Tibetan Cultural Fair educates, raises funds for children

By Cara Eastwood
rep4@wyomingnews.com
Published in the Wyoming Tribune-Eagle

CHEYENNE - One of the world's most mysterious and isolated cultures will be the subject of a free dinner, art show and cultural discussion at the Unitarian Universalist Church.

The Tibetan Cultural Fair will offer a glimpse of the people, faith and culture in the tiny country perched high in the Himalaya mountain range between India and China.

"It's a very ancient civilization with lots of history. Buddhism originated in Nepal and grew up in India but has really flourished in Tibet," said event organizer Mark Joyce.

Joyce said he's been surprised at the interest in Tibet in Cheyenne and said he's modeling the cultural fair after a similar one he attended in Boulder, Colo.

"People in Cheyenne are becoming more interested in other cultures and religions," he said.

The cultural fair will offer insight into many aspects of life.

"The event is free but we're asking for donations to buy blankets for kids who stay in dorms at one of the rural schools," Joyce said.

Many children in the isolated, mountainous country leave home and travel long distances to attend school, he said.

All donations raised at the fair will go to buying blankets for the children who attend the Ruthok Primary School, north of Lhasa, Tibet, Joyce said.

"If they don't have food in their stomachs and they're not warm, it's really hard to learn."

Joyce volunteers with the Tibetan Village Project, a Boulder, Colo.-based non-profit organization that sponsors small projects in rural Tibet that operate "under the radar of the Chinese," he said. Joyce has lived in Cheyenne for two years and works for the Department of Family Services as a consultant.

The Tibetan Village Project works to educate people about Tibetan culture and religion, he said. The group joins the Unitarian Universalist Church and the Cheyenne Diversity Council in sponsoring the event.

Tamding Wangdue will offer a lecture, Life in the Land of the Snow, and Lhobon Rechungad will discuss the role of Buddhism in Tibetan life, Joyce said.

Local artist Ron Medina will speak on Tibetan art and there will be a painting demonstration by Potala Paintings.

After the discussions, a group of Tibetan women will serve a light dinner of traditional food, and those in attendance may participate in Tibetan music and dance.

"The festival will involve both people talking about cultural life in Tibet and the place of Buddhism in the culture," Pastor Bob Morriss of the Unitarian Universalist Church said. "There will be art from Tibetan villages both on display and for sale for the benefit of the Tibetan villages."

T-shirts printed with a design from a centuries-old Tibetan woodblock also will be on sale at the event.

"One of the highlights of it is that it won't be a lecture type of thing," Joyce said. "It will be fun and entertaining too."