by: Aleksandra Wojtalewicz
Long Beach Beachcomber
A sea of brightly colored costumes and music will fill Anaheim Street this weekend. The second annual Long Beach Cambodian Parade will take place along Anaheim Street on Apr. 16. The parade starts at 10 a.m. at the intersection of Anaheim and Junipero Streets and ends at the intersection of Anaheim and Orange Streets. The parade will begin with a Buddhist blessing and will end at MacArthur Park with a Cambodian culture show and festival.
There will be Cambodian food, music, dancing and games at the festival.
“We feel that we should share our rich heritage with the community,” said Richer San, parade coordinator. “We [also] want to promote Cambodia Town,” which is the largest Cambodian community outside of Cambodia with approximately 50,000 Cambodians. The goals of the parade are also to promote community relationships among people of different backgrounds, celebrate the businesses of the area and encourage Cambodian Americans to participate in community events.
Over 100 parade entrants are expected to participate. Among the entrants, several important guests are scheduled to partake in the event.
H.E.Dr.Widhya Cham, Cambodian ambassador and permanent representative to the UN and Ambassador Sichan Siv of the US Mission to UN are the VIP participants, along with Congresswoman Juanita Millender McDonald, 37th Congressional District, 54th District Assembly member Betty Karnette, and Claude Parrish, Ph.D., vice chairman of State Board of Equalization.
Members of the Long Beach City Council will also make an appearance, including Mayor Beverly O’Neil, Bonnie Lowenthal, First District; Frank Colonna, Third District; Patrick O’Donnell, Fourth District, and Laura Richardson, Sixth District. “The city has been very supportive” of the parade, said San.
Along with the other participants, the Phnom Penh, Qingdao, Guadalajara and Izmirethe chapters of the Long Beach Sister Cities Inc. The African American Chamber of Commerce and the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce will also take part in the parade. “Long Beach has diversity. It is known as the ‘International City,’” said San. “We have been working well together for the past five years on a number of projects.”
The year 2006 marks the Year of the Dog. The Cambodian New Year is celebrated yearly on Apr. 13 to Apr. 15. In Cambodia, the New Year celebrates the end of the rice harvesting season, allowing farmers to get together and renew themselves after a period of long agricultural work.
There will be Cambodian food, music, dancing and games at the festival.
“We feel that we should share our rich heritage with the community,” said Richer San, parade coordinator. “We [also] want to promote Cambodia Town,” which is the largest Cambodian community outside of Cambodia with approximately 50,000 Cambodians. The goals of the parade are also to promote community relationships among people of different backgrounds, celebrate the businesses of the area and encourage Cambodian Americans to participate in community events.
Over 100 parade entrants are expected to participate. Among the entrants, several important guests are scheduled to partake in the event.
H.E.Dr.Widhya Cham, Cambodian ambassador and permanent representative to the UN and Ambassador Sichan Siv of the US Mission to UN are the VIP participants, along with Congresswoman Juanita Millender McDonald, 37th Congressional District, 54th District Assembly member Betty Karnette, and Claude Parrish, Ph.D., vice chairman of State Board of Equalization.
Members of the Long Beach City Council will also make an appearance, including Mayor Beverly O’Neil, Bonnie Lowenthal, First District; Frank Colonna, Third District; Patrick O’Donnell, Fourth District, and Laura Richardson, Sixth District. “The city has been very supportive” of the parade, said San.
Along with the other participants, the Phnom Penh, Qingdao, Guadalajara and Izmirethe chapters of the Long Beach Sister Cities Inc. The African American Chamber of Commerce and the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce will also take part in the parade. “Long Beach has diversity. It is known as the ‘International City,’” said San. “We have been working well together for the past five years on a number of projects.”
The year 2006 marks the Year of the Dog. The Cambodian New Year is celebrated yearly on Apr. 13 to Apr. 15. In Cambodia, the New Year celebrates the end of the rice harvesting season, allowing farmers to get together and renew themselves after a period of long agricultural work.
1 comment:
Count your beans before getting any bean from US.
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