By Angel Trinh
Feb 23, 2018

Lincoln’s Asian Community and Cultural Center is hosting a Lunar New Year Celebration on Sunday from 1 to 4 p.m. in the Lincoln room of the Lancaster Event Center, 4100 N. 84th St. The kid-friendly event is open to the public with free admission to enjoy free Asian cuisine, cultural activities, games, performances and health screenings.

Lunar New Year is a holiday celebrated primarily in Asian countries on the first day of the lunar calendar, which typically falls anytime from late January to February. The 2018 new year fell on Friday, Feb. 16, celebrating the year of the dog. Each year is associated with a zodiac animal that recurs every twelve years. The cycle starts with the rat which is followed by the ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, goat, monkey, rooster, dog and the pig.

The center has been hosting the Lunar New Year event for about four years. Guests will be able to sample Chinese, Vietnamese, Karen, Thai and Egyptian food while exploring various cultural activities such as Chinese and Japanese Calligraphy, face painting and origami.

The event program will consist of nine diversity performance, ranging from lion dances, folk music, singing and fashion shows. Two performance groups are traveling from Omaha: the OKBC Fashion Group and the Japanese Fisherman dance. They are participating in the event for the first time. Linda Salac is a retired professional dancer that will be contributing two solos. The other performers are the DMNV and JingMoTong Lion dancers, the LCA Kids Folk dance group, the Karen Youth traditional dance, and the Lunar Lotus Chinese dance team from Lincoln East High School.

Thirteen local organizations and three medical agencies — such as the Nebraska Arts Council,  the Nebraska Cultural Endowment Arts and Humanities Livelihood, Rembolt, Ludtke and Celerion — will participate as vendors.

The Asian Community and Cultural Center is nonprofit organization that seeks to support and empower all refugees and immigrants through programs and services while also sharing of Asian culture and the celebration of multicultural heritage with the community at large. It was founded in 1992 when leaders in the community from multiple Asian backgrounds decided that they wanted to create a community space for education, welfare, recreation and fellowship that would preserve cultural heritage and promote the well-being of their peoples. The Center opened its doors at 140 S. 27th St. on Oct. 1, 1994. It has since moved to its current location at 144 N. 44th St. After over 20 years, many immigrants and refugees still see the center as “home” regardless of ethnic background and national origin.

The Lunar New Year celebration is one of the two major events that the cultural center hosts every year. The second event is the Harvest Moon Festival in the fall. The fall event takes place in Antelope Park bandshell area. The Lunar New Year event was previously held in the Auld Pavilion at Antelope Park, but Asian Center staff were excited to move to the Lancaster Event Center for more space. The Auld Pavilion was packed with standing room only at the 2017 Lunar New Year celebration.

“People who love the Asian and World Cultures are always looking forward to participating in our two major events,” said Cultural Program Coordinator Rebecca Reinhardt. “They really enjoy learning the cultural differences and the traditions, especially with their kids. We welcome everyone in the Lincoln community to join us for the festivities.”

More information about the ACCC can be found here.

Schedule
1:00 PM- Opening Speech & DMNV Lion Dance

1:20 PM- Chinese Traditional Music

1:40 PM- OKBC Karen Fashion Show

2:00 PM- LCA Kids Folk dance

-Flamenco Tango

2:20 PM- ACCC QiPao Fashion Show
Viennese Waltz

2:40 PM- Japanese Traditional Fisherman Dance

3:00 PM-Lincoln East High Elements Dance

3:20 PM- Karen Youth Traditional Dance

3:40 PM- JingMoTong Lion Dance

The RMV Band will play live between performances

Angel Trinh is an editorial intern with KZUM.