Pelican Rapids dishes up diversity
By Bryce Haugen bhaugen@forumcomm.com

Thirty years ago, Johanna Christianson left her home in the Netherlands for America.
She moved to Pelican Rapids, a Minnesota lakescountry hamlet that boasts a mishmash of cultures. These days, minority students make up 31 percent of Pelican Rapids elementary students and 28 percent of high school students. On Friday and Saturday, the town will celebrate that diversity at the ninth annual International Friendship Festival.Christianson, the festival’s lead organizer, said she felt accepted when she moved to town and she wants new immigrants to feel the same way. “We want people to feel welcome no matter where they’re from,” she said. After a lunchtime picnic, there will be a naturalization ceremony at 1 p.m. Friday in E.L. Peterson Park in Pelican Rapids. A sidewalk chalk-art contest is scheduled for Saturday morning. Later that day, in Peterson Park, vendors will dish up Bosnian, German, Scandinavian, Mexican, Somali and Vietnamese foods. The event wraps up at 4:30 p.m. Saturday after a world craft demonstration and music performances.
“Hopefully the festival sends out a message of hope, joy and creativity in the midst of our changing society,” Christianson said.