The first event marked on Port Jervis Tourism Board’s 2023 roster is a celebration to usher in the Chinese Year of Rabbit.
The celebration will start with a dragon dance on Jersey Avenue, followed by an authentic Chinese buffet, traditional crafts, and live performances at Erie Trackside Manor on Jan. 22, between 12 p.m. and 4 p.m., according to Jin Pang, coordinator of the event and a tourism board member.
The inside of the restaurant will undergo a face change with a variety of Chinese-flavored ornaments, with a photo booth on site for people to take pictures, Pang said.
Each attendant born in the Year of Rabbit—such as 1963, 1975, 1987, 1999, or 2011—will get a gift; each child will receive an envelope with gifts inside.
The event is free admission for all.
Pang told The Epoch Times that she hopes the celebration will not only be a fun time for local families but also bring visitors to the city to experience the downtown revival.
In the past five years or so, new businesses such as Foundry 42 and Fox and Hare filled up vacant downtown storefronts and gave the former industrial city a major facelift.
This is the city’s third Chinese New Year event coordinated by Pang.
Tourism Board Chairwoman Laura Meyer told The Epoch Times: “Our purpose is to bring people from outside Port Jervis to come to visit and shop. If you like it here, you may want to start a new business or buy a house.”
She said a number of New York City residents recently moved to Port Jervis because of the affordability.
Meyer moved to the city from Sullivan County about 12 years ago and soon joined the all-volunteer tourism board. She said that with her and other members’ efforts, the city’s event roaster had grown from just Fall Foliage to over half a dozen.
Fall Foliage is the longest-running event in the city, dating back over two decades ago.
In 2013, Meyer coordinated the first German-style Christkindlmarkt in Port Jervis, modeling it after the reputable Christmas market in Mifflinburg, Pennsylvania.
Then in February 2019, shortly after Pang joined the board, the city had its first Chinese New Year celebration. It was the Year of the Pig, and people enjoyed lion dance and Chinese food vendors along Josef Kucher Promenade.
Months later, the tourism board sponsored the city’s first St. Patrick’s Day Parade, organized by Meyer and Maria Mann.
In 2021, the city added an Italian festival, and a year later, a new event featuring songs from the 1950s.
Her goal is to have a monthly event in the city, perhaps adding a new Polish festival this year.
She said the events reflect the wide variety of cultures in the community. “It is a mixing bowl of people here. I’m just welcoming to all people,” Meyer said.
In recent years, there has been a growing Chinese population moving to the city and surrounding areas, many being Falun Gong adherents seeking refuge from persecution in communist China.
Under Pang’s coordination, Chinese food vendors often participate in various city events and add to the offerings.
“I can tell you just from them coming to our events and participating—they are often the last groups to leave, and they always sweep the street and leave everything clean,” Meyer said.
Mayor Kelly Decker said in a video welcoming the Chinese New Year event: “We appreciate all the cultural aspects that they have brought to our city. We just wish them a joyous and happy new year and peace and love throughout the world.”
