THE local Asian community is preparing to ring in the ‘Year of the Snake’ in style next week with a major festival of traditional music, song and dance in a bid to “keep our culture alive” locally.
Chinese New Year falls next Wednesday (January 29), with the Erne District Chinese Families’ and Friends’ Association preparing for a celebration on Saturday, with a large turnout expected.
“We want to celebrate Chinese culture and we use this opportunity to gather with our family and friends. It lets people feel more like home,” chairwoman, Jessica Chaffey, told the ‘Herald.
“Our community has chosen to live here [in Fermanagh] for a good life and we want to feel that while here is our home now, we want to keep our culture alive too, which is important.”
Taking place at St Michael’s Community Hall next Saturday, planned activities will include lion and dragon dances, traditional songs and a Chen Taijiquan Dao Sabre demonstration.
With events scheduled to take place across Asian countries, the local Erne District Chinese Families’ and Friends’ Association is committed to keeping their traditions and culture alive.
“The old generation keep the traditional thinking, but our younger generation, it gets lost. It’s important to respect the elderly and what they grew up with,” said Ms Chaffey.
“People can come to us [in the Erne District Chinese Families’ and Friends’ Association] and they can discuss the challenges they face and what is happening in their local families.
“When we’re not in our own community, we can’t really speak our own language. With events like this, we can try our own food, our own culture and we can speak our language together.”
Chairman of Fermanagh and Omagh District Council, John McClaughry, will attend the festival.’
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