Focus Feature: Celebrating culture — Greater Medford Multicultural Fair returns for 30th year

Published 4:00 am Thursday, September 28, 2023

Local diversity will be commemorated with music, dance and performances aplenty to celebrate the unique cultures and people living in the Rogue Valley.

The Greater Medford Multicultural Fair, scheduled from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 30, at Pear Blossom Park, 312 E. Fourth St., in Medford, will be free to attend.

The event will feature musical performances from the female-led Danielle Kelly Soul Project and DJ Gemineye, the official DJ for the University of Oregon’s football and men’s basketball teams.

“The fair has been in operation continuously for 30 years and is the longest tenured fair of its kind in the state of Oregon,” said organizer Debra Lee. “We’re proud of that, and the environment has always been positive and welcoming to everyone who shares their diversity and all the different ways they represent our community.”

A wide array of performers will share their cultures to attendees throughout, with a dragon dance from the Southern Oregon Chinese Cultural Association to open the fair.

The list of performers showcasing their cultures include Ashland resident Neeta Singh exhibiting her Indian heritage with Bollywood dancing, Ballet Folklorico Ritmo Alegre bringing the regional folk dances of Mexico, a choreographed performance by the dancers of Hula ‘O Nuku ‘Āina showcasing Hawaiian and Polynesian culture, and a dance performance from the Southern Oregon Filipino-American Association.

Katherine Greene will lead the dancers of Hula ‘O Nuku ‘Āina — which means “a passage in the land” in Hawaiian — as her group’s dances will recall the true story of Hawaiian cowboys and their origin during the early 19th century.

“Kamehameha (the first) was given three longhorn cattle as a gift from George Vancouver, and the cattle were considered sacred, no one was allowed to hunt or do anything with them,” Greene said.

After the cows began destroying crop fields and causing damage to forests and villages, the Hawaiians enlisted the help of Mexican vaqueros, or cowboys, to teach them how to control the cattle.

“They brought horses and guitars and taught the Hawaiians how to ranch, and they become known as Hawaiian cowboys, or paniolos” Greene said.

Greene will also aid the Southern Oregon Chinese Cultural Association with the group’s dragon dance to begin festivities.

“The dragon is one of main symbols of Chinese festivals and events, and the dragon was donated to us from Portland,” Greene said. “It’s about 40 feet long and takes about eight people to manipulate it.”

“We have a folk singer from Ukraine who’s going to close the performance also,” Lee said. “All the entertainment is volunteers from our community.”

The Greater Medford Multicultural Fair will feature 12 food vendors serving dishes from around the world, activities for kids, and booths featuring community groups, Lee added.

Some of the food vendors are FilippinoFire, Mahalo Shaved Ice, Yola’s Tacos, as well as vendors serving Thai food and Caribbean cuisine.

To commemorate the 30th year of the fair, an intergenerational tile art project will be available for attendees to contribute to and observe. Once the tile art project is completed, it will be installed at the Santo Community Center in Medford.

“The significance [of the fair] is understanding that a variety of people come from different backgrounds and have different ways of expressing history, life and where they are,” Greene said. “It’s something that brings people together and allows people to be exposed to varieties and cultures here in the Rogue Valley.”

To learn more about the fair, visit www.facebook.com/greatermedfordmulticultural.