7th Annual Virginia Beach Cherry Blossom Festival

Virginia Beach Parks & Recreation invites the public to celebrate Virginia Beach’s international sisterhood with Miyazaki City, Japan, at the 7th Annual Cherry Blossom Festival on Saturday, April 2 at Red Wing Park (1398 General Booth Blvd) in Virginia Beach from 11 am - 3 pm.

This event will offer the rich culture and beauty of Japanese music, martial arts, creative activities by A.C. Moore Arts & Crafts, and various demonstrations. Councilman James L. Wood will give the official welcome. The festival is sponsored by Virginia Beach Parks & Recreation, the Sister Cities Association of Virginia Beach, the Japan Education Culture Center Inc., and supported by the Virginia Beach Koto Society, Old Dominion University Martial Arts program and Virginia Beach City Public Schools Japanese programs and clubs.

Featured performances will celebrate all City of Virginia Beach's Sister Cities, including songs from Sons of Norway (representing Sister City Moss, Norway) and key entertainment from the Kempsville Middle School Band representing Sister City North Down County, Ireland.

+++ ADMISSION IS FREE +++

Food and beverage are available for purchase. Patrons are welcome to bring a blanket or lawn chair for the performances. In the event of inclement weather conditions, the event will be postponed until Sunday, April 3 at the same time and place.

***DISASTER RELIEF***

Because of the City of Virginia Beach’s sister city relationship with Miyazaki City this year's event will honor the survivors and victims of the recent earthquake and tsunami disaster in Japan and will be dedicated to the thousands who perished.

The Sister Cities Association of Virginia Beach, a 501 (c)(3) charitable organization, along with Japan Education Culture Center Inc., also a (c)(3) charitable organization, will be conducting a fundraising campaign for relief efforts for the survivors of this disaster. This fundraiser is also being coordinated with the sister cities groups and volunteer organizations in Miyazaki. Due to the urgency and immediacy of the crisis, only financial donations will be accepted.

If you are unable to attend the Cherry Blossom festivities, but would still like to send a donation, you may make checks payable to: Sister Cities Association of Virginia Beach and note on the check “Humanitarian Fund for Japan’s Natural Disaster.”

Donations may be sent to:

Sister Cities Association of Virginia Beach
City Hall, Municipal Center
2401 Courthouse Drive
Virginia Beach, Virginia   23456-9005

All donations collected will get to the victims for their basic necessities in Sendai city, and nearby towns and villages, through their municipal government offices in Japan.***

Modeled after the National Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington, D.C., the Virginia Beach Cherry Blossom Festival held at Red Wing Park celebrates the goodwill friendship between Japan and the United States, marked by the 100 Yoshino Cherry Blossom trees which were all donated as part of the Miyazaki Garden expansion plan and planted by the Japan Educational Cultural Center and the Miyazaki Sister City Committee in 2005.

The City of Virginia Beach and Miyazaki City have benefitted from many fruitful grass-roots exchanges since the early 1980s. For the last 18 years, Miyazaki and Virginia Beach enjoyed exchanges in the promotion and development of community volunteerism. In 2007, Miyazaki’s eco-park Hagino Dai and Mount Trashmore Park officially becoming “Sister Parks.” In addition, through our Sister Cities relationship, Tallwood Elementary and Miyazaki Minami Elementary School became “Sister Schools.”

For more information about the 7th Annual Cherry Blossom Festival, call Debbie Vick at 385-2992 (TTY: 757-711 Virginia Relay), e-mail fun@VBgov.com or visit www.VBgov.com/specialevents.

source: Virginia Beach Parks and Recreation