Celebrating cultural diversity

One of several senior centers the nonprofit operates across the Bay Area, the San Mateo Self-Help Senior Activity Center located in the park’s Recreation Center has been a place where seniors can gather and participate in a range of activities, from tai chi to wellness screenings. And though the center has promoted the wide range of cultures celebrated by its patrons, the festival has served as an invitation to seniors and those who may be newer to the center to share their cultures with the community at large, said Koo.

“I think the strength of this county is its diversity,” she said. “I said to our seniors: ‘You have to become part of it. Don’t hide in the center, come out.’”

Koo said some 900 seniors, most of whom are first-generation immigrants, regularly use the San Mateo center, and with the recent expansion of Self-Help for the Elderly’s services in Millbrae, they expect even more to join the festivities this year by bus.

One of the major holidays celebrated in China, Koo said the Autumn Moon Festival is one time of the year when family members travel to be together for the full moon and share mooncakes — desserts shaped like the moon with sweet red bean paste inside a crust — to symbolize the roundness of reunion.

Koo said a 1-mile Generation Walk for Wellness will kick off the event, followed by an address by U.S. Rep. Jackie Speier, D-San Mateo, and two hours of performances to celebrate this year’s theme of ethnic dance. In addition to the Flamenco and Spanish and Indian Bollywood dances, among others, planned for this year’s event, more than 20 booths featuring calligraphy and other community resources as well as children’s games and food trucks will contribute to the event’s colorful atmosphere, said Koo.

Koo said she and former mayor David Lim worked together with the community to coordinate an event celebrating the Lunar New Year some nine years ago to raise funds for the center’s activities and raise awareness of the cultural diversity of both the center and its surrounding community.

“You have a festival, people learn different things,” she said.

She said they made a switch to holding the Autumn Moon Festival some five years ago, and the events have been a highlight for those using the nonprofit’s resources.

“The seniors always look forward to celebrating these festivals,” she said.

Though the center is able to help seniors with everything from English translation to healthy eating, sometimes the most important resource it provides is the company of others, she said. By encouraging people from all walks of life to attend this Sunday’s festival, Koo is hoping they can foster an engaged community around seniors to keep loneliness and health issues at bay for as long as possible.

“You come to the center and your personality changes,” she said.

The Autumn Moon Festival will be held 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sept. 23 at San Mateo’s Central Park, 50 E. Fifth Ave.

anna@smdailyjournal.com

(650) 344-5200 ext. 106