Hundreds gather for celebration of Khmer New Year in Westbrook

Hundreds gather for celebration of Khmer New Year in Westbrook – Portland Press Herald

Local & State

Posted Yesterday at 5:21 PM

Updated April 15

Organizers estimate that at least 300 people attended the celebration of the Cambodian holiday that marks the end of the traditional harvest season.

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WESTBROOK — Hundreds of people gathered at Riverbank Park on Saturday for a day of dancing, games, food and a parade in celebration of Khmer New Year.

The Cambodian holiday, which takes place from April 14-16, marks the end of the traditional harvest season and is a time of rest and leisure for farmers who return home to their communities.

“It’s a big holiday for our community and our culture,” said Navan Leng, president of Watt Samaki Temple, which co-hosted the Khmer New Year Festival and Parade along with Khmer Maine.

Maine’s small Cambodian community has observed the holiday for years, but this year’s celebration was more public and visible. In years past, Leng said the holiday has been celebrated at the temple in Buxton, but he said the Westbrook park is easier for more people to get to, and the temple is also considering relocating closer to Portland in a community like Westbrook.

“We’re trying to introduce our culture to the community, and also the food,” Leng said. He estimated that at least 300 people attended Saturday.

The festivities included games, arts and crafts, Cambodian dance and a parade. Traditional foods including fish, beef, chicken and pork skewers, Cambodian noodles and sweets such as cakes, donuts and banana sticky rice were served.

“The public reception, I think, was both phenomenal and also unexpected,” said Marpheen Chann, president of Khmer Maine, a nonprofit dedicated to improving the quality of life and socioeconomic well-being of Cambodian people in Maine.

Chann said he was pleased to see people of all ages and ethnicities participating in the festival. “To see them all celebrating with us was huge,” he said.

In mid-afternoon, several men and women were performing a traditional dance called Romvong to live music while a group of young people engaged in a game of tug of war. Savy Kuch, who was watching and taking pictures of the tug of war, said she was excited to see a public event celebrating the holiday.

“It’s sort of like our breaking in and ‘Hey, we’re here. We’re the Cambodian community,” said Kuch, who lives in Kennebunk. She said the community has been in Maine for decades, but many people may not know a lot about Cambodian culture. Cambodians have also been targeted by hate crimes over the years, which has had the effect of causing the community to retreat into itself, she said.

“We’re excited that this is an opportunity where we can come out and showcase our people, our culture and how much we want to be a part of Maine,” Kuch said.

Organizers said they are hoping to bring the festival back to the park again next year. “We’ve gotten good feedback,” Chann said. “We’ve learned a lot and will make sure next year’s event is bigger and better.”

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