HUNDREDS OF MEMBERS of the Estonian diaspora gathered over the weekend to celebrate midsummer, transforming a church in the Novato hills into an event that felt akin to a cultural festival in the European countryside.
The all-day event was part of the biannual West Coast Estonian Days, where Estonians and those with Estonian heritage primarily from the United States and Canada congregate to one city for a weekend celebrating the Estonian diaspora. This year, San Francisco was the host city.
“For the west coast Estonians, it’s been a tradition that every two years the flag gets handed over to the next city,” said West Estonian Days 2026 President Marit Davey in an interview. “This time it’s our turn.”
Saturday’s party celebrated midsummer, the biggest holiday in Estonia marking the summer solstice. In Estonia, residents typically flock to the countryside and hold parties with traditional dancing and a large bonfire.
Organizers wanted to bring the holiday to Estonians in the Bay Area, hosting the party at the Nativity of Christ Greek Orthodox Church, a scenic location with a backdrop of sprawling green hills that provided a getaway from the fast pace of downtown San Francisco.
“Today is about Estonian culture and people experiencing it personally and participating in it,” said Mai Liis Bartling, president of the San Francisco Estonian Society. “That’s what we hope that everybody will come with, a spirit of wanting to take part and participate.”
The event featured traditional Estonian dancing, where women wearing vibrant folk costumes danced in circles with their male partners to the tune of an accordion. Professional choirs sang classic cultural anthems in the Estonian language.
Models wearing the futuristic designs of designer MRK DAY walked the runway while the song “San Francisco” by Estonian musicians Sander Molder and NOEP played in the background.
A market with vendors selling jewelry, jams, Estonian bread, and event merchandise drew the interest of attendees. Popular Estonian beers gave the crowd a taste of their heritage, while others got to weave flower crowns.
The party served as a space for the Estonian diaspora to reconnect with their ancestral roots outside the country’s borders and keep their shared heritage alive.
“It’s part of what we all share together,” Bartling said. “It points to a connection for people, like they may know a particular song or they may have danced a particular dance. So even though they are all from very different places, when they come together they feel like one people — one Estonian people.”
The event, which took a year of planning by an all-volunteer team, exemplified the theme of this year’s West Coast Estonian Days — “Carried by Culture.”
“Culture is what holds us through change,” Davey said. “Even when we leave the place we came from, it stays with us — shaping who we are, connecting us to each other, and reminding us where we belong.”
