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59th Annual Festival of Nations - Red Lodge, Montana

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Education & Training

59th Annual Festival of Nations - Red Lodge, Montana

Festival of Nations - Red Lodge, Montana

Celebration, Culture, Community

The 59th annual Festival of Nations in Red Lodge will be taking place on July 31, August 1 and 2, 2009.

The town of Red Lodge has a multi-cultural heritage thanks mainly to the coal mines in the late 1800's, early 1900's which attracted attracted people from all over the world.  These immigrants came to Red Lodge to improve their living conditions and chances for a future.

The Festival of Nations is an annual event that celebrates the multi-cultural aspect of Red Lodge.  It usually takes in the early part of August every year.  This year's Festival of Nations promises to celebrate the diversity of cultures with plenty of ethnic food, cultural dances, live music and lots of fun activities.

I am looking forward to All Nations Gala that will take place at the Civic Center on Friday, July 31 from 7:00pm to 8:30pm.  Scheduled are  21 dances including traditional dances from Finland, Germany, Italy, former Yugoslavia, England, Ireland, Scotland and Scandinavia.  Those are the countries where most immigrants came to Red Lodge from in the late 1800's, early 1900's.  Admission to this event as for all events of the Festival of Nations is FREE for everyone!

For more info and complete schedule of events of Red Lodge's Festival of Nations (including photos), please visit www.festivalofnations.us .

The following paragraph is an except from the website explaining the various contributions of these countries to the city of Red Lodge and explains the celebration of their heritage by the multi-cultural dances that will take place at the All Nations Gala.

"From Finland came mine workers and construction workers. "Finn Town" on the east side of Red Lodge still has many traces of their unique architecture, and the indispensable saunas. From the Balkans came the strong workers who did much of the heavy work, and also tended many of the town's shops. Immigrants from England, Ireland, and Scotland spread over all the mining districts of Montana, forming an important part of the population in Red Lodge, Butte, Anaconda, and Helena. Italians and Germans came west too. The last major immigrant group was the Scandinavians. They played a large part in the settlement of the prairies of Montana and the Dakotas, but they also came to cities and industrial regions. The handiwork of Scandinavian carpenters is can be seen everywhere in Red Lodge's splendid architectural heritage".

This should be a fun filled weekend in Red Lodge that is sure to please everyone!

It's good to Be Here!!

Gerry Khatchikian, ASA, TRC (4 languages spoken: English, French, Spanish, Armenian)
Realtor Associate

ASA: Associate of the Society of Actuaries    TRC: Transnational Referral Certification

Gerry_Khatchikian@yahoo.com

All photos and/or written content produced by Gerry Khatchikian. All rights reserved and may not be reproduced or reprinted without express written permission of Gerry Khatchikian, Realtor Associate.

Comments (7)
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Mary Douglas
United Country Ponderosa Realty, Red Feather Lakes, Colorado - Red Feather Lakes, CO
REALTOR, Red Feather Lakes, Colorado

Hi Gerry, This sounds like a lot of fun and entertainment for the community! It also sounds like a great photo opportunity for a good photographer...hmmmmmm who would that be in Red Lodge?  Hope you get to go and given the chance, get a few pics for us.

Jul 28, 2009 01:55 PM
Gerry Khatchikian
Red Lodge, MT
ASA, TRC, SFR

Mary,

Given my multi-cultural background, I definitively plan to observe as well as participate in some of the fun events.  I will make sure to get a few pics for my AR friends as well as the online community.  Thanks for being the first to comment!

Jul 28, 2009 02:01 PM
Jenny Kotulak
RE/MAX Real Estate Centre Inc., Brokerage - Oakville, ON
Broker - Oakville Ontario Real Estate

Hi Gery,

I hope you get some photos of the dancers costumes from their native countries.  We have some new neighbors across the street that just moved here from Finland.  The first thing they did was  to put a sauna in the basement.  Some things you just can't leave home without.

Jul 28, 2009 05:21 PM
FN LN
Toronto, ON

Hi Gerry - It will be interesting to compare the multiculturalism in Red Lodge to the Greater Toronto Area.

Jul 28, 2009 11:10 PM
Gerry Khatchikian
Red Lodge, MT
ASA, TRC, SFR

Jenny,

I hope to take some photos on Friday of the dancers in their ethnic costumes.  Thank you for sharing the story of your neighbors across the street.  I guess that certain amenities are more important in certain cultures than in others.

Jul 29, 2009 06:10 AM
Gerry Khatchikian
Red Lodge, MT
ASA, TRC, SFR

Marc,

For a little town, Red Lodge has a lot of multiculturalism!   In Toronto you got lots of areas (with a lot of space in between) where you can observe different cultures (ex: Little Italy, Chinatown).  In Red Lodge, you can notice all the cultures blending in altogether and living in harmony in a very little space that is the town of Red Lodge.  We are multiculturalism in a much smaller scale than Toronto but I believe we interact a lot more between cultures.

Jul 29, 2009 06:20 AM
Anonymous
Marlene Matranga

My grandmother, Frances Golob, sang a Slovenian love song back in 1988, 89. It was at the civic Center on Jugoslavian nite. She was in her late 90’s and was wheeled out in the center, spot light on her, no accompaniment with microphone in hand! No one in our family taped this sad to say! I would pay for this if anyone could find it for me!!!Thank you,Marlene (Mourich) Matranga!!

Feb 09, 2019 02:42 PM
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