Roundtable celebrates heritage month
Asian cultural performances fill Wells Fargo Bank in annual celebration
Lynn Tran, staff writer
May 21, 2007

Photo by Ashton Do Pi' Pa player Jenny Chen, left, listens to some words of advice from her father, Hong Qing Chen, before her perfomance at the Asian Roundtable's annual Community Celebration May 12 at the Wells Fargo Bank in Denver. In the back, lion dancers from the Colorado Asian Cultural Heritage Center wait for their turn to perform.

DENVER – A colorful showcase of Asian and Pacific Island culture filled Asian Roundtable’s annual Community Celebration May 12 at the Wells Fargo Bank on Lincoln Street and 17th Avenue.

The Community Celebration is Asian Roundtable’s major event dedicated to Asian Heritage Month. At the same time, it is a ceremony to recognize the academic achievements of outstanding Asian-American students.

“We want to project our culture, that’s why we have different presentations,” said Tafoya Dally from the Filipino-American Community of Colorado Mano Po Choir. “This is a wonderful opportunity to come and be with different ethnic groups. We are all rich in culture.”

Rich indeed. The program consisted of euphonious Filipino songs sung by the FACC Mano Po Choir, which was followed by the lovely adorned ladies of the Denver Chinese School who performed the Tibetan folk dance. The Colorado Asian Cultural Heritage Center gave an animated lion dance throughout the banquet room, while Jenny Chen took audiences’ breaths away as she wittily played the Pi’ Pa. Finally, Kaci Kopec, a Polynesian Fia Fia dancer, closed the celebration with her graceful movements to the Hawaiian dance music.

The audience consisted of mostly Asian families ranging from grandparents to toddlers who filled the entire banquet room. The celebration was a tasteful educational experience for the 350 attendees.

“To me it’s a way to preserve my heritage that’s important,” said Elbert Eloriaga, president of the Philippine-American Society of Colorado. “It’s a way to build a connection between the first generation and third generation of Asian Americans.”

The Asian Roundtable is a nonprofit organization that is made up of an assemblage of leaders who represent other Asian organizations, which include the Asian Chamber of Commerce, American Family Coalition, Asian Pacific Development Center, Aurora Asian/Pacific Community Partnership, Boulder Asian Pacific Alliance, Colorado Asian Cultural Heritage Center, Colorado Asian Health Education and Promotion, Colorado Chinese Evergreen Society, Colorado Chinese News, Colorado Dragon Boat Festival, Colorado Springs Chinese Cultural Institute, Denver Chinese School, Denver Public Safety/Denver Police Department, Filipino-American Community of Colorado, Mile-Hi Chapter Japanese American Citizen’s League, Philippine-American Society of Colorado, Premier Bank, Qwest Pacific Asian American Network and Wells Fargo Bank.

Lynn Tran is a staff writer for AsiaXpress.com. Lynn can be contacted via e-mail at Lynn.Tran@asiaxpress.com.