5 pm, Monday, April 7
Mallway Park, Arlington Avenue

Members of the Upper Arlington Community Relations Committee and Asian American Community Services (AACS) invite residents to join them for the Third Annual Cherry Blossom Celebration, beginning at 5 pm, on Monday, April 7 in Mallway Park, on Arlington Avenue. Upper Arlington’s celebration of the Veterans Plaza grove of cherry trees is part of a broader series of activities scheduled across Central Ohio that celebrate spring, new beginnings and friendships.

UA’s Cherry Blossom Celebration will include the following activities:

• Friendship Bracelet Making, Origami and Haiku Poetry Writing Activities – coordinated by Asian American Community Services and UA High School Students, with materials supplied by Bohindi
• Guzheng Musical Performance – by UA High School Student, Elena Zhu
• Koto Musical Performance – by UA Resident, Lisa Reaves
• Taiko Drums Performance – by Eric Paton
• Community Relations Committee Welcome Table – meet with CRC members, learn about various opportunities to serve on the City’s Boards and Commissions, and enjoy refreshments, including cherry blossom buns.
• Cover to Cover Books Display

AACS thanks Schumacher & Bauer, DDS for their support of the musical performances.

Greater Columbus Cherry Blossom Festival
March 24-April 25
The Fourth Annual Greater Columbus Cherry Blossom Festival brings together a series of activities that reflect more than 100 years of friendship between the U.S. and Japan. The festival is centered around approximately 100 cherry trees planted at Franklin Park in Columbus, whose presence are rooted in the traditions and celebrations established in 1912 when the Mayor of Tokyo, Japan donated 3,000 cherry trees to Washington, DC and then President, William Howard Taft who hailed from Ohio.

From March 24-April 25, a series of celebrations have been scheduled throughout the region, including:

• Bexley Cherry Blossom Walk & Ride Kick-off Event on March 29
• JSO Spring Festival on March 30 at the OSU Ohio Union
• IVO Cultural Event on April 4 at Whetstone Library
• Worthington Cherry Blossom & Sister City Celebration on April 5 at the Old Worthington Library
• Community Day at Franklin Park Conservatory on Sunday, April 6
• UA’s CRC Cherry Blossom Celebration on April 7 at Mallway Park
• Ikebana Display on April 12 at the Yokoso Center on Old Henderson Road
• IVO’s 4th Annual Cherry Blossom Festival Main Event on April 14 at the Columbus Main Library

Cherry Blossom Festival Passports are available detailing all scheduled activities. Head to as many of the scheduled events and locations as possible to receive passport stamps, take selfies at various locations, then submit your completed passport and photos to be entered into a prize drawing.

Click here for details of the various activities and to download your Cherry Blossom Festival Passport.