6-year-old Neima Cecunjanin will show off his family’s poster board in Montenegro, her father’s home country, featuring traditional cuisine, on a multicultural evening at Petroba Elementary School on Thursday. (Enterprise Photo – Aaron Marborn)
Lake Saranac – As Peruvian African drumming rhythm echoed from the Bleachers in another corner on Thursday night, the delicious smell of Peruvian bee rice filled a corner of the Petrova Middle School gymnasium.
The children ran around with brightly colored passports as they learned about the approximately 40 different countries and cultures represented in the school.
The 7th Annual Petroba Multicultural Night creates posters with information about your hometown, share stories from places of interest, and create traditional foods to share with about 300 participants I brought the family who cooked it.
Some students had parents in the countries they featured. Some had ancestors of those countries. He loved the Beatles and featured Liverpool, England, on the board, while another student featured nearby Quebec City.
Event co-organisations Temnit Muldowney and Jesse Jakobe said it is always something that we feel strongly about celebrating all cultures in the school.
Five-year-old Edythe Sampson will play West African drums alongside Badenyah Drum and Dance on a multicultural night at Petroba Elementary School on Thursday. (Enterprise Photo – Aaron Marborn)
“Jesse and I began to talk about how we wanted our students to see how many unique perspectives they have and how many unique cultures that make up our school community.” Muldowney, a fourth-grade teacher, said.
They said the event is growing every year.
6-year-old Neima Cecunjanin excitedly pointed out the entire Montenegro poster, where her father was born.
“These are beaches, cities, mountains, and rainforests too. This is how you say it all, and these are drinks, coffee, traditional dances. How about food?” She said.
Her favorite food was Krulakia – crisp, crunchy, sesame seed top cookies.
9-year-old Jace Karirek will be showing off a poster board about Mohawk’s heritage on a multicultural evening at Petrova Elementary School on Thursday. (Photo provided – Sara Chatrow)
The board had pictures of the mountain ranges much larger than the Adirondacks.
“Montenegro” means Black Mountain. ” The board of directors said. “There are a lot!”
There were also some common phrases on the board – “zdravo” That means “Hello,” or “hvala” meaning “thank you.”
This year, the Deaf Community was also represented, and the booth was established by Gemini Randolph, an American sign language teacher at Petrova Middle School.
Muldany said most days people walked down the school hallways and didn’t understand the diversity of their peers. They wanted to create a night for students to teach each other about family history.
Clayton Family – April, Farah, Kalila, Alec and Paul will showcase the spread of Peruvian food, facts and photography on a multicultural evening at Petroba Elementary School on Thursday. Farah was originally from Peru, and her entire family was decorated in Peruvian football jerseys. (Enterprise Photo – Aaron Marborn)
“Students are each one’s best teachers.” Mardany said.
Jacobe, a language and language pathologist at the school, said it was a way to connect the home with the school and engage parents.
“The kids talk about it for a few weeks until they reach that. The energy around it became really contagious.” Jacobe said.
It also gives them the opportunity to talk about culture and heritage at home.
Muldowney said the family told them this year that they brought them closer, even before the night began. When they studied their culture and created their posters, they gave them an unusual opportunity to talk about their culture.
11-year-old Belma Cecunjanin gives 10-year-old Annika Parker, a leaf tattoo on a multicultural night at Petroba Elementary School on Thursday. (Enterprise Photo – Aaron Marborn)
Faraclayton, a native of Peru, South America, said he was excited to bring her country’s traditional dishes to the children’s school at Lake Saranac – soy sauce, onions, mung beans, chicken, rice , steak dish with fries, tomatoes, onions and peppers.
She cooks such meals frequently, but at this event she got the help of Lake Placid’s Peruvian restaurant Solo de Oro.
Clayton’s husband Paul said the most difficult thing is that the quality of the seafood is harder to get into the Adirondacks compared to Peru on the South Pacific coast.
This was Farah’s first time on Petrova’s multicultural night.
“That’s why I tried so hard.” She said, pointing to an elaborate committee of families filled with Peruvian history, statistics, flags and food.
Jeremiah Barnett, a junior at Paul Smith College’s Cooking Program, mixes a bowl of carrots marinated in a spicy Hong Kong noodles salad, stewed beef and toasted sesame seeds on Thursday. (Enterprise Photo – Aaron Marborn)
“A part of my country is that if you’re going to do something, you have to get it right.” Farah said.
The event was funded in part by the district’s 21st Century Community Learning Centre Grant.
Free books on locations around the world were available to students through funding from the Saranac Lake Teachers Association Union of New York State University.
Jacobe said several Montenegro families, with around 10 children, had a dance celebration in a corner of the gym.
“The kids were embarrassed at first, but they quickly got lost.” Jacobe said.
For a minute at the end of the night, their traditional Montenegrin music was mixed with West African drums from the other horn.
James Benny Borras, age 6, and Anya Venny Borras, age 8, will show off their passports on a multicultural night at Petrova Elementary School on Thursday. (Enterprise Photo – Aaron Marborn)
Badenya Drum and Dance Teresa Hartford and Diane Ouriba fill the gym with West African drumbeats on a multicultural night at Petroba Elementary School on Thursday. (Enterprise Photo – Aaron Marborn)
