A Joyful Chinese New Year Celebration in Scarsdale

On February 28, over three hundred people came to the Scarsdale Library for a joyful Chinese New Year celebration to welcome the year of the Sheep. The well-attended event boasted a lively lion dance, eight group performances by Scarsdale Chinese families, several crafts and game tables, as well as refreshments at the end. Among the attendees were Scarsdale Mayor Mr. Robert Steves, Mayor Elect Mr. Jon Marks, Chief of Police Mr. Andrew Matturro and many other local residents.

This is the first-ever community-wide celebration co-sponsored by the Scarsdale Chinese Association and the Scarsdale Library. Chinese New Year has been celebrated at all of the elementary schools for the past few years. For this first village-wide celebration, residents from all five districts pooled resources and collaborated with success.

As the guests entered the library, they were greeted with bright red window decorations and warm smiles from the volunteers in traditional Chinese garb. Lanterns, New Year scrolls and craft tables lined the hallway leading to the Scott Room, instantly putting everyone into the festive holiday mood. Music, laughter and friendly chatter filled the room, which was decked out with bright decorations bearing good wishes for the New Year and a spring full of hope.

With a round of triumphant drum roll, the volunteer lion dance team kicked off the event with fanfare. The audience cheered as the lions crouched and jumped down the aisles. They enjoyed it even more when they recognized their neighbors and friends behind the lion costumes. The baby lions, played by young children, drew the biggest applause. After a brief welcome by the SCA current chair, a Scarsdale High School student discussed the origin of Chinese New Year traditions such as firecrackers and red envelopes, and answered questions from the audience. This was followed by two beautiful children's dances "Little Apple" and "Jasmine Flower", both by amateur troupes of elementary school students. The audience was deeply impressed by their professional choreography and costumes. Two Scarsdale middle schoolers performed a violin duet of the traditional Chinese folk song "Sweet Rice Balls", bringing back sweet childhood memories to many. The Scarsdale High School Mandarin class students, most of them of non-Chinese heritage, presented a play, "Three Little Pigs," in Chinese, which drew enthusiastic cheers and applause. A group of grandmothers in their sixties and seventies, looking radiant and fit in their red outfits, performed an energetic traditional dance that inspired all generations in the audience. The finale and high note were two fashion shows by a group of twenty Scarsdale moms, who all looked stunning as they modeled traditional Chinese costume (Han Fu) and mandarin dress (Qi Pao).

After the performances, adults and children lingered to resume the arts and crafts activities, play games and to sample delicious dumplings, spring rolls and scallion pancakes from Jade Spoon. They learned how to make an elaborate Chinese knot for decoration, a cute fluffy lamb with paper and cotton balls, and also perfected their chopstick skills and memory of the twelve horoscopes. Many stayed long after the programmed concluded, savoring the happy memories and catching up with friends and neighbors.

Mayor Bob Steves and wife Kathy said, "We very much enjoyed all of the performances and of course the food. But more importantly we appreciated the Scarsdale Chinese Association's effort to share its New Year celebration with the whole Scarsdale community."

The Scarsdale Chinese Association (SCA) was founded over 10 years ago by Chinese American families in Scarsdale to support each other and work together to contribute to the Scarsdale community. There are currently 250 members and the number continues to grow. SCA members commented: "Many SCA members have lived in Scarsdale for a long time and we love the town and the schools here. We may not have grown up here, but our children will. We value the traditions here and strive hard to make our adoptive community stronger. We celebrate Thanksgiving and other holidays as much as we celebrate Chinese New Year. Today's event is intended to bring everyone together and enrich the overall community. We are thrilled to see our neighbors embrace our culture and enjoy the activities so much. We would love to contribute as much as we can to bring the best of both worlds to Scarsdale, to help bridge and poise our next generation for a future of global economy."

Article by Claire He, Photos by Paula Whittlin