It was an unusually blustery day at the 10th annual World of Montgomery Festival, but nothing could dull the spark of the thousands who came out to explore the world through light-themed cultural traditions and celebrate the diversity of Montgomery County. KID Museum, an organizer and host of the festival, and the “International Village” of eleven countries wowed festival-goers with engaging activities dedicated to global citizenship and cultural awareness.
Highlights from KID Museum included:
– “Light Up the World,” where kids lined up to drill holes on a world map, indicating the various locations around the world where their parents are from and where they live now – demonstrating the interconnection of our world. Colorful LED lights were inserted into the holes, lighting up our shared community.
– A mirrored sun mosaic exhibit where attendees reflected on their “Inner Light.” By the end of the day, the exhibit was covered with starlit messages of compassion, empathy, and confidence. “Nothing can dim the light that shines from within,” added a young festival attendee.
– The awe-inspiring, “Dazzling Lights” display – a dark tent where children hung their handcrafted paper and LED-lit lanterns inspired by Chinese, Middle Eastern, Japanese, and European lanterns.
KID Museum was proudly surrounded by vibrant displays of culture and light-themed activities from our country partners: Grenada, Nigeria, Iraq, Turkey, Ukraine, Germany, Korea, Ethiopia, China, El Salvador, and India. Two stages of traditional music and dance performances drew crowds, and the pinnacle of the festival – the Parade of Cultures – grew this year with the addition of a second, smaller-scaled Chinese dragon propped up by the next generation of children.
Even after their festival “passports” had been stamped, kids kept coming back to KID Museum’s activities for more. You can keep the excitement going with our year-round cultural programming, including our upcoming Poland Day, this Sunday, October 28. Stay tuned to our full schedule of events and workshops here.
A special thank you to County Executive Ike Leggett for recognizing KID Museum’s Cara Lesser with an Outstanding Leadership Award at the festival, and to all of our World of Montgomery Festival partners and sponsors who helped make the festival a success:
Fund for Montgomery, Montgomery County, Montgomery College, City of Rockville, Carl M. Freeman Foundation, Montgomery County Public Schools, Pepco, Montgomery County Muslim Foundation, Maryland State Arts Council, Montgomery County Office of Community Partnerships, Montgomery County Sister Cities, Comcast, Marriott, Verizon, Strathmore, WSSC, Percontee, ABC7, News Channel 8, Bethesda Magazine, Washington Parent, AT&T, Mikel & David Blair, SG Enterprise/Sol Graham, County Executive Ike Leggett, County Office of Community Partnerships – Bruce Adams, MCEFCU
