A group of diverse Clevelanders are getting together to celebrate One World Day.
The event is being held at the Cleveland Cultural Gardens, where locals will get the chance to taste food from around the world, witness cultural performances, ooo and aww over a fashion show and see a parade. There will also be a naturalization ceremony.
The headline performer at the event, Humble G Tha Fiddla and Afripeans, will be closing out the night with African drums and European strings.
“Make sure you come out August 27th from 11a.m. to 7p.m. for the One World Festival,” said Humble G Tha Fiddla, “I'll be playing with the Afripeans!”
Student volunteers from Case Western University were at the Polish Cultural Garden on Thursday sprucing up the area for the big day.
“I haven't really explored the Cleveland community yet, so this is a really good opportunity to see what's around and give back to the community that I’m going to be living in,” said Jordan Gross, incoming freshman.
The diverse group representing the different cultures at Sunday’s event originate from more than 30 different countries, but in their minds, they are all one.
“I was actually born in the Czech Republic,” said Paul Burik, former president of the Cleveland Cultural Gardens Federation. “The Czech community has strong roots in the 30's and 40’s.”
Folks at the Polish American Cultural Center have already started cooking for the thousands expected to come to the event, including pierogis (Polish dumplings), kielbasas (sausage), golabki (stuffed cabbage) and paczki (Polish donuts).
“Those are my favorite!” said Cleveland Cultural Garden Federation Vice President Connie Adams, referring to the paczki.
With representatives from Eastern Europe to Asia, more than 30 cultures are set to create a colorful One World Day.
“We are very hard-working people and have really melt ourselves into the fabric of Cleveland and fabric of America,” said Oanh Loi-Powell, delegate for the Vietnamese Cultural Garden.
Loi-Powell said attendees can look forward to homemade Vietnamese food, such as banh mi (Vietnamese sandwiches), pork and rice, plus Vietnamese coffee and tropical drinks.
Children can also grab a Passport to Peace; each country visited at the event will earn them a stamp. The visits around the different cultural booths are meant to symbolize the melting pot that Cleveland has become.
For history buffs and car lovers, a vehicle will be on display from the Crawford Aviation Museum, which is supported by the Cleveland Foundation.
Angie Lowrie with the Cleveland History Center said the center will also highlight Polish heritage in Cleveland at the event and bring in the Crawford’s 1959 Mercedes Benz to the event.
Larry Davis, the collection manager at Crawford Aviation Museum, said the vintage car was also a part of a special race around the world, back in 2000.
One World Day kicks off on Sunday at the Cleveland Cultural Gardens. The event is free to the public.
Here is a direct link to the parking information.
For a list of performances, click here.
For the map to the parade route, click here.
