Cherry Blossom Festival returns to Tupelo for fourth year

LEE COUNTY,Miss.(WCBI) – Towards the end of March, the city of Tupelo brought on the culture.

This was the fourth annual Cherry Blossom Festival.

Every year performers, vendors and residents come to engage in a Japanese themed event.

Director of Tupelo Parks and Recreation Alex Farned said being able to bring this festival to the community is a great opportunity.

Farned hopes other cities around Mississippi will hopefully join in.

“We tried to come up with something to celebrate the Japanese culture and also with us with America and having this Cherry Blossom Festival does that. We are bridging two cultures together and celebrating that so everybody knows a little something about the Japanese culture,” said Farned.

Vendors provided sushi food samples and demonstrated rice pounding, which is needed to make most Japanese desserts.

For more hands-on activities, origami and brush painting were welcome for those that wanted a take-home souvenir.

“You know cherry blossom is a symbol of Japan and then in order for us to be able to celebrate in U.S that’s uh that means a lot to us. Hoping this will mean something to people in Tupelo and then in this community,” said festival event worker Kumi Richardson.

Trish Stewart brought her granddaughter Eleanor and says this is a great family experience for all ages.

“Good way to learn about some other cultures in the small town we live in,” said Stewart.

Every year around 400 people come out to the festival.