“Pangea: Cultivate Our Culture” Celebrates 25th Year

The event celebrates diversity through music, dance, and food

MOORHEAD, Minn. – “Pangea: Cultivate our Culture” is a yearly multi–cultural event that celebrates all the diversity in the F–M community.

“We love the idea of celebrating the great diversity in our community and to have an opportunity, give an opportunity for everyone to showcase the best in their culture even as they are assimilating to American culture. They have an opportunity to share their food, their dance and music,” says Maureen Kelly Jonason of the Historical and Cultural Society of Clay County.

The yearly event has something for everyone.

They have meals from places like Congo, Egypt and Southeast Asia.

They also feature artwork from artists from different countries and cultural exhibitions with historic information from those countries.

“In celebration of our 25th anniversary we have two stages of activities with lots and lots of fun things going on including World Champion Yo–Yo Champion and we have an interesting Jewish Ceremony going on today, so we’ve got all kinds of interesting cultural experiences for everyone,” she says.

The event started in churches, basements and auditoriums before finally coming to the Hjemkomst Center in 2003.

They hope that this event brings unity to the F–M community and that people get to know more about other cultures through dance and food.

“We always hope that Pangea brings a sense of unity to our community in that we are together in this all together as one and it really does bring out the best in people in both audiences and performers and in people who are sharing their foods. So we hope it brings out the best in everybody,” she adds.

“Everyone can see each other’s like, cultures; see the beauty of it because some people you know see things differently so maybe they can show them in a different way like through dance or song or something like that,” says Kiymara, a Dancer who is performing with her group.

The event was made possible by donations and collaborators like Cultural Diversity Resources, New American Consortium, and Lutheran Social Services of North Dakota.

The first 500 attendees received a free Pangea goodie bag.