Svoboda Dancers, left, Living Sky Taiko-Japanese Drum, top right, and some of the many food vendors, bottom right, at this year's Taste of Culture that ran Saturday and Sunday. (Angela Brown/battlefordsNOW Staff)

By Angela Brown

Sharing traditions

Taste of Culture sees terrific turnout

Jun 12, 2023 | 5:00 PM

The Taste of Culture event offered an array of performers and a variety of international cuisine to enjoy in North Battleford on the weekend.

The two-day affair brought together people from across the Battlefords and beyond.

Among the many performers, Living Sky Taiko-Japanese Drumming group, based in Saskatoon, put on a show Saturday.

James Bykowy started the group in 2009. After learning the art form himself, he began teaching others.

“The art form originally comes from Japan,” he told battlefordsNOW. “I don’t have any Japanese in me, but I saw it performed once and I couldn’t believe what I was watching. It’s so visceral. I thought I have to try that… It’s our first time in North Battleford. It’s great to play for everybody here.”

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The Taste of Culture event at the Agrivilla and Agriplex was hosted by Battlefords Immigration Resource Centre.

Visitors had a chance to take in a variety of performances and sample dishes from different cultures from around the world. There were also a number of food trucks at the site. Many market vendors were also on hand to promote their businesses and services.

More highlights from Taste of Culture: A powwow dancer from Saulteaux First Nation, as part of Kaisley’s Dance Group, left, the Svoboda Dancers, top right, and Living Sky Taiko-Japanese Drumming group, bottom right. (Angela Brown/battlefordsNOW Staff)

The Svoboda Dancers performed a number of Ukrainian traditional dances, among the weekend’s highlights.

Parent volunteer Jim Shevchuk, asked people to stand in observance for a few minutes while the Ukrainian National Anthem was played.

He said that while people celebrate Ukrainian culture here, the war in Ukraine continues. About 1,000 displaced people from Ukraine are currently staying in the North-West region of Saskatchewan, including the Battlefords. About 100 children in the local school divisions are from Ukraine.

“[We have] so many displaced people from Ukraine here with us, under unfortunate circumstances,” Shevchuk said. “The kids really give us a lot of spirit, enthusiasm, motivation, to keep going, so we don’t forget about the hardship.

“They give us dance, so we can have that in our heart and take our minds off the tragic [events] going on,” he added. “It’s great we have so many kids [in the dance group] that are interested on a hot Saturday afternoon when they could be working, or at the lake, and they want to be part of it. It’s great that Battlefords Immigration Resource Centre did that for us.”

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Angela.Brown@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @battlefordsnow