Students and staff absorb the Hmong culture at the 23rd Annual Hummong Thanksgiving Tradition with performances including a fashion show, musical instruments and dancing on Friday evening. Tickets were sold out two days prior to the event with people eager to experience a different culture.

Audience members enjoyed a traditional Hmong dinner that consisted of egg rolls, chicken laab, turkey, fried green beans, sesame balls and jasmine rice. They also had a sweet-tasting dish that included a salad with mandarin oranges and an Asian sauce.

As the audience enjoyed different Hmong foods, they watched short skits performed by Vang Xiong and Angela Yang, the hosts for the night. Xiong and Yang kept the crowd engaged with the skits and introduced the different performers of the night.

One of the performers was the dance group, Ntxhais Puav Pheej Txuj Ci. The group earned first place at the Oshkosh Tournament. Dressed in colorful, sequenced outfits and moving simultaneously to the music, they provided the audience with Hmong cultural dances. Ntxhais Puav Pheej Txuj Ci danced to three different songs: Kev Kawm Ntawv, Nco Ntsoov Peb Yog Hmoob and Tub Tsis Mloog Lus.

“The dancing [was] definitely [my favorite part of the night]. They were really good and really synchronized,” Lisa Van Kirk, freshman undecided major, said.

The musical performers for the night were Joua K. Vang and Wa Cha Xiong who provided the audience with their talent for playing different Hmong Instruments. They played instruments that are similar to the banjo, flute and violin. One instrument played sounded similar to an oboe with a vibrating sound. It is played in the Hmong Culture to attract a woman.

“I really enjoyed listening to all the instruments. They’re very different from all of ours,” Nicole Stephens, freshman cosmetology major, said.

The Ball Toss is a Hmong cultural event that both men and women do at the Hmong New Year. It typically consists of a man and woman tossing a ball between one another. The goal is to not drop the ball. If a person drops the ball, he or she could potentially lose a belonging. Men do this to get aquainted with a woman by talking while tossing the ball and potentially marry her later on.

Xiong Seams and Models provided clothes for models to put on a fashion show. The show provided different designs of Hmong clothing from traditional to wedding attire. The clothing consisted of heavy beading, sequence, vibrant colorful stripes, belts, vests, dresses, aprons, heavy, large necklaces and hats. As the models flaunted different designs, they demonstrated the ball toss.

“This was an opportunity for people to get a broad overview of what Hmong Culture is all about. As far as being able to taste the different foods and see the dances and hear some of the various instruments that they had today, to get a broad prospective,” Jeremy Payne, Adviser of Hmong Club, said.

A variety of raffle prizes were offered towards the end of the event. Audience members who participated in the raffle could win a Hmong necklace, backpack, ID bag/purse or a Hmong story cloth. Audience members left out of the event with a better understanding of the Hmong Culture.

“It was awesome to help the students and watch them grow and develop in a good way,” Payne said.