Diversity celebrated through food, dance, fellowship
CRANBERRY TWP--The sixth annual Cranfest celebrated global diversity on Saturday at the township municipal center, and it smelled delicious.
The center’s gymnasium saw food vendors mixed in with business and organization vendors around the perimeter, with long tables for viewing a performance on the nearby stage and noshing on delectable and exotic foods in the center.
The various vendors sold Columbian, Filipino, Indian and other foods as well as boba drinks.
A plethora of performances entertained those enjoying some lunch in the gym, including Bulgarian, Thai, Irish and Chinese dancing.
The festival was held from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the gym and main part of the municipal center.
The “town square” area of the center, outside the Cranberry Township Public Library, also was set up as a stage for performers of various cultures.
Organizations with global ties set up in a hallway, including the St. David’s Society of Pittsburgh, which is an organization for Wales natives or descendants.
Susan Parry, membership secretary, said she set up a table at Cranfest to educate people on Wales or talk to people of Welsh descent.
“A lot of people don’t know it’s a country in its own right,” she said.
Famous Wales natives, Parry said, include singer Tom Jones, actress Catherine Zeta Jones and actor Anthony Hopkins.
She said those of Welsh heritage were interested to learn the 2024 North American Festival of Wales will be held in Pittsburgh over Labor Day Weekend.
Max Cisse, 12, enjoyed a boba drink in the gymnasium on Saturday.
“It’s really cool,” Max said of the festival. “I was here last year.”
He appreciates the Cranberry Area Diversity Network for holding the event so attendees will be dissuaded from forming stereotypes about people of other cultures.
“I hope people learn they don’t have to be scared of different cultures just because the people look different or have different beliefs,” Max said.
Max said he has been the target of racism, but not recently.
“When I was younger, a kid wouldn’t let me play on his team because I have dark skin,” Max said. “I haven’t really experienced anything like that since then.”
His friend, Anneliese Dykstra, 13, also sipped on a boba drink on Saturday.
“I hope kids think about treating everybody with respect,” she said.
David Zhang, of Adams Township, came to Cranfest with his wife and two young children.
“They make a mess if we stay home,” Zhang said of bringing the tots to Cranfest.
Growing more serious, Zhang said he and other members of the Chinese Pittsburgh Christian Church visited Cranfest on Saturday.
“The Cranberry area is a diverse community,” Zhang said. “It’s a brilliant idea to honor people of different cultures.”
He said as his children grow, they will lose more and more of their Chinese heritage because they did not grow up in China.
But the Zhangs plan to instill in their children an appreciation for their Chinese background and all cultures.
“They have to cherish their heritage, but keep their minds open,” he said.
Lisa Smith, of Cranberry Township, is a first-generation American, as her mother is British.
Smith brought her children and mother — who earned her U.S. citizenship on Friday — to Cranfest to enjoy the food, performers and information available.
“Diversity is very important,” Smith said. “It’s the only way you know who you are and where you come from.”
She said the event was good for her children, too.
“They get exposure to the whole world,” she said.
Her son, Alasdair, 15, said Americans have the choice to take a bigoted view of those from other cultures or learn about and celebrate them.
“This festival can teach people a lot of stuff,” he said, “and it’s fun for kids.”
Dan Santoro, township manager, said his favorite fare in the gymnasium is Chinese food.
“But I’m going to try a little of everything,” he said.
Santoro said the festival is back to attracting 400 to 500 people as it did before the coronavirus pandemic canceled it for 2020 and 2021.
“The Cranberry supervisors’ goal is to provide a welcoming community,” Santoro said. “This festival celebrates diversity in a place where we can meet our neighbors and learn about different cultures.”
Jack Cohen manned the Cranberry Sunrise Rotary booth at Cranfest, where those passing by could write a message of peace on a sticky note and place it on the wall near the Rotary’s Peace Pole.
“That’s the message in this whole building today,” said Cohen, who also is the president of the Butler County Tourism and Convention Bureau.
“Maybe if we all started to get to know each other, we’d all get along.”
