After a long hiatus, members of the Soboba Band of Luiseño Indians formed the $ovóova Po’$wáamay (Daughter of Soboba) Committee to revitalize its Soboba Fiesta Maiden Contest that was last held in 1969-1970. Being titled as $ovóova Po’$wáamay offers a unique chance for one young woman to symbolize the Tribe with dignity, esteem, and reverence.
This year, Su’la Arviso and Raya Salgado chose to vie for the title in a months-long competition that required them to participate in two retreats and a communications workshop hosted by Sponsorship Coordinator Andrew Vallejos. Soboba Band of Luiseño Indians Vice Chairwoman and $ovóova Po’$wáamay Committee Chair Geneva Mojado said both candidates are already advocates in the Soboba community and other Native communities and both are active community servants.
Months of involvement in required activities culminated in the Crowning event on Oct. 11 at the Soboba Sports Complex where the contestants were judged in front of a sold-out crowd that included family members, friends and many supporters.
The idea to bring back this program was proposed to Tribal Council by Iyana “Tot” Briones, a young Soboba Tribal member. Council Secretary Monica Herrera and Mojado worked closely with Briones, setting up the first meeting with the goal of establishing a committee. This took several months. All meetings were open to all Tribal members, who were notified via Korbyt.
Once the committee was established, bylaws were created, fundraising began and the Daughter of Soboba program received official Tribal recognition at a general council meeting. Members of the $ovóova Po’$wáamay Committee are Chair Geneva Mojado, Vice Chair Monica Herrera, Secretary Iyana “Tot” Briones, Treasurer Rhonda Valenzuella, Members at Large Andrea Relopez and Adona Salgado, Digital Media Officer Summer Helms, and Committee Members Carrie Garcia and Anthony “Bear” Vallez. Briones, Helms and Mojado took turns serving as emcees throughout the Oct. 11 event.
After delivering an introduction in their Native language, and sharing a little bit about themselves, Raya and Su’la were asked to provide a cultural demonstration and answer posed questions in a thoughtful way so judges could evaluate their poise, personality, intelligence, and knowledge of the topic being asked about. Earlier in the day, they performed a skill test of bow and arrow shooting which was filmed and played on big screens during the crowning event.
Selected through a lottery system, judges were Millie Arres, Mia Basquez, Lucille Briones, Stacia Maciel, Rosemary Morillo, Sherral Orosco and Becky Salgado with alternates Dwan Helms and Raina Maciel. Tabulators were Dione Kitchen, Julie Arrietta-Parcero and Andrew Vallejos.
Su’la Arviso is a proud Soboba tribal member from the Paa’ila and Soowut clans who comes from a long line of leaders and culture bearers. Inspired by her grandmother and other family mentors, she embraced leadership early, teaching Native traditions while attending Estudillo Elementary and founding the first Four Directions Native American Club there. Through middle and high school, Su’la served as vice president and president of Native clubs, maintained a 3.5 GPA, gave her school’s first land acknowledgement speech, and helped organize major cultural events including the “Gathering of the People.”
Beyond academics, Su’la has been a strong advocate for Native voices, working alongside Assemblymember James Ramos to advance accurate teaching of Native history. She has served as a youth intern for the Soboba Cultural Department, gained experience preserving and teaching traditions, and represented Soboba at major conferences such as UNITY and NCAI. Her journey reflects both academic excellence and a lifelong dedication to leadership, cultural preservation, and advocacy for California’s First People.
Raya Rain Salgado, from the Tuktum clan (Soboba) and the Nacutakiktum clan (Cahuilla), is a dedicated Soboba tribal member who also honors her Cahuilla heritage. Balancing academic excellence with community involvement, she maintains a 3.5-plus GPA, was named Student of the Year in 2024, and participated in Bill AB 1703, led by Assemblymember James Ramos.
Proud of her roots, Raya represents her people with gratitude and respect, strengthening her communication skills through volunteer work, cultural programs, and community service. She became a Soboba Fire Explorer at age 13, serves as Chairwoman of the Soboba Tribal Youth Council, and is Vice President of the Four Directions Native American Club at San Jacinto High School where she is a sophomore. Dedicated to preserving cultural traditions, arts, dance, and language while pursuing her education, Raya aims to inspire future generations and proudly represents Soboba, honoring her family and ancestors through unity and cultural pride.
Students from the Soboba Tribal Preschool took to the stage and sang three songs they had learned in the Luiseño language. Their performance was met with thunderous applause and a lot of smiles from the audience members.
The event’s keynote speaker was Tishmal Herrera, an enrolled member of the La Jolla Band of Luiseño Indians. She was honored as UCR’s Powwow Princess in 2023-2024 when she was a junior. Tishmal works for her Tribe’s Education Program as both an aide and a cultural coordinator, where she continues to serve and uplift her community through leadership, education, and cultural advocacy.
“You can literally do anything you set your mind to,” she told the contestants. “I encourage you to get out of your comfort zone and take healthy risks. Talk to others and don’t be shy—you will be the first person, voice and representative of your Tribe. You guys are amazing, and I know you’ll do great.”
As part of the competition, Su’la and Raya took part in bird dancing while the Torres Martinez Inter-tribal birdsingers took the stage. Later that evening, audience members were asked to join in when they returned to sing again.
Raya’s cultural demonstration included her reading the introduction from a book she is writing about the personal stories shared with her by Tribal members. She said the purpose of her book is “to honor those that have come before me and hopefully to inspire those who will come after me.” She then shared the Creation story and how to make yucca cordage that has many practical uses and is also used to play traditional Cat’s Cradle games.
Before she began her demonstration, Su’la served a plate of wewish to each of the judges that she had made earlier. She then proceeded to show the time-consuming process of preparing acorns after gathering them by cracking them, cleaning them, grinding them and then leaching out the tannins through boiling and soaking several times. The remaining “meal” can then be used in various dishes or spread on a tortilla with some beans. “It’s a lengthy process but in the end it’s worth it,” she told the audience.
Another portion of the competition involved questions that were chosen at random and presented to each contestant by committee member Summer Helms. When asked “What changes have you noticed in areas where you gather cultural materials and what steps would you suggest we take to preserve them?” Raya replied that she thought it would be good to do prescribed burns like it was done in the past. Su’la suggested that people stop littering. “We need to care for Mother Earth because she takes care of us,” she said.
When asked about their opinion on what they felt were the most important steps to cultural revitalization and how it could be incorporated at Soboba, Su’la stated, “I would start with the youth at the preschool; I believe identity does start with our youth and we need to implement those cultural practices at a young age.” Raya feels it can be done through learning Native languages and she has already begun sharing Native words on social media that has earned a large engagement.
Briones made the official announcement of Su’la Arviso as the 2025-2026 $ovóova Po’$wáamay. She was immediately congratulated by Virginia Duenas, who was the final Soboba Fiesta Maiden in 1969-1970.
The unique crown that Su’la will wear at upcoming events such as the Tribe’s annual Trunk or Treat community event on Oct. 30, was made by Marizol Carrillo, a master Kumeyaay weaver. The committee helped design it and turned over their ideas to Carrillo’s cousin Eva Salazar a couple of years ago. She was able to draw it out for Carrillo, who then worked on it for eight months.
In addition to the crown and sash, Su’la received a $1,500 scholarship sponsored by California Tribal Fund. As an Early Childhood Education major at Mt. San Jacinto College, she hopes to work at the Soboba Tribal Preschool in the future. The committee intends to continue to fundraise on her behalf to help fully fund future travel expenses.
“We look forward to being able to honor our newly crowned $ovóova Po’$wáamay at all Native and non-Native events where she will represent the Tribe,” Mojado said. “A few winter powwows and gatherings are approaching.”
Herrera said the committee and volunteers have held numerous fundraisers and informational booths at Tribal events throughout the year, and the community has always shown great support.
“It is because of that love and support the committee was able to host this event since the majority of the expenses were covered with fundraised monies,” she said.
The committee’s mission is to support, empower and enhance the wellbeing of its Native Women through achieving emotional, social and economic self-sufficiency. Further, the committee intends “to create opportunities for women to connect, share, and learn from one another; to promote and preserve the culture and heritage of the Tribe in supporting Tribal and Community Cultural Educational programs and activities; to encourage our young women to utilize their voice to promote the needs of Native Indian Women. Our young women are the baskets of our community, who carry family and cultural tribal traditions, and are the strength of the community. $ovóova Po’$wáamay shall be an esteemed role model, honoring her Tribe and Native people.”
Mojado said the committee plans to start accepting applications for next year’s competition after the first of the year. “We hope to grow Daughter of Soboba into a group of gals and girls to connect and share from one another,” she said. “My favorite part of being involved with this program has been the opportunity to mentor these girls. It was also great to see our community get involved and show so much support for them.”
Herrera said the experience thus far has been great and that despite its slow start, everyone remains committed to the program. “One of the goals was to bring all our tribal women together; elders to infants, bridging gaps and building friendships through culture. This group of women has tirelessly contributed their time, in an effort to lay a positive solid foundation. I hope the young ladies feel appreciated and supported in this group. We are constantly mentoring and learning.”
A men’s Peon tournament began after a final honor song was performed by the Inter-tribal birdsingers and that stretched into the night.
Photo credits listed with each one
