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By MACKENZEE SIMMS | Staff Writer

HELENA – With the aroma of food from around the world drifting on the breeze and international music swirling through the air, the Helena United Festival will return to Helena for its third year on Saturday, April 27 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Helena Amphitheater. Hosted by the Helena Diversity and Inclusion Board, the Helena United Festival will feature cooking demonstrations, performances and informational booths designed to showcase different cultures and provide guests with to opportunity to celebrate their differences.

According to Chairperson of the Helena Diversity and Inclusion Board Dominga Gardner, the Helena United Festival will feature cooking demonstrations, a stick dancing performance and a martial arts demonstration, with a pending agreement with a bag pipe group.

“We are using this event to bring all the cultures together, all different walks of life together, just to be able to learn something new from another culture,” Gardner said. “And also to embrace those that are different from us.”

This is the third year that the Helena Diversity and Inclusion Board has hosted the Helena United Festival and Gardner hopes to see it grow even more from last year with an even greater response from the community.

“(The community response) has been good,” Gardner said. “This first year, everyone was trying to figure who is the diversity board, what is it all about. Last year, we had over 1,200 citizens come out from various citizens as well.”

Of these 1,200 guests last year, Gardner expressed how much she loved watching the children respond to the performances and demonstrations.

“The kids seem to love it,” Gardner said. “Last year, the stick dancing was a big hit with the kids, just learning something different and being able to embrace that cultural difference that you’re not used to.”

On a personal level, Gardner shared that her favorite part of the festival each year consists of two things: meeting new people and the food.

“I always love the food,” Gardner said. “Last year, we had the Indonesian bowl demonstration. I had never visited (an Indonesian) restaurant, but that food was great. I enjoy the food, just trying different things. But overall, just walking around and meeting new people—I would definitely say (my favorite part) is food and meeting new people and learning their stories.”

The Diversity and Inclusion Board is a 10-member group that highlights and fosters the diverse community found in the city of Helena.

“(The Diversity and Inclusion Board) is a group of diverse citizens that live in Helena of varying races, gender, profession and culture,” Gardner said. “We are here to help promote the city of Helena and bring everyone together on various issues through activities that we have.”

According to Gardner, there is a common misconception that the Diversity and Inclusion Board is only focused on race. When in reality, the board promotes people of all backgrounds and understands that our differences stem from many different factors.

“We’re not only talking about race or gender,” Gardner said. “I mean we’re all different. I might be black and my neighbor might be black, however, we have different professions. We came from different households. So that’s where the differences lie. My main goal is not to focus on race, but also on the other differences that we have with one another and be able to embrace those differences.”

To embrace the differences of others, people have to understand one another, and it’s Gardner’s hope that the Helena United Festival can serve as the first step for some towards fostering a community of growth and acceptance.

“I hope (attendees) remember that everyone is different and (remember) to embrace the differences that we have with one another and to be able to accept those differences,” Gardner said. “And just to be willing to have an open mind when meeting new people because not everybody is your same race, same profession and that’s one of the things that we kind of (promote) in the Diversity Board.”

Anyone wishing to learn more about Helena United Festival and the Helena Diversity and Inclusion Board can visit Helenadiboard.org.