More Gardens! Fund & La Plaza Cultural de Armando Perez Community Garden Cancellation Letter
Wednesday, March 11, 2020
Dear friends of Chaharshnbe Suri
With hearts filled with the loving fire of gratitude for all of our community, we have decided to cancel our event until next year’s Spring Eve of 2021. This difficult decision was made after looking deeply into our hearts and wanting the best for our youngest newborns, our beloved elders, and all of those in-between’s wellbeing and consideration. (Please see www.flattenthecurve.com for more epidemiological details of how this strategy is the most sound and informed one for keeping all of us safe and well at this time.)
Despite our sadness, the red fire of our community is transforming us anew! We are poised to make our event even more magical than ever next year, with plenty of room for everyone at a bigger park. This was the first year we have gone fully visible, with support and backing by our elected officials. This year our two Chaharshanbeh Suri communities in the LES led by Simin Farkhondeh of La Plaza Cultural Center de Armando Perez and Aresh Javadi of More Gardens Fund and their communities joined forces together to overcome our original challenge of being unable to use our LES community gardens due to ongoing lease negotiations with the Parks Department. Amazingly our team negotiated by Simin was able to get approval for the Sarah Roosevelt Park with great support from GreenThumb’s Deputy Director Carlos Martinez, working along with Sam Biederman, Assistant Commissioner for Community & Partnerships and finally Anthony Sama director of Park’s Special Events. Carolina Rivera’s office and particularly her budget director Katie Loeb went out of their way to advocate for our event to the Parks Department and was helping us figure out the logistics of insurance and other more complex park requirements. Her office fully supports our decision to cancel and looks forward to supporting the realization of our event next year.
In adversity, the LaPlaza and More Gardens team came together, and in unity were able to create a new possibility of the larger Park space to accommodate the ever-growing enthusiasm and number of both the Iranian, Afghan, Armenian, Azerbaijani, Kurdish, and Zoroastrian diaspora and the many new fans who have been enchanted by this transformative event.
As we leap over our little candles in our separate spaces on Tuesday, we hold all of us together, singing and leaping the flames in joy and celebration of the coming year, and all of our prayers and wishes for wellness the fire brings us will surely be felt amongst us all.
Please stay in touch, send us your pictures of candle jumping to gladden our hearts, and please sign up to be a part of next year’s planning.
Wishing you and your loved ones a safe and joyous Spring and Norouz/New Year,
Simin Farkhondeh, Events Committee and Board Member of La Plaza Cultural Center &
Aresh Javadi, Executive Director of More Gardens Fund
Chaharshanbe Suri, the Persian kick-off to the Spring Equinox gathers hundreds of Iranian Americans and members of the Persian diaspora, along with their friends and family, who are joined by community gardeners from the far reaches of the globe in the community garden on NYC's Lower East Side for this fire festival. Check out several videos covering our events of the years:
2016: Village Voice News