CAA Hosts Chinese Lunar New Year Celebration
On February 26, NYCHA’s Chinese American Association (CAA) and their 300-plus guests brought in the Chinese New Year, 4713, with music, dancing, and belly-warming food at the Grand Harmony Restaurant in Chinatown.
Before rousing performances from the Joyful Dance Ensemble and singer Danny Pao, NYCHA Chair and CEO Shola Olatoye wished everyone a happy and successful New Year. She said that 4713 “promises to be a year of progress, because its qualities of intelligence, creativity, serenity, and empathy guide us in becoming the best we can be and doing the best we can for others.”
Chair Olatoye read a proclamation from Mayor de Blasio extolling the City’s diversity and the vitality of the Chinese American population, and which proclaimed February 26, 2015, as “NYCHA Chinese American Association Chinese New Year Day.”
General Manager Cecil House remarked that “The New Year is a time for us to reflect and look forward to the year to come. I want to thank all of you for what you have done for NYCHA residents, the City, and our organization – it’s been a very productive year.”
This year’s honoree, Councilmember Margaret Chin, also thanked NYCHA employees for their hard work and passion. “We can count on you, and I look forward to continue working with you,” she said. Another special guest celebrating the Year of the Goat (or Sheep or Ram) was HUD Deputy Regional Administrator Mirza Orriols.
CAA Founder and Past President Nancy Lam said that the biennial event is “an opportunity to introduce Chinese culture to the NYCHA community through dancing, food, and fellowship.” Remington Lo, the CAA’s vice president of programs, enjoys the chance for staff from the developments, borough offices, and central offices to get together. “It’s fun to see old friends. People really enjoy themselves.”
But it was not only current employees who contributed to the conviviality. Myrtle Whitmore, a retired housing manager and former NYCHA board member, said that being there was “like coming home; it’s so festive.”
