A week-long series of events in Hastings, Nebraska, culminates Sunday, November 17, at the Hastings Cultural Festival at Hastings College’s Kiewit Gymnasium (715 E. 7th Street). The event is from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. and is free and open to the public. It is sponsored by Hastings College, the Hastings Multicultural Association and the YWCA .
The Cultural Festival is designed to showcase and celebrate various cultures present at Hastings College and in the entire Hastings community, bringing together people from diverse backgrounds to build community through food, music and dance from around the world.
This is the 10th year of the festival, which includes groups offering ethnic-themed performances, and a number of booths serving a variety ethnic foods for attendees to enjoy.
Being the 10th anniversary, the Hastings Cultural Festival connected with community partners to create a weeklong collection of events meant to celebrate the diversity of Hastings. The events began Monday, November 11, and included a Train the Trainer for Service Providers to help and support immigrant populations, a pizza supper and film screening at Hastings Museum, a Raices de mi Pueblo performance at the Central Community College-Hastings and an Interfaith Conversation by Tri-Faith Initiative.
On Friday, November 15, there is a Cultural Connect Luncheon at the YWCA. It begins at 11:30 and is open to the public with an RSVP to the YWCA. Partners include the YWCA, Hastings Multicultural Association and the Center for Rural Affairs.
On Saturday, November 16, a Cultural Connect Poetry Slam with Nebraska’s 2019 State Poet Matt Mason is at First Street Brewing Co. (119 N. St. Joseph Avenue) at 7:00 p.m. The event is open to the public and includes cash prizes. Partners include First Street Brewery, Hastings Community Arts Council and Nebraska Writers Collective.
Nebraska’s premier private college, Hastings College is a four-year institution located in Hastings, Nebraska, that focuses on student academic and extracurricular achievement. Hastings College has been named among “Great Schools, Great Prices” by U.S. News & World Report and a “Best in the Midwest” by The Princeton Review. For more, go to hastings.edu.
