Cameron Chahil interviews his grandfather for the history project. Photo via Fresno County Historical Society.

The Fresno City and County Historical Society is searching for participants from the Sikh community to take part in a project aimed at documenting the history of the community.

The partnership is looking for 15 or more participants from the Sikh community who are 15 to 21 years old. participants will learn media skills at CMAC and learn the fine points of storytelling and collection of Oral Histories at the Kearney Mansion Museum.

Participants will be given the opportunity to learn elements of video recording interviews, editing and compiling oral histories for the Historical Society’s archive as well as the archive of California Humanities.

“We applied for this grant as a way to ensure our Valley Voices from the Sikh community are heard and preserved. There have not been any projects that specifically focus on the local Punjabi residents and the story of their migration to the San Joaquin Valley has mainly been silent,” said Elizabeth Laval, president of the Fresno City & County Historical Society.

This project is a partnership between the Historical Society and Fresno-based Community Media Access Collaborative. It is funded by a grant awarded by the California Humanities, Humanities for All Oral History Project. California Humanities is an independent nonprofit organization that produces, funds, creates, and supports humanities-based projects and programs.

“CMAC is thrilled to be a part of this important project. Our work is rooted in lifting up the voices of those in our community who are not always heard in local media. The Sikh community has a rich history in the Central Valley, but that history isn’t well-known and there are countless stories that have not fully been told,” said Bryan Harley, executive director of CMAC.

The project will last from February to May, with the deadline to register being Feb. 28. Those interested in taking part in the project can register at valleyhistory.org/sikh-oral-history-project