Bakersfield American Indian Health

05/14/2026

As a community, we know Benny is from one of our local tribal communities, and we are asking everyone to please keep an eye out, share this flyer widely, and help spread awareness until an updated Feather Alert flyer is released.

Any information could help bring Benny home safely. Thank you all for your support and for looking out for one another.

Missing / Runaway Juvenile
Benny Maximillian Richard Reyes
Age: 14 S*x: Male
Height: 5’5 Weight: 100
Build: Thin
Eye Color: Brown Hair Color: Black
Wukchumni Tribe

Benny was last seen at his home in the 5800 block of Darrah Rd in Mariposa County on 05/10/2026 at approximately 2:20pm.

Benny was last seen wearing a black sweater, black jeans, red Nike shoes, and a black hat with a gold saint on it.

Benny is no longer in Mariposa County.

Please contact the Sheriff's Office or your local law enforcement agency if you have any information on the whereabouts of Benny Maximillian Richard Reyes.

05/14/2026

Native children in foster care thrive when they stay connected to their culture, community, and relatives. ICWA supports this by prioritizing foster placements in Native homes.

🌿 Native families: You can help keep kids connected to culture. Contact your local agency or Nation to learn how to foster.

🤝Non-Natives:
• Volunteer as a Court Appointed Special Advocate (nationalcasagal.org)
• Donate to local and Native Nation child welfare programs
• Apply to be a resource or respite care family
• Help children stay connected with their Nation

05/12/2026

05/11/2026

At Bakersfield American Indian Health Project, we honor all mothers. Those who bring life, who keep and honor traditions, and who give so much of themselves.

Birth mothers, adopted mothers, foster mothers, step-mothers, or other motherly figures in your life. All mothers deserve love and recognition.

05/07/2026

It's such a great honor to speak and pray for our national, state, and local leaders. At Truxtun Liberty at Kern County Superior Court.

05/06/2026

May is Missing and Murdered Indigenous Peoples (MMIP) Awareness Month. Today, with Bakersfield College Native American Student Support and Success Program, and the First Renegades student organization, we honor our relatives who are missing, those we have lost, and the families still seeking justice.

This is not just awareness, it’s a crisis backed by data:
🪶 Indigenous women face murder rates up to 10x higher than the national average
🪶 Over 4,200 Indigenous women and girls have been reported missing in recent years
🪶 Indigenous communities experience more than double the rate of violent crime compared to the general U.S. population
🪶Homicide is a leading cause of death for Native women and girls
🪶 Over 4 in 5 Indigenous women experience violence in their lifetime
🪶 They face significantly higher rates of homicide and victimization than other groups

Behind every number is a life, a family, and a community.

At Bakersfield American Indian Health Project, we stand with our community to raise awareness, support prevention, and promote culturally grounded healing.

- Wear red to honor MMIP relatives
- Share knowledge and resources
- Support Indigenous-led efforts
- Advocate for justice and accountability

We will continue to uplift our voices until our people are safe, seen, and protected.

05/05/2026

Update: She's been found!

Bakersfield police are asking for the public's help finding a missing at-risk 16-year-old girl who was last seen early Monday morning.

05/04/2026

The 2026 National Week of Action for MMIWR official poster is here 📣

Support and download it, post it, and help spread the call to action from coast to coast. Share it on social media using . We are building a national wall of visibility—post your poster across the country and send us a photo so we can see the movement spreading! 📸

📅 May 4–8, 2026
Download 👉🏽 niwrc.org/mmiwr-awareness

04/28/2026

Several BAIHP staff are in Washington D.C. this week for the National Council of Urban Indian Health Conference! We're here to learn about the work of other Urban Indian Organizations, to share stories of culture, healing. We're also learning about current and future struggles that may arise for us and addressing those together as a community.

The conference is fortunate that NCUIH invited leadership from Indian Health Service for us to share our stories with directly. We're here to advocate on behalf of our community, but also to learn about where we can improve on a policy level.

A'ho!

04/28/2026

“May is a time to speak truth for those who can’t, to honor the lives that were taken or are still missing, and to make sure our people are never overlooked again.”
- Ofelia Flores, Program Lead for the Tejon Community Advocacy Program (TCAP)

04/24/2026

Are you an organization or individual who has donated to Bakersfield American Indian Health Project? We want to hear from you!

We will be hosting a Donor Gathering near the end of May featuring a dinner and presentation at Hodel's Country Dining with an opportunity to see how your donation has assisted in improving the medical, mental, social, and spiritual health of our clients here at BAIHP.

Please email BAIHPCommunity@BakersfieldAIHP.org to confirm your information and receive your invitation to join us.

Thank you. A'ho!