundation, and being Taíno is our foundation," he explained. "If you don't know who you are, you'll just be whoever they tell you you are."

The festival featured vendors, speakers, and performers representing multiple Indigenous nations. Organizations like No Loose Braids showcased land stewardship projects reviving Eastern Woodlands traditions throughout the region.

What started as one community's commitment to reconciliation has grown into a gathering place where Native cultures thrive, educate, and inspire curiosity. Garate emphasized that living her traditions daily and protecting the land honors her ancestors while preserving culture for those who come next.

After more than a decade, the festival's message rings clear: reconciliation isn't a single ceremony but an ongoing celebration of resilience, education, and cultural pride.