Ukrainian chlidren sang onstage during the World Refugee Day celebration at the Grow North Farm in Mt. View on Thursday, June 27, 2024. (Bill Roth / ADN)
People from around the world gathered Thursday during a World Refugee Day celebration at the Grow North Farm in Anchorage’s Mountain View neighborhood.
The annual event hosted by Catholic Social Services honors the journeys and achievements of the refugee community in Alaska.
“The globally celebrated event is supposed to be fun and educational at the same time,” said Issa Spatrisano, Alaska state refugee coordinator at Catholic Social Services. “The event is an opportunity on the local level to honor all those different people and clients who have arrived. We’ve served in the last two years some of the largest numbers of arrivals in history.”
CSS welcomed about 500 new arrivals to the state last year, largely due to the war in Ukraine. The historic average is about 150 people a year.
Bhai Subba, originally from Bhutan, rinsed spinach that she sold during the World Refugee Day celebration at the Grow North Farm in Mountain View on Thursday. (Bill Roth / ADN)
Bhai Subba sells spinach at the Grow North Farm. (Bill Roth / ADN)
Attendees listen to a cultural performance during the World Refugee Day celebration at the Grow North Farm. (Bill Roth / ADN)
Sulamita Kotsiura, 14, of Ukraine, warmed up before she sang and played a bandura onstage during the World Refugee Day celebration at the Grow North Farm in Mountain View on Thursday. (Bill Roth / ADN)
People listen to the Crow Creek Pipes and Drums during the World Refugee Day celebration. (Bill Roth / ADN)
Nikuze Winnie from the Democratic Republic of the Congo recorded a cultural performance. (Bill Roth / ADN)
Radishes and other fresh produce from the Grow North Farm. (Bill Roth / ADN)
Zachariah Lujan, 4, hides behind his mother, Alona Lujan, while she was speaking onstage during the World Refugee Day celebration. (Bill Roth / ADN)
Children blow bubbles during the World Refugee Day celebration at the Grow North Farm in Mt. View on Thursday, June 27, 2024. (Bill Roth / ADN)
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