Chinese New Year Festival 2009 in the City of Whittlesea
By Arthur B.W. Yong
People, who identify with Chinese ancestry, celebrate Chinese New Year from the New Year Eve to the fifteen day of the first month of the Lunar Calendar in Australia, China, South East Asia countries and all over the world. The Whittlesea Chinese Association (WCA) and local residents celebrated Chinese New Year, Year of the Ox, on Saturday 31 January 2009 at the five different venues, St Luke’s Church Hall (1A David Street, Lalor), Lalor Living and Learning Centre (47 A French Street Lalor), Lalor Senior Citizens’ Centre (May Road Lalor), Lalor Library and Community Room (2A May Road Lalor).
The festival activities included art, business, children’s activities, craft, culture, dancing, education, employment, environment, fashion parades, Feng Shui, finance, food, health, history, information, recreation, singing, sustainability, tourism and a wide range of events. Lucky draw sponsored prizes were organised for different venues. A Variety of musical bands, musicians, performers and community groups participated in this celebration. One of the most spectacular highlights of the Festival was the performance of the Lion Dance. Twenty-three members of the Chinese Culture Centre of Victoria were enthusiastically involved in this traditional cultural performance with their two colorful lions, drum and musical instruments. Talented bagpipe members of Police Band of Victoria Police with their colorful costume performed at the festival. There were stalls from many CALD organisations and service agencies. They provided history, art, cultures and information exchange.
[edit] Activities
Mr. Yong, Chairperson of the festival, created a comedy act, fashion parade and Michael Jackson’s song, ‘Blood On The Dance Floor’, with Sally Huang, Shano Ali, supporters, Mary Lee and Serena Clark of Chinese from the North community radio program, 88.6 Plenty Valley FM. Mr. Reg Blow (local indigenous leader) performed welcome ceremony with dichido. Lily D’Ambrosio MP, the City of Whittlesea Mayor, Cr. Mary Lalios, Harry Jenkins MP and Mr. Wei Lian Shen, Consul General of The People’s Republic of China (PRC) in Melbourne gave their speeches. Bo Ai (RMIT University lecturer) assisted in Chinese translation. Speakers acknowledged the presence of Cr. Kris Pavlidis, Cr. John Fry, Cr. Sam Alessi, Cr. Frank Merlino, Cr. Fred Chuah JP (Deputy Mayor, City of Manningham), Cr. Enver Erdogen (City of Moreland), Jenny Mikakos MP, Hong Lim JP MP. The wife of Consul General of PRC, Mr. Chen Di (Consul of PRC), Mr. Tsebin Tchen (retired Senator for Liberal in Victoria), Mark Doney (Police Inspector), Frank Besanko (Commander of MFB Northern Zone), a few Chinese community leaders such as, Albert Lee JP, Thomas Ling, and Ch’ng Kar Keat, were at the festival. There were presence of local service providers, community organisations, friends and sponsors of WCA.
Denise Kuchmar, Linda Mitchell, Geraldine Ishkan, Adriana Rispot and Betty Kost, who are members of 88.6 Plenty Valley FM Choir, performed one of their songs, ‘What Are Friends For’. Other excellent and wonderful performances, to name a few included WCA Maple Dance, Belly Dance with Zabelle, Anthea and Pamela, Kurdish Folk dance, Vardos, Leticia Maher Duo, Jazz music with Cheryl Durong and Andrew Clark, Dancing and Singing Troupe of NEMCA, Arabic Folk Dance, Greek Dance, cross-cultural cooking demonstrations and demonstrations of East and West artworks. A young student, Brittany Maunder played ‘In Dreams’ with her biola. Bill McGillivray and Tim Boyd from 88.6 Plenty Valley FM were outside the church hall interviewing the performers and participants of the festivals.
“Hundreds of local residents of all ages and backgrounds and many friends of the Association from different suburbs of Victoria came together and attended a large variety of creative, entertaining and colorful festival activities, which promoted cultural diversity, community engagement and harmony in the City of Whittlesea,” said Arthur Yong, President of Whittlesea Chinese Association.
The Association acknowledged the major sponsors, which included the City of Whittlesea, Victorian Multicultural Commission, Plenty Community Credit Union, Commonwealth Bank Lalor branch, Barry Plant Thomastown, St. George Bank Limited, Graphics Unlimited, Woodland Waters and many other sponsors. Mr. Yong thanked all sponsors, performers, participants, volunteers, friends of the Association and the local residents of the City of Whittlesea, supporting this festival.
Further information is available at Whittlesea Chinese Association
References:
Yong, 2009: Arthur B.W. Yong, Chinese New Year Festival 2009 in the City of Whittlesea, Town Crier, Volume 228, March 2009, p.33.
Yong, 2009: Arthur Yong, Chinese New Year Festival 2009 in the City of Whittlesea, Division News, Northern Division of General Practice – Melbourne, Autumn 2009, p. 22.
