NYC Council Member Hosts Thai New Year Street Festival in Elmhurst

UsaNewsOnline.Com Desk, Elmhurst, NY – This past Saturday, NYC Council Member Daniel Dromm (D-Elmhurst, Jackson Heights) and Elmhurst entrepreneur Juttana “Moo” Rimreartwate hosted the fourth Thai New Year Festival and Street Fair on Woodside Avenue between 75th and 77th Streets in Elmhurst, Queens.  Attendees were treated to martial arts demonstrations, traditional music and dance performances, a Drag Queen Story Hour reading by RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 10 star Yuhua Hamasaki, samplings of delicious Thai cuisine and more.  

The New Year festival, called “Songkran,” is the most important holiday for the Thai community.  The holiday is rich with symbolic traditions, and is a time for family reunions and an annual house cleaning.  Those observing Songkran also visit local temples and offer food to the Buddhist monks.  Dromm and Rimreartwate founded Elmhurst’s first Thai New Year Street Festival in 2016 as a way to showcase the outstanding cuisine and rich performing arts tradition that can be found in Elmhurst’s Thai Town.

“I am delighted to co-host another Songkran celebration in the heart of Elmhurst’s Little Thailand once again,” said Dromm. “From their enticing cuisine to a rich performing arts tradition, Elmhurst’s Thai community has so much to offer.   It was a pleasure to participate in this exciting celebration alongside residents from every nation.  I am proud to represent Elmhurst in the City Council and will continue to bring additional programming and cultural celebrations like these to our neighborhood.”
The Thai New Year Festival and Street Fair takes place on two consecutive Saturdays in April and was once again part of the NYC Department of Transportation’s Weekend Walks series.  Weekend Walks are multi-block events held on commercial corridors that promote the use of streets as public space.  They highlight local businesses and NYC’s unique neighborhoods.
The second part of the festival will take place on Saturday, April 27th, 12pm to 6pm at the same location: Woodside Avenue between 75th and 77th Streets in Elmhurst, Queens.

Photo caption: (back row, center, from left to right)  Royal Thai Consul General Nipon Petchpornprapas,  Council Member Daniel Dromm, Congresswoman Grace Meng and  Philippine Consul General  Claro S. Cristobal ring in the new year with residents representing every region of Thailand at the fourth  Thai New Year Festival and Street Fair in Elmhurst, Queens.

Photo caption: Council Member Daniel Dromm (center), Elmhurst entrepreneur Juttana “Moo” Rimreartwate (right of Dromm, in red coat) join local residents on Woodside Avenue for the 2019 Thai New Year Street Festival.Press Release.