Lunar New Year celebration aims to bridge a gap in the Greater Moncton Area

Calling it a festival for everyone, the Greater Moncton Chinese Cultural Association brought one of their biggest celebrations to New Brunswick on Sunday.

“This is the real New Year for us, so the New Year we would have a holiday, we would have big family gatherings, we would have been (having) feasts and big celebration,” said president, Yukon Zhou.

“This party is actually open to everyone and we have so many from all different races, different associations, different areas.”

It’s a treasured celebration back home, and with Moncton now home to so many immigrants, this years Lunar New Year festival aimed to bridge a gap.

“For us, we’re Chinese immigrants,” said Zhou.

“When we come here, we don’t want to just stay in as our own small community, we would like to mingle into our new home. This is a new home for us and we want to get into it, immerse into it.”

She says that the association faced a lot of challenges during COVID, including making it difficult to both connect with new immigrants and connect their members with the broader community.

“COVID has been basically breaking the society apart because there’s new immigrants who have come in that don’t get in contact with the others,” she said.

Adding, “Another big draw back for us, because of the COVID, it’s also closed us. It’s like the Chinese community is closed into a bubble.”

Zhou says the association wants to find ways to connect with the community again and festivals like this one are a great way to do that.

“We’re already trying so hard with all of the studying, working and trying to be together, be the same with you guys, but we also want to show our speciality,” she said.

The event featured a Chinese market filled with hands-on activities, authentic food vendors, and a glimpse into the culture.

There were also games and performance throughout the day, which gave visitors the chance to fully immerse themselves in the experience.

“My wife works at the YMCA at the counter in the north end and she really enjoys dealing with people from everywhere so this was the opportunity, when she was offered a ticket, to come check things out, and for me, it was an opportunity to try out another travel trip without going anywhere,” said Paul Eric Legace.

He said there was a lot of different food to try and the entire event brought forward cheerfulness and fun.

MeiLin Wang moved to Moncton just a few months ago.

“It’s really cool actually, I really like it because I have never experienced it in real life. I never experienced it in my life, so it’s my first time and I volunteer here,” she said.

She believes this is an event that should be celebrated every year and it’s important to bring the entire community together.

“I would say it’s my culture because my dad is Chinese, I’m half Chinese, so I would say all the people here are my people,” she said.

“We can learn about each other, differences in cultures, in nations, it will bring us together as community.”

Organizers say the main goal was to bring everyone together, and with 700 of the 800 available tickets sold in advance, it promised to be a successful afternoon.

Zhou hopes that it helps show other Chinese immigrants that Moncton is a good place to officially call home.

“I have stayed here for almost 18 years, so I really love Moncton because this city is so beautiful,” she said.

“I keep enjoying all the beauties of Moncton. I love the people here, it’s so simple. I love the lifestyle, it’s relaxed, so I really hope the people come from my home country in China can also enjoy this beauty.”

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