Grassroots Gala on August 28 will celebrate more than three decades of patient advocacy, compassionate cannabis and community care.
One of the most consequential grassroots organizations in California medical cannabis history will be honored this Friday in Santa Cruz County.
WAMM / WAMM Phytotherapies will be recognized as a Cultural Landmark along The Cannabis Trail during the Grassroots Gala: Honoring WAMM & the Roots of Santa Cruz’s Green Scene, happening Friday, August 28, at Treehouse in Soquel.
Created in Santa Cruz in 1992 by Valerie and Mike Corral, the Wo/Men’s Alliance for Medical Marijuana became the country’s first patient collective, serving seriously ill and dying members at no cost. Its model was built around a simple principle: people should be able to access cannabis as medicine with dignity, care and community around them.
That principle would eventually put WAMM at the center of a defining confrontation in medical cannabis history.
On September 5, 2002, federal DEA agents raided the WAMM Garden and seized 167 cannabis plants intended for patient members. Twelve days later, WAMM members gathered at Santa Cruz City Hall and openly distributed medical cannabis while elected officials and more than a thousand citizens stood with them.
Rather than ending the collective, the raid helped make WAMM a national symbol of compassionate cannabis access, civil disobedience and community resistance.
Today, WAMM Phytotherapies continues that work, with its community gathering at Treehouse and support from organizations across the Santa Cruz cannabis ecosystem.
The August 28 gala will bring that history into the present with live music, WAMM photographs and artifacts, community activities and a short Cultural Landmark ceremony featuring WAMM co-founder Valerie Leveroni Corral, The Cannabis Trail, Visit Santa Cruz County, Treehouse and Coastal Sun.
The Grassroots Gala runs 7:30–10:00 p.m. at Treehouse Dispensary, 3651 Soquel Drive, Soquel, California. Doors open at 7:15 p.m. The gathering is 21+.
Reserve a spot:
Grassroots Gala: Honoring WAMM & the Roots of Santa Cruz
Explore the WAMM Cultural Landmark and its history:
WAMM / WAMM Phytotherapies — The Cannabis Trail
For an industry that often talks about its roots, August 28 is an opportunity to honor people who actually planted them.
