HOUSTON: Hindus of Greater Houston (HGH) welcomed the Spring season and brought the joy of Holi celebration to the broader community by hosting events at Children’s Museum Houston (CMH) and Fort Bend Children’s Discovery Center (FBCDC) in Sugar Land. The events were held on Sunday, March 8th and Sunday, March 15th.
This is the fourth year of HGH’s partnership with CMH to conceive and design Holi celebrations which are age appropriate for children from 3 to 16 years of age. The event has grown in popularity and a whole city block on Ewing Street was blocked off for the outdoor Holi playing. Children were delighted to play and throw colored Gulaal on each other while Bollywood Holi songs played. Parents danced to the music as the children enjoyed the freedom and joy to color each other with abandon.
Children were given the option to wear a poncho and protective goggles, so that they can continue to visit rest of the museum. Inside the museum, HGH distributed pamphlets which explained what Holi is, how it is celebrated, the stories behind it and its place and influence on popular culture, music and art. Parents were delighted to have the information which they can read to kids at home. HGH also gave away Gulaal in different colors for kids and parents to take home.
Many learnt about Holi for the first time and some had heard of it before but never had the opportunity to experience the joy of colors themselves. The event was very well received and feedback from the parents and kids was effusive. Stephanie Weisinger, Gallery Programs Coordinator of CMH said, “We partnered with HGH four years ago and now it has become a regular part of our Spring Break programming, ” She added that, “We have expanded to accommodate more children and this year we held the outdoor portion to the Fort Bend location as well.”
HGH Board member Chetan Davé, who founded the partnership with CMH said, “We are delighted with our growing partnership with CMH to make Hindu holidays more accessible to the broader community. I meet people who have never been to India or know much about it and they love Holi as much as those of us who grew up with it.”
