Aurora welcomes Year of the Snake with festive Lunar New Year celebration
AURORA, Ill. - Aurora rang in the Lunar New Year this week with good luck red and gold, cultural traditions and some surprises.
Local perspective:
The City of Aurora featured live snakes, adding excitement to festivities Tuesday, welcoming the Year of the Snake in the Copley Theatre.
The Asian-American community is the fastest growing demographic in the Aurora area, with new businesses and neighbors hoping for prosperity and peace for the new year.
Aurora Mayor Richard Irvin welcomed the Chinese Consul General of Chicago to the western suburb for cultural dances, martial arts demonstrations and the appearance of a dragon, which is especially lucky, symbolizing power and a blessing to welcome spring.
There was also a traditional lion dance to scare away the evil spirits and clear the pathway for spring.
Mayor Richard C. Irvin read a proclamation about unity and diversity, that ended, "I, Mayor Richard C. Irvin, mayor of the great City of Aurora, do acknowledge Wednesday, Jan. 29, as the beginning of Lunar New Year 2025, the Year of the Snake."
What they're saying:
"Today we are welcoming in the Chinese Lunar New Year of the Snake as the most ancient and grand traditional festival of the Chinese nation. The spring festival is a new starting point each year for deepening friendships and envisioning the future,"Consul General Wang Baodong said.
Lunar New year can be a loud tradition to foster peace. It’s also a time for family gathering and in Aurora, friendship and unity.
The Source: FOX 32's Joanie Lum reported on Aurora's Lunar New Year ceremony live from the festivities.