Vanessa “Chili” Chicharello is Diné (Navajo), born into the Sleep Rock People Clan and the Towering House People Clan. Her maternal grandfathers clan is the Black Sheep People Clan and her paternal grandfathers clan is the Red Running Into Water Clan. She was born and raised on the Navajo Nation outside of Gallup, NM. She graduated with a Biology degree from NAU in 2011. She learned how to make Pine Needle baskets from an elder (Marina Vasquez) while attending NAU. She later perfected her own style of pine needle baskets using different colored threads and sizes of baskets.