[iDiversity] Community Gathering, Saturday, September 10th at 1pm: Blessing Ceremony for the East Kong Yick Building, the future home of the Wing Luke Asian Museum

Wed Sep 7 17:58:09 PDT 2005

Please join us...

Blessing Ceremony for the East Kong Yick Building, the future home of the Wing Luke Asian Museum

DATE:  Saturday, September 10, 2005

TIME:  Begins at 1pm

PLACE: Outside East Kong Yick Building, 715-725 South King Street in Chinatown/International District

WHAT:  Community gathering includes a multi-faith invocation ceremony; passing of the East Kong Yick Building keys from previous owners to new owners (the Wing Luke Asian Museum); remarks from special guest, former Governor Gary Locke on the Gov. Gary Locke Library and Community Heritage Center named after him as part of the new Wing Luke Asian Museum; Japanese taiko drumming; Chinese lion dance; Native American tribal member chant; Native Hawaiian chant; traditional Korean dance performance; Cambodian youth group performance; spoken word; stories from local Asian Pacific American families; and many more.  A moment of silence for victims and survivors of the hurricane in the Gulf Coast will also take place.

The event is free and open to the public.

INFO:  For more information about the Wing Luke Asian Museum, contact Joann Natalia Aquino, public relations manager, at jaquino at wingluke.org or (206) 623-5124 ext. 106.

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NEWS RELEASE

For Immediate Release

Contact: 
Joann Natalia Aquino, Public Relations Manager
(206) 623-5124 ext. 106, jaquino at wingluke.org

"Blessing Ceremony: A Legacy Changing Hands"

Historic Event Honors the Past and Marks A New Journey for the Wing Luke Asian Museum

On Saturday, September 10, 2005, beginning at 1 pm, the Wing Luke Asian Museum will hold a Blessing Ceremony at the East Kong Yick Building to honor the lives and legacies of the early Chinese pioneers who built this building almost 100 years ago, as well as the lives of the previous migrant residents who lived alongside this architectural fixture in Seattle's multicultural Chinatown/ International District.

The Blessing Ceremony, taking place at the historic East Kong Yick Building, will also invoke a new spirit and energy into the building, which will become the new home of the Wing Luke Asian Museum in 2007.

The Kong Yick Building- also known as the Freeman Hotel- is located on South King Street, part of the district added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1986.  The building was constructed in 1910 with the pooled resources of 170 Chinese American pioneer settlers and served as a social center and living quarters for Chinese, Japanese and Filipino immigrants who arrived in the pre-World War II era to work in cannery, timber, garment, railroad and agricultural trades.

The Wing Luke Asian Museum has embarked upon a remarkable journey to transform this building and a community by raising $23 million to rehabilitate the Kong Yick Building as its new permanent home in the heart of Seattle's Chinatown/ International District.  Founded in 1966, the museum celebrates its namesake of the first Asian American elected to public office in the Pacific Northwest, Wing Luke.  The Wing Luke Asian Museum in Seattle, Washington is the only pan-Asian Pacific American museum in the country, and is dedicated to engaging the public in exploring issues related to the culture, art and history of Asian Pacific Americans. The Wing Luke Asian Museum is a Smithsonian Institution affiliate, its first affiliate in the Pacific Northwest.

"The Smithsonian considers the Wing Luke Asian Museum an unbelievably vibrant and remarkable achievement, unique in its pan-Asian focus.  It's one of the shining lights in our affiliate program," states Franklin Odo, director of the Asian Pacific American Program at the Smithsonian Institution.

The community is invited to the Blessing Ceremony to come together, participate and enjoy the festivities that will follow.  There will be a celebration of song and dance from various community groups.  The event is free and open to all.  For event update, visit www.wingluke.org.

The Wing Luke Asian Museum is currently located in the heart of Seattle's historic Chinatown/ International District at 407-7th Avenue South.  The Wing Luke Asian Museum- an affiliate of the Smithsonian Institution, the 1995 recipient of the National Award for Museum Service, and the 2004 recipient of the City of Seattle Distinguished Human Rights Award- is dedicated to engaging the public in exploring issues related to the culture, art and history of Asian Pacific Americans.

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Joann Natalia Aquino
Public Relations Manager
Wing Luke Asian Museum
407-7th Avenue South
Seattle, WA 98104
phone: 206.623.5124 ext. 106   |   fax: 206.652.4963
www.wingluke.org
e-mail: jaquino at wingluke.org
joannnatalia_aquino at publicist.com   |  missaquino at publicist.com

About the Wing Luke Asian Museum:
The Wing Luke Asian Museum is located in the heart of Seattle's historic Chinatown/ International District at 407-7th Avenue South.  Founded in 1966, the Museum has a regional and national significance, and celebrates its namesake of the first Asian American elected to public office in the Pacific Northwest, Wing Luke.  The Wing Luke Asian Museum- an affiliate of the Smithsonian Institution, the 1995 recipient of the National Award for Museum Service, and the 2004 recipient of the City of Seattle Distinguished Human Rights Award- is dedicated to engaging the public in exploring issues related to the culture, art and history of Asian Pacific Americans.

A museum like no other- The Wing Luke Asian Museum in Seattle, Washington is the only pan-Asian Pacific American museum in the country.  It is nationally recognized for its award-winning exhibitions and community-based model of exhibition and program development.  The Museum has embarked upon a remarkable journey to transform a building and a community by raising $23 million to rehabilitate the Kong Yick Building as its new permanent home in Seattle's multicultural Chinatown/ International District.

To learn more about current exhibitions and exciting programs and events at the Wing Luke Asian Museum, please visit www.wingluke.org.

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Joann Natalia G. Aquino
Graduate Student, Department of Communication
University of Washington
E-mail: jnaquino at u.washington.edu, herstory at joannnataliaaquino.com

"Be patient toward all that is unsolved in your heart and try to love the questions themselves. Do not now seek the answers, which cannot be given you because you would not be able to live them. And the point is to live everything. Live the questions now. Perhaps you will then gradually, without noticing it, 
live along some distant day into the answers." -Rilke