The students at St. Columban Catholic School in Garden Grove celebrated the Lunar New Year with all the colorful and traditional festivities associated with the annual holiday.
ST. COLUMBAN CATHOLIC SCHOOL HOSTED A SPECIAL CELEBRATION ON FEB. 2 IN ADVANCE OF THE LUNAR NEW YEAR, WHICH BEGAN ON FEB. 10 AND MARKS THE BEGINNING OF THE YEAR OF THE DRAGON. PHOTOS BY LOU PONSI/DIOCESE OF ORANGE
Donned in traditional red and gold costumes, upper and lower grade groups of students performed on stage, dancing and drumming to welcome in 2024, the Year of the Dragon, one of the 12 animals in the Chinese zodiac.
A LUNAR NEW YEAR CELEBRATION WAS HELD ON FEB. 2 AT ST. COLUMBAN CATHOLIC SCHOOL IN GARDEN GROVE.
St. Columban hosted the celebration on Feb. 2 in advance of the Lunar New Year, which began on Feb. 10.
The highlight was, of course, the Lion Dance, where children cheered as costumed “lions” and “dragons,” weaved through the auditorium as a symbolic gesture meant to bring luck and good fortune to the audience.
“I think the kids are marvelous,” said Fr. Joseph Luan Nguyen, pastor of St. Columban parish in Garden Grove. “They’ve done a wonderful job.”
The majority of the more than 300 St. Columban students are Vietnamese and Fr. Nguyen said the Lunar New Year celebration is a way for students to learn about and celebrate their culture, while also sharing their culture with other groups.
“This is Year of the Dragon,” said Fr. Nguyen, who has been at St. Columban for less than a year and was celebrating his first Lunar New Year at the parish. “The dragon is very powerful and this is the best year and we wish for the students to try to have strength and love for the Lord and love for one another. My wish for the children is to continue to develop their individual talents to become more productive in society and in the Catholic Church.”
The Years of the Dragon include 1988, 2000, 2012 and 2024. Those born in those years are believed to be charismatic, ambitious, energetic and confident and are considered to be natural leaders.
Most of the St. Columban sixth graders were born in the Year of the Dragon, said Vivian Ngo, a member of the parent guild at school and lead organizer for the event.
Tradition calls for the students born in the year associated with their animal to give a gift back to their parents in return for all the gifts parents have given them, Ngo said.
“This year is a little bit more special for me because my son is a dragon,” Ngo said. “He’s in sixth grade.”
The St. Columban sixth graders chose to recite the poem, “The Chinese Dragon” by Catherine Benson.
Part of the poem reads:
“I’m the dragon of red and green and gold. I can breathe out fire or smoke that is cold. If you’ve been good, then you have nothing to fear. From the dragon of red, green and gold – The King of Chinese New Year.”
The students were also gifted with Vietnamese food to bring home, which was donated by a local restaurant, Ngo said.
Students spent time after school practicing for the event and parents spent months organizing and reaching out for sponsors.
“Putting on something like this obviously takes a lot of work,” St. Columban principal Melissa Geary said. “So, it’s wonderful to have the involvement of parents who love to do this and want to help and want to do it for the kids in the community.