Jacksonville’s Chinese New Year Events

SOCCA 2013 CHINESE NEW YEAR CELEBRATION
Schedule of Activities in Jacksonville on February 16, Jacksonville, Oregon

(Subject to change)
SPECIAL EVENTS
8AM – The Snake-A-Leg 5K Fun Run – starts at the Bigham Knoll Campus rain or shine. Prior application required. See our website (www.socca.us) for application form and instructions.

10:30AM – Traditional Chinese Lion and Dragon Dance Parade – where gongs and music will welcome the Year of the Snake. Procession begins on Oregon Street and Main Street. See our website (www.socca.us) for application form and join our revelry.

11:30AM-12:30PM – Chinese Cooking Demonstration: Firecracker Long Noodles with stir fried pork (or tofu for vegetarians) and Chinese vegetables. Chef William Prahl at the Déjà Vu Bistro and Wine Bar (at McCully House) will prepare and share samples from this tasty dish. Admission is $5, available at the Jacksonville Chamber of Commerce. Déjà vu Bistro will be open and will be serving this dish after the demonstration.

1:30PM “It’s a Jungle In Here!” By popular demand, the “dragon-ladies” of Loong Mah Sing See Hui are back: their entire troupe of 30 performers are bringing their acrobatic pets to help celebrate the Year of the Snake. Performance is in the Gymnasium at the Jacksonville Elementary School, 655 Hueners Ln. Admission: $5, tickets available at the Jacksonville Chamber of Commerce.

ACTIVITIES and PRESENTATIONS
(The following activities are FREE and open to the public)
11:30AM – 12:30PM Unfinished Journey: A treasure box of documents and a long trip home. Play history detective alongside NPR regional correspondent Tom Banse, as he retells the tale of emptied graves, embezzlement and restless souls of the remains of pioneer Chinese immigrants in Oregon. At the U.S. Hotel Ballroom.

11:30AM -12:30PM American and Chinese: perceptions and misperceptions. Dr. Anthony Hutchison was Director of China Analysis at the U.S. Department of State and served 20 years in China as a U.S. diplomat. ‘Father Tony’ is the Rector of Trinity Episcopal Church in Ashland and will discuss how the Chinese see us – and how we look at the Chinese, at the Historic Presbyterian Church Sanctuary (upstairs).

11:30AM – 12:30PM Searching for Gold Mountain – The Chinese of Jacksonville (presentation) by historian Larry Smith at Old City Hall on Main Street. Weather permitting, the group will visit the “Long Tom” Sluice Box Chinese Memorial Fountain.
11:30AM-1:30PM Tea House and Chinese Music Relax to a complementary cup of tea and listen to live Chinese music played on authentic Chinese instrument, performed by Who’s Hu (Chinese Band). Open to public display is a private collection of exotic Chinese instruments, courtesy of Jack Schumann. At the Historic Presbyterian Church Fellowship Hall (downstairs).
11:30AM-12:30PM Moving for Better Balance (MFBB class) –Barbara Meredith (of the Rogue Valley YMCA) is National Faculty for Y-USA MFBB is developed by Dr. Fuzhong Li, and she teaches this adaptation of the Yang-Style Short-Form Tai-Chi 太極拳 – as exercise for seniors, helping them improve their balance, overcoming their fear of falling and building their confidence in doing everyday activities, at the Masonic (Warren) Lodge.

11:30AM-1PM Acupuncture Treatment: Relieving Pain Using Needles – practicing acupuncturist Owen Jurling demonstrates 4000 year old traditional Chinese healing art with the use of needles. Persons seeking pain management are encouraged to present for treatment. At the Naverson Room, Jacksonville Library. (Simultaneously with Chinese Calligraphy.)

11:30AM-1PM Chinese (Brush) Calligraphy 書法 – unique to Asian cultures: the ink, flexibility of brush, and absorptivity of the paper, produce an infinite variety of styles and forms and often thought to reveal the character of one’s personality. Fuyou Long 龍伏佑, graduate of Wuhan University and People’s University in China and 2006 published author will give an introduction and demonstration, in the Naverson room, at the Jacksonville City Library.

12:30PM-1:30PM What does Feng Shui offer me in these troubled times? Feng Shui 風水 Master and Owner of Creative Vision, Sugeet Posey explains this science and how one can maximize the positive in one’s home and business. Presented at the U.S. Hotel Ballroom.

12:30PM-1:30PM Seventy Thousand Firecrackers: The Story of Chinese New Year in Victorian Ashland. In 1893 it was also the ‘Year of the Snake’ and the Ashland Daily Tidings (newspaper) reported that the whole community was invited to participate. Victoria Law, founder of the Ashland Historic and Railroad Museum, will retell the tales from documented reports of this event, at the Historic Presbyterian Church Sanctuary (upstairs).

12:30PM-1:30PM “The Mood and the Wind: Beyond Kung-fu” – the forms 法 and rituals 禮 of Chinese Kung-fu: it is not all fist and fury, it is philosophy and poetry in motion: demonstrated and explained by Sijo 師祖 Grand-master David Day of Shui Bing Fa 水冰法 Kempo, at the Masonic (Warren) Lodge.

12:30PM-1:30PM Chinese Astrology: The Year of the Water Snake – The sixth of twelve zodiac animals on the Chinese calendar. What’s in your fortune? Ken Bendat, Chinese scholar and doctor of Chinese medicine, reveals amusing and insightful perspectives and stories for this year. At the Old City Hall.

CHILDREN’S ACTIVITIES 11:30AM-2PM
– Dragon Play and Jumphouse at the Jacksonville Museum Grounds,
– Children’s Craft and Lantern Building at the Jacksonville Museum Annex,
– Children’s Games and Activities at the IOOF Hall

SPECIAL EXHIBITS
* Selections from a collection of Antique Chinese furnishings from the Tree House Oriental Antiques, 10am – 3pm at U.S. Hotel Ballroom. Angela Ying Liu Blackwell will be present to answer questions.

* In China’s long history, her people have produced a valuable cultural legacy of colorful folk arts and crafts. A set of 22 color photographs features the traditional handicrafts of China displayed at the Art Presence Art Center
(formerly the Children’s Museum), Fri.-Sun, 11AM-5PM.

* Photographs of Chinese Pioneers – A selection from Jacksonville’s acclaimed horticulturist and photographer Peter Britt (1819-1905). He was a friend of the local Chinese and often took portrait photos for them. Photos from SOCCA, Ashland Historic Railroad Museum and Southern Oregon Historical Society.

* A display of property and costume from White Snake – a popular Chinese folk-tale adapted for the stage by Mary Zimmerman, debut at Oregon Shakespeare Festival earlier last year celebrates the Year of the Snake, at the U.S. Hotel Ballroom.