Ethiopian Community Association of Chicago Picnic

Since we weren't able to make it to the CHSFS picnic in Minnesota this year (We'll definitely be there next year!!!) We decided to begin building relationships with the Chicago Ethiopian community. The Ethiopian Community Association of Chicago hosted a picnic, and we were able to meet many Ethiopian families who live in the area.

We were initially unsure of how we would be received at the picnic, but the warmth and hospitality with which we were greeted took us right back to our time in Addis. It was wonderful to see the children playing soccer, hula hooping, and searching for caterpillars together. I loved hearing Amharic spoken and talking with some of the men and women about Ethiopian culture, the media, and American life. It was evident that the Ethiopian people have a deep and true pride in their heritage, and we hope that our children will be instilled with that same pride in their birth culture.

The kids played, made new friends, and ate delicious food.

In Ethiopian culture children are truly treasured, and the adults doted on them wherever they went. The children at the picnic were very sweet with one another, holding hands and walking arm in arm. Even the teenagers were friendly and polite!

We are so fortunate to live in an area where there is a large and active Ethiopian Community. It was a pleasure to meet everyone at the picnic, and we sincerely hope to see them all much more often in the future.