BROOKLINE — The Brookline Asian American Family Network (BAAFN), the Brookline Office of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Community Relations, the Brookline Public Schools, and the Brookline Public Libraries invite the community to the Annual Asian American, Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander (AANHPI) Heritage Celebration.
The celebration will kick off AANHPI Heritage Month, celebrated in May, on Saturday, May 3, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. beginning at Hunneman Hall in the Brookline Village Library and culminating at the Korean Church, located across from Town Hall on Holden St. The community celebration focuses on AANHPI stories and art, features an author discussion, student performances and exhibits of student art work. There will also be food, puppet performances, arts and crafts, games, prizes, and more.
This year’s featured author, Patricia Park, will be hosting a discussion at 11 a.m. Park is an award-winning young adult novelist. Park will be signing books at the event, which will be for sale courtesy of Brookline Booksmith.
Student performances will follow the discussion. Performers include the Baker AANHPI Orchestra (BAO) and Baker’s Fan Dance Troupe and K-Pop Team, the Triveni Dancers and the Brookline High School Popcorn Dance Club. Brookline Interactive Group will record the presentation and performances, and a video will be available for viewing afterward.
Following the performances, the community is invited to walk to the Korean Church for various crafts, puppetry, fun and food. Also in attendance will be organizations such as Brookline for Racial Justice and Equity, Brookline Chinese School, Brookline Immigrant Advancement Committee, the Massachusetts Behavioral Health Help Line and more. Food will be available from Moyzilla Food Truck and Manoa Poke Shop, and samples of chai will be available from Madrasi.
On Wednesday, May 14, BAAFN will be holding its 10th Annual Essay Contest Award Ceremony at the Coolidge Corner Theatre from 6-8 p.m. The Keynote Speaker for the evening will be James Rhee, a former high school teacher and Harvard Law School graduate who became a private equity investor and, unexpectedly, an acclaimed CEO. Rhee teaches at the MIT Sloan School of Management, Duke University School of Law, and Howard University, where he was appointed the John H. Johnson Chair of Entrepreneurship.
The Town looks forward to an evening of celebration and recognition of outstanding essays. The event is free, but tickets are required. Visit BAAFN’s 10th Annual Essay Contest Celebration to reserve tickets. For questions regarding the Essay Award Contest Ceremony, please contact co-chairs Susan Park and Giles Li at baafnessay@gmail.com.
The Town would like to extend a special thank you to the sponsors who generously donated and ensured that this Essay Contest and Award Ceremony continues to be an annual highlight for Brookline students and families: Brookline Booksmith, Coolidge Corner Theatre, the Council of Korean Americans, Mint Julep, Olive Connection, Hsiu-Lan Chang, Lisa Flores, John Hodgman, Alicia Hsu, Giles Li, Susan Park Books and Chi Chi Wu.
For more information about this year’s celebration as well as the Brookline Asian American Family Network’s 10th Annual Essay Contest Award Ceremony, visit: https://baafn.weebly.com/celebrating-aapi-heritage-month.html
Lastly, from May 1 through the end of the month, Brookline Artist Yoonkyoung Ahn (안윤경) will be holding an exhibit showcasing Korean traditional artistry at the Brookline Village Library, 361 Washington St.
For more information or to request any accommodations or language access, please reach out to Caitlin Starr, Assistant Director in the Brookline Office of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Community Relations at cstarr@brooklinema.gov or at 617-730-2345
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