Jana Nason and Tom Little Bear Nason. Photo by Michael Troutman.
Tom Little Bear Nason
May 29, 1960 – August 1, 2026
On Sunday morning (8/2/26) Cara Nason let SFZC know that Little Bear passed away in her arms the previous night, peacefully and in no pain. He had spent the day Saturday at their place in Rana Creek with family, and Cara said that he had told her that this was what made him happiest.
Little Bear was the Tribal Chairman of the Esselen Tribe of Monterey County since 1993. He was a traditional cultural resource specialist, Tribal Archaeology Monitor, and Wildland Consultant. For 30+ years, he had been involved in the preservation of traditional landscapes, working with tribes, state agencies, land trusts and conservation groups to expand tribal land stewardship throughout the state.
Little Bear had a deep relationship with the Ventana Wilderness, the Four Winds Council and the Esalen Institute, and with Tassajara. His ancestral family has occupied these unceded Esselen lands for centuries. Little Bear led a lifetime of retreats centering around initiation, ritual, and ceremony between humans and their relationship with each other, land, and Spirit. He was also a Culture Bearer, Fire Ecologist, and Bear Dance Leader.
Little Bear, his father Fred Nason, and the members of the Esselen tribe have been very good friends of Tassajara and SFZC, helping us over the decades with various construction and land-restoration projects including post-fire recovery and flood protection after the 2008 Basin Complex fire.
Little Bear did so much for so many people, this is a huge loss to his large extended family and the Esselen tribe. Little Bear was very influential in the land back movement (which is why they were living in Rana Creek—now Esselen tribal land) and worked closely with Governor Newsom and the Office of Tribal Affairs and other tribal leaders. He will be greatly missed.
See the Esselen Tribe of Monterey County’s Facebook page for more information on memorials and services.
For an article on Little Bear and his relationship with SFZC and Tassajara, see our 2020 Impact Report, Ventana Wilderness: 126 Acres Stewarded.
Little Bear’s Instagram page
In this Sangha News article, SFZC Engages in Healing and Reconciliation with Indigenous Nations, Little Bear discusses his four-decades long relationship with Tassajara and SFZC.
Little Bear at Tassajara, speaking to his long-held relationship with SFZC and the many stories Tassajara holds.
