Multi Cultural Celebration

Saturday, October 22, 2011 was the annual Multi Cultural Celebration coordinated by the Multi Ethnic Coordinating Team and hosted by St. John's UMC in Hazlet.  The auditorium was brightly decorated with representing the countries of the world.  Attendees were invited to wear their traditional cultural dress or something representative of their culture, which many did.  Also in attendance to support the event were Bishop Sudarshana Devadhar, the Cabinet, Extended Cabinet, and Program Staff of the Conference.     

The evening started with a "Parade of Flags" carried by people of a variety of ages and ethnicities while drummers from the African Group provided traditional music.  Host, Judy Colorado, welcomed everyone in attendance and thanked all of the performing groups for volunteering their time and talents.  There was a nice variety of performances including: praise dance by the African Group of Trenton UMC; a Scottish song and prayer by Irene Greenhalgh of Grace UMC; a praise song by a Brazilian Group; a Hindi praise song by members of Montvale UMC; a West Indian skit by members of Long Branch UMC; and a praise song by Jaime Hernandez of Christ UMC.  Throughout the program, there were also times of prayer in a variety of languages and community singing. 

Following a dinner feast of a variety of foods from around the world, guests were surprised with a new program element this year: A Fashion Show!  The best dressed of the evening were encouraged to "strut their stuff" for the audience while Kyu Tae Pak and Judy Colorado described their outfits.  In the end, prizes were awarded for a variety of titles and a lot of laughs were had by all. 

The Multi Cultural Celebration is designed to celebrate our cultural and ethnic diversity as a Conference.  It is a joyous occasion to get together as individuals of a variety of heritages and backgrounds but unified as one people making disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.  Many thanks to Judy Colorado and the members of the Multi Ethnic Coordinating Team, Rev. Lanie Price and St. John's UMC-Hazlet, and all of the people who gave their time, energy, and talents to make this great celebration a success!