The Millbrae Lunar New Year Festival, presented by the Millbrae Cultural Committee, is returning after a three-year hiatus this weekend to provide people from the Peninsula and beyond a new opportunity to usher in the Year of the Boar.
The event is Saturday, March 2, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. It kicks off with a fair at 10 a.m., followed by the event’s main highlight, the Golden Boar Parade at 11:30 a.m., which will weave through downtown Millbrae spread prosperity and wealth to all the city’s merchants, many who helped make the festival possible through their contributions, said Marian Kong, president of the Millbrae Cultural Committee.
The parade will be highlighted by dragon dancers from Mills High School, lion dancers from Lao Lion Dance and U.S. Rep. Jackie Speier, D-San Mateo, who will be taking part for the second time.
After the parade, there will be a Golden Boar Outdoor performance at the Millbrae Civic Center parking lot, entertaining visitors with more performances from the Dragon and Lion Dancers, a speech from Millbrae Mayor Wayne Lee and traditional and modern dancing, singing and musical performances from Asia and beyond including from Latin America and Ireland. Children will also have a chance to learn about Chinese culture through a wide variety of indoor activities called the “Wheel of Golden Boar” where they will not only get a taste of Chinese culture, but also have a chance to win prizes while participating.
Those over 18 will also have a chance to win prizes through a raffle with gift certificates and more provided by local businesses.
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The event began just a couple days before Christmas, Kong said, and took the entire city working together — from the seven members of the Event Committee, volunteers from the Millbrae Leo Club, Mills High School students and the Mills Interact Club, all the sponsors and contributors and especially the city of Millbrae who she said provided “200 percent support” for taking care of logistics.
The festival is the first of several planned events this year to be presented by the Millbrae Cultural Committee, all sharing the goal of exposing people to the variety of wonderful cultures that can be found in Millbrae’s 62 percent Asian population, while, at the same time, getting people from those cultures more involved in the community.
“In many places in Asia, it is ‘family first,’” said Kong. “There is no big reason to go out and be active in the community when you have your family living with you. But, many Americans see things differently and enjoy being independent and getting out in the community. The Millbrae Cultural Committee created this festival to help us better understand such differences and to bring us closer together as a community through such understandings.”
The Millbrae Lunar New Year Celebration will take place rain or shine. Go to millbraeculture.org for more information.
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