2015 Year of the Goat Celebration - Wonderful photos taken by Anna Reed / the Statesman Journal

Ngọn cờ chính nghĩa
 VIỆT NAM CỘNG HOÀ mãi mãi tung bay trên "Năm Châu Bốn Biển" ,
 điều này đã và tiếp tục khẳng định chính thể
 VIỆT NAM CỘNG HOÀ 
mãi mãi trường tồn trong lòng dân tộc Việt Nam, trong tư duy và lương tri của nhân loại 
( ML)

 Cousins Mylee Bell, 7, of Damascus, and Jayda Sprague, 3, of Beaverton, give money to the dancing lion during a celebration of the Vietnamese Lunar New Year at Adam Stephens Middle School in Salem on Saturday, Feb. 7, 2015 (Photo: ANNA REED / Statesman Journal) —

 Ductin Bui, 1, of Salem, listens to singers during a celebration of the Vietnamese Lunar New Year at Adam Stephens Middle School in Salem on Saturday, Feb. 7, 2015 (Photo: ANNA REED / Statesman Journal)

 Phong Nguyen, of Salem, plays guitar as his granddaughters Jayda Sprague, 3, of Beaverton, and Mylee Bell, 7, of Damascus, sing a traditional Tet song during a celebration of the Vietnamese Lunar New Year at Adam Stephens Middle School in Salem on Saturday, Feb. 7, 2015. (Photo: ANNA REED / Statesman Journal)
Alexander To Chia, 8, of Salem, rehearses his martial arts performance during a celebration of the Vietnamese Lunar New Year at Adam Stephens Middle School in Salem on Saturday, Feb. 7, 2015. (Photo: ANNA REED / Statesman Journal) — 
 Ngoc Oanh, of Portland, gives money to the dancing lion during a celebration of the Vietnamese Lunar New Year at Adam Stephens Middle School in Salem on Saturday, Feb. 7, 2015 (Photo: ANNA REED / Statesman Journal) —
 Singers perform the South Vietnamese national anthem during a celebration of the Vietnamese Lunar New Year at Adam Stephens Middle School in Salem on Saturday, Feb. 7, 2015 (Photo: ANNA REED / Statesman Journal) —


Children dressed in blue karate robes practiced their moves, while others ran around cafeteria tables lined up as if for a party.
And a party it is. The celebration of Tet, or the lunar new year in Vietnam, was happening Saturday evening at Adam Stephens Middle School. Activities included a lion dance, red envelopes for children, martial arts, Vietnamese music, food, beverages, a raffle and more.
Four young men dressed in two elaborate Chinese lion suits maneuvered their way around the cafeteria, dancing to the beat of a Chinese drum. The giant lions danced in front of crowd members, accepting tips from those willing to give them.
After the initial introduction, 7-year-old Mylee Bell took the stage with her grandfather and a few members of the St. Joseph Choir to sing the national anthems of Vietnam and the United States.
A local band played traditional Vietnamese music, acoustic and electric guitar accompanied by the harp, on the stage while friends and families gathered together to celebrate the 2015 Year of the Goat.
The event is intended to preserve and promote Vietnamese culture and share Vietnamese traditions with the Salem community.
Mythuan Lipton, the president of the Vietnamese Voice in Salem, said she'd been organizing the annual event for the past 12 years.
"A lot of people come together and volunteer their time to put this on," Lipton said. "The purpose of the event is to celebrate the Vietnamese culture with our children and with others — it's a reunion."
Lipton said her favorite part of the celebration is how happy it makes her to share the lunar new year with others.
"We're so happy that Americans can come to celebrate the culture with us," she said.
An expected 400 people were estimated to attend the event Saturday night, and a three-page program outlined a number of ways the crowd would be celebrating, including many traditional Vietnamese dishes and drinks.
Tim Wilson, 48, of Salem, attended with his wife and 17-year-old twin sons. Wilson and his wife adopted their children from Vietnam and have been involved in the organization for the past 10 years.
"It's a really great celebration," Wilson said. "It's a lot of really nice people coming together in the community.
Wilson is the vice president of the organization and said that one of his favorite parts about the celebration was when children are given little envelopes of "lucky money" called Li Xi.
Email aroemeling@statesmanjournal.com, call (503) 399 6884, or follow on Twitter @alisharoemeling

Mỹ thuận chân thành gởi lời cảm tạ nồng nàn nhất đến tất cả các cô - chú và anh - chị - em hội viên hội VVS , cùng toàn thể quý ca nhạc sỹ - nghệ sỹ mà đặc biệt là anh - chị Vũ Đăng Khoa & Ngọc Oanh , ca sỹ Bích Nga , anh - chị Đỗ & Dung , ca sỹ Phi Phụng, ca sỹ Thu Tâm , ca sỹ Hữu Khương, ca sỹ Lê Tuấn, ca sỹ Nguyễn Hiền, các cháu thiếu nhi của ca đoàn thánh Joseph, gia đình Tim Wilson, gia đình Chritopher R.  ,  gia đình anh Phong , gia đình Dr. Thanh , gia đình anh Long , gia đình anh Vinh , toàn thể ban nhạc Hy Vọng, toàn thể ban đệm và keyboard , gia đình võ đạo sinh Vovinam , gia đình chợ Việt Nam QUÊ HƯƠNG , cùng rất nhiều các thiện nguyện viên  khác  ...  ; quý vị  đã đem tài năng, và bầu nhiệt huyết của mình để cống hiến cho cộng đồng tha hương của người Việt chúng ta tại Salem có được một niềm vui với nhiều kỷ niệm thật đẹp . Sự thành công của hội mừng XUÂN ẤT MÙI đêm qua sẽ mãi mãi để lại dấu ấn tinh thần sâu sắc trong lòng mọi người , mà trong tim My Thuận sẽ ghi mãi những kỷ niệm ấy như là một hành trang cần thiết cho cuộc sống hôm nay và mai sau ...

Cầu chúc quý vị một mùa Xuân mới thật tươi vui, sức khỏe, với nhiều gặt hái như mơ ước.  

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