Thursday, February 15, 2007 Older Editions

Chinese New Year 4075

By April Guilmet

While Cinco de Mayo and St. Patrick's Day celebrations have become mainstream, the observance of Chinese New Year may still have a way to go, despite several celebrations scheduled in Andover this week.

The Chinese New Year 4075 begins Feb. 18. According to the Chinese animal zodiac, this is the Year of the Pig.

On Saturday, Chinese School Andover held its New Year celebration at Pike School. More festivities are scheduled today, Thursday, Feb. 15, at Old Town Hall, thanks to a collaboration between the Andover Senior Center and Andover Chinese Cultural Council.

Still, despite Andover's rising Chinese population, for many local residents, Feb. 18 will be just another day.

Andover resident Huiying Zhao, who teaches Chinese classes at Northern Essex Community College, was one of the approximately 500 people attending last weekend's Chinese New Year party held at Pike School.

"There were a lot of people there, but I'd say 80 percent were Chinese," Zhao said. Some of the others attending the party were married to someone of Chinese decent, she added.

"I think this holiday is still mostly celebrated in Chinese communities," Zhao said. "Here, a lot of people don't think about it, though Andover has a big Chinese population."

Still, she sees signs of this changing.

"There are a lot of Americans taking Chinese classes," Zhao said. RIght now she has around 16 students in her classes at Northern Essex.

Chinese classes are also taught at Phillips Academy and at Andover High School (see related story). Zhao's own son, an eighth-grader, will be attending Andover High School next year, she said.

She's hoping the public schools will continue incorporating Chinese cultural studies into the curricullum, and perhaps even teach Chinese classes in the district at some point, she said.

Local restauranteur Yizhong Yin, owner of Teatone Chinese Restaraunt, said he'd considered hosting a Chinese New Year celebration for customers in the past, but later decided against it due to lack of response.

"We'll be having our own parties for family, but not for customers," Yin said.

He added that while he thinks people are generally becoming more aware of the holiday, "it's still not anything that people tend to celebrate or order out special for," Yin said. As for his eatery at 17 Railroad St., it will be business as usual Sunday, he said.

"As far as making the public aware of the celebration, it takes time," Yin said.

"We're hoping it will go in that direction though."

Yin said he looks to his own children, ages 9 and 5, to carry his beloved holiday rituals into the next generation.

"We're working on our young people, the students," Yin said. "When they learn about these things they take it with them, make it a part of their life."

He noted that the consumption of Chinese food was not common a few generations ago, but has gradually become mainstream in American culture.

Ellie Wilkin, director of both the Andover Chinese and Korean Cultural Outreach at Phillips Academy said her group planned on hosting a Spring Festival early next month at the academy.

Both groups, she said, exist to offer resources for locals who've adopted Chinese/Korean children, another factor in area's increasing Asian population. "Of course, everybody's American. But it's important to celebrate your heritage," Wilkin said.

And the interest in Chinese New Year is slowly growing. For many of Andover's senior citizens, it is an event not to be missed.

On Monday, Senior Center program assistant Pat Becker said she had already sold about 85 tickets for tonight's celebration and buffet supper at Old Town Hall, and the event would likely be sold out by Townsman presstime on Wednesday.

"There's usually a huge turnout and as always, it's a multi-cultural audience," Becker said. "It's something they really enjoy. It's lively, it's fun, it's colorful and it makes a really nice mid-winter get together."