JUNE 20-26, 2018 UCW 19
WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM
The Caribbean American Connection
of Fayetteville, will host its 8th Annual
Heritage Caribbean Festival Sunday, June
24, from 12-9 p.m. in Festival Park.
"This is our festival where we give back
to the community so they can learn about
our culture," said Sheron Baker, coordina-
tor of the event.
The festival will feature authentic foods,
arts and crafts, local performers, African
dancers, Salsa singers, games for the chil-
dren, face painting, Reggae singers, cloth-
ing, vendors and more.
"We have a lot of fun stuff we will be
doing with the kids, and we will teach them
about our culture," said Baker.
In 2006, President George W. Bush issued
an annual proclamation recognizing June
as Caribbean American Heritage Month.
"The month is designed to let the commu-
nity know what the culture is about and all
about the Caribbean," said Baker. "We share
our culture, food, dance and the customs
we did before we got here."
Baker added that the event continues to
grow bigger each year, which is why it is
being held in Festival Park.
The Caribbean's rich culture has his-
torically been influenced by that of African,
European, Amerindian and Asian tradi-
tions. "We have a lot of different tastes and
types of food that we eat, and we wear cer-
tain ethnic clothing," said Baker. "We listen
to Reggae, Salsa and steel band music, and
we love to dance."
The nonprofit organization also volun-
teers to help a local school. "We adopted
a local school, and every Thanksgiving
we provide to the school," said Baker. "We
also help with back-to-school drives, help
flood victims, assist the Salvation Army
with feeding the homeless, support the
International Folk Festival and take part in
Fayetteville State University's International
Culture Day."
Baker also noted that "We have fundrais-
ers to raise money in order to make this
event successful. We have local restaurants
who sponsor us to help make this event
great. We look forward to the community
coming out to support our event."
Admission is free. For more information,
call 910-261-6910.
Eighth Annual Heritage Caribbean Festival in Festival Park
by DR. SHANESSA FENNER
EVENTS
DR. SHANESSA FENNER,
Principal, WT Brown Elementary
School. COMMENTS? Editor@
upandcomingweekly.com.
910-484-6200.
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