By Brian Arola barola@mankatofreepress.com
As a crowd gathered nearby to watch a flamenco dancer and guitarist perform Saturday, Lornah Nyagwaya and Bill Nelsen expressed excitement at what they hope will become a “signature event” for the St. Peter Good Neighbor Diversity Council.
The two were at the nonprofit’s booth greeting passersby and taking in the atmosphere during its first Festival of Nations gathering. After previously holding get-togethers on a smaller scale, the festival was the council and its partners’ biggest outing yet.
Nyagwaya, a social worker in St. Peter who’s originally from Kenya, said the strong turnout was what Good Neighbor members and volunteers dreamed of when they first talked about organizing the festival.
“All the work we’ve done and energy we’ve put into this, we’re seeing the fruits,” she said. “We want to bring people together.”
The flamenco dancer and guitarist, known as Molly “La Bo” and Ross, were among several performers at the event at the Nicollet County Fairgrounds. Booths for local organizations, resources and activities lined much of the building’s perimeter, along with samples of sambusas, tamales, corned beef, wantons and tacos.
Outside had more activities and food options. All of it, said Good Neighbor co-president Nelsen, was about celebrating and embracing the St. Peter area’s diversity.
“It’s wonderful to see so many people who have come out to in a sense share in that joy,” he said.
Census data showed St. Peter went from 9% people of color in 2010 to 13.1% a decade later. Minnesota as a whole grew more diverse during the same decade.
The nonprofit saw Saturday as the inaugural event of what will become an annual staple. Nelsen said the city, chamber of commerce, school district and many partner organizations have been highly supportive of the idea.
His Good Neighbor co-president Mohamed Abdulkadir, leader at the St. Peter Islamic Center and originally from Somalia, said the first festival exceeded his expectations.
“We want to see the community feel like a community,” he said. “I think we can do more of this.”
The Good Neighbor Diversity Council has between 20-30 people, and about 40-50 volunteers were involved in organizing and running the festival. Other performers included the Ballet Folklorico Mexico Azteca Dancers.
Sam Ling of Mankato came to the festival with wife, Haley, who heard about it at Gustavus Adolphus College, and their children. The little ones played outside on a colorful chalk drawing.
“Events like this tapered off during COVID,” said Sam, “so it’s nice to see things like that coming back.”
Good Neighbor’s next event will be helping the St. Peter Public Library kick off its summer reading program on June 5. Before the next Festival of Nations, Nelsen and Abdulkadir said the group also plans to organize more community conversation events, a continuation of what the group has done since its inception.
Follow Brian Arola @BrianArola