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2nd Igbo World Festival of the Arts and Culture at the Igbo Village, Staunton, Virginia, USA

OASES NEWS

The 2^nd Igbo World Festival of Arts and Culture scheduled for July 23-25^th weekend at the Igbo Village of the Frontier Culture Museum in Staunton, Virginia, USA is around the corner.

We are calling on all Igbos and lovers of Arts , tradition and culture in the Americas to come one ! Come all !! and be prepared to be dazzled. This is an exciting time for the Igbos in the Americas. We are expecting the world to join us, in celebration of the culture, traditions and values of over 5 million Nigerians of Igbo/West African decent and their value added to the mainstream Americas.

Bring your family to meet and greet with the "Who is Who" from across the globe; VIPs, from Ohaneze Ndigbo from Asia,Canada, Europe, Africa, and the United States. Do not miss the opportunity of being part of this "Memorable event"

From Thursday to Saturday, the program is ambitious. It includes symposium on matters of significance to sustainable development in our community, meet and greet with the VIPs, from Ohaneze Ndigbo from Asia,Canada, Europe, Africa, and the United States and celebration of the contribution of Igbo, Arts, Traditions and culture of over 5 million Igbo and the imprints on the landscape since the 1600s.

MEMO from DG Protocols/Special Duties:

Dear All,

The purpose of this communique is to formally give directives regarding ground transportation from Charlottesville Airport to any Hotel in Staunton Virginia and also from your hotel to event location at Frontier Museum.

If you are in need of CISA arranged ground transportation from Charlottesville Airport Virginia to the Hotel in Staunton Virginia, and vice versa, and also from your hotel to event Frontier Museum, you must strictly adhere to the following directives

First, please be mindful that the trip from Staunton, VA to Charlottesville Airport and vice versa is about 1 hour each way.

You are to communicate your flight arrival date/time 24 hours prior to arrival via phone by contacting Emeka Nwosu at 757-305-7489
You’re to communicate your Staunton VA departure date/time to Emeka Nwosu 24 hours prior via phone at757-305-7489
You’re also to be prepared to tip the driver – Please be generous.

You may wait a while at the airport for other arrivals within the hour before leaving the airport for Staunton. VA.

For those needing transportation from Hotel to event location, the cutesy pick up of guests will cease 10 minutes prior to scheduled event start time in the program.
The transportation is provided as a cutesy to CISA, if you do not comply, you may have to wait a longer time upon your arrival before service is provide.
For hotel guest, if you are not ready 10 min prior to event start time, it is advised you arrange your own taxi.

You are also advised to please check the program of events and encourage others to be punctual.

Again, the contact number for all your transportation need is 757-305-7489 Attention: Emeka Nwosu.

We are all excited and look forward to your coming to celebrate our Igbo heritage and customs during this historic Igbo Festival of Arts and Culture. Your donation will also be helpful in advancing Igbo enrichment programs for the preservation of Igbo language and culture for our children.

Please do not hesitate to contact me at 424-333-1863 if you have questions or need further clarification.

Thank you so much and welcome.

Ezechinyelu

DG Protocols/Special Duties

Join us, July 23- 25, 2015 in celebration of the culture of and values of over 5 million Nigerians of Igbo/West African decent and their value added to the mainstream Americas.

LOGISTICS: CISA and members of the Planning Committee are committed to making conference activities accessible and enjoyable for all. If you have special needs, please contact Professor Paul Oranika, Chairman at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it." rel="nofollow" shape="rect" target="_blank">This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to discuss arrangements.

Pre-registration /payment : At www.cisandiigbo.org

To visit Frontier Igbo Village: At www.frontiermuseum.org

----A brief history of interest below----

1700s West Africa:-

West African Family Compound

During the 1600s and 1700s, nearly 250,000 Africans were brought to colonial America to serve as enslaved agricultural workers, domestic servants, and artisans. Although captives were taken from a vast area of the African continent, and from many different ethnic groups, the great majority were members of West African cultures that lived in the hinterlands of the Atlantic coast. Africans lived in all of Great Britain’s North American colonies, though their population was highest in South Carolina and Virginia.

Beginning in the early 1700s, Virginia tobacco planters imported increasing numbers of captive Africans to work their plantations. The shift from white indentured servants to enslaved Africans in the colony’s tobacco economy had far-reaching repercussions. Race-based slavery soon became a central feature of life in Virginia, and Africans and their Virginia-born descendents would be treated as property, and denied the freedom and opportunities of white colonists. As settlement expanded westward, enslaved Africans and African Americans were among the settlers in backcountry areas. Nearly 40% of the Africans imported into Virginia during this time were brought from a part of the West African coast called the Bight of Biafra. Many of these captives were Igbo, a people living in the upland area north of the Bight of Biafra in what is now the nation of Nigeria. The West African Farm represents life in a free Igbo household in the Biafran hinterlands in the 1700s.

Contributions to American Culture:

Home school Day Visitors

The African captives who were brought to the American colonies carried knowledge and skills with them that they used to cope in their new conditions and passed on to subsequent generations of Americans. Wherever Africans settled in the colonies they contributed to the growth and success of the local economy and the wealth and status of their owners with their labor. When permitted, they influenced the form and function of pottery, basketry, wood-working and textiles they produced for others. Their most notable and enduring contributions to American culture are found in foodways, music, folklore, and religious worship. Okra and black-eyed peas are among the most common items in the American food supply that were introduced by Africans. The banjo and particular musical forms such as Blues and Jazz grew from African ideas brought to America. American folklore shows African influences, especially stories involving animals speaking and behaving like humans. Finally, the enthusiasm and spirit of Christian worship among many Protestant denominations in America is believed to have originated in early African and African-American worship services.

NEARBY AIRPORTS:

***Dulles to Charlottesville to Staunton Virginia – (45 miles) www.gocho.com ***

Chudi Asidianya

President, Council of Igbo States in Americas

(CISA)

Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it." rel="nofollow" shape="rect" style="color: black;" target="_blank">presidentofcisa@gmailcom

Mathias Mgbeafulu

Council of Igbo States in Americas (CISA)

Email: chinobafulu@yahoo.com

Okechukwu P. Oranika

Chairman, Planning Committee