OLYMPIA – Feb. 28, 2018 – The Washington State Parks Folk and Traditional Arts Program invites the public to celebrate spring at the 2018 Holi Celebration — the Festival of Colors — at Lake Sammamish State Park in Issaquah.
The annual celebration runs from noon to 4 p.m. Sunday, March 11, at Lake Sammamish State Park, 2000 NW Sammamish Road in Issaquah. (Driving directions.) The ticketed event, which takes place at the park’s kitchen shelter, will include family-friendly play with colored powders, a disc jockey with Bollywood music, vegetarian food and traditional Indian music and dance.
Holi is known as the Festival of Colors or the Festival of Love. Each year, in India, Holi is celebrated with great enthusiasm. This carnival of colors is a special time, when participants of all ages, genders, classes and castes play, chase and spray each other with nontoxic colored dry powders and water. The Hindu celebration has become popular with non-Hindus in many parts of South Asia, and it has been enthusiastically adopted in the United States.
Tickets for the Holi Festival are $15 for children ages 3 to 12 and $20 for adults. Group discounts are available. Tickets may be purchased online or in person at Swagath Grocery, 14504 NE 20th St, Bellevue, or Namasthe Indian Restaurant, 22910 Bothell Everett Hwy, Bothell. Each ticket includes an Indian vegetarian meal as well as colored powder.
A Discover Pass is also required for those attending the festival by vehicle.
Eastside Friends & Family, founded by Menka Soni and Ashish Soni, has been organizing the Holi celebration at Lake Sammamish State Park since 2012. This year’s event will benefit Ravishing Women, a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting female entrepreneurs and artists by helping them grow their businesses. The festival aims to promote culture and bring the community together to welcome spring.
About the Folk and Traditional Arts in the Parks Program
The Holi Celebration is part of a broader series of events celebrating Washington’s diverse cultures presented by the Folk and Traditional Arts in the Parks Program, with funding provided by a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts as well as support from the Washington State Parks Foundation.
For more information about the Folks and Traditional Arts in the Parks program, including upcoming events, visit: http://parks.state.wa.us/folkarts or contact Makaela Kroin, Program Coordinator, at Makaela.Kroin@parks.wa.gov or (360) 902-8635.
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About Washington State Parks
The Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission manages more than 100 state parks and properties totaling approximately 120,000 acres. The Commission provides a variety of recreation opportunities for citizens and provides stewardship protection for a diverse array of natural, cultural and historic resources. State Parks’ statewide programs include long-distance trails, boating safety and winter recreation.
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Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission
1111 Israel Road S.W.
P.O. Box 42650
Olympia, WA 98504-2650