AURORA: The ‘Nepal Parade Day’ program, showcasing Nepali culture and identity while waving the flag of Nepal, was completed in Colorado, USA.

The event took place on Sunday in Boulder city, organized mainly by the Rocky Mountain Friends of Nepal (RMFN). The ‘Nepal Parade Day’ program was first established in Colorado in 2004. The event, led by former president of the Rocky Mountain Friends of Nepal, Narayan Shrestha, received formal recognition from the Boulder city county office in the USA as the first of its kind.

Every year since then, the Nepal Parade Day has been celebrated and this year it was completed with grandeur, as informed by the immediate past president of the Rocky Mountain Friends of Nepal, Arjun Bagale.

According to him, Neplese dressed in traditional attire paraded with the flag of Nepal, Nepali musical instruments, and banners of organizations integrated into the Nepali community around the Boulder Library premises.

At the formal event held at the beginning of the program, Narayan Shrestha, the founder of Nepal Parade Day, stated that in Colorado, which is naturally beautiful, the number of Nepalis has increased, leading to the initiation of the Nepal Parade Day program to remember Nepal and spread its culture among the new generation.

He also mentioned that after starting in Colorado, the Nepal Parade Day program is now being celebrated in most states across America. ‘When we started the Nepal Parade Day program in Colorado in terms of the Nepali community, language, and culture, it has now expanded to most states in America,’ he recalled the early days of the program, ‘wherever we reach in the world, we must not forget our country, our land, Nepal.

We must not forget the Nepali language, culture, and community. This tradition should also be passed on to the new generation.’ The event saw the participation of various leaders and representatives from organizations in Colorado, prominent figures, youth, students, and children from the Nepali community.

All participants waved both the Nepalese and American flags and also exchanged cultural values between Nepal and United States of America.

Most participants dressed in Nepali attire, while members of the Newar community participated in the event wearing Newari costumes and playing the Dhiṃe Baja. The Nepal Parade Day event, which was previously held in the third week of April in Boulder city, reflecting the Kathmandu Valley, was celebrated this time on the first day of June due to the unavailability of the venue.