Marking the beginning of a new year on the lunar calendar, four Elon organizations and the Truitt Center for Religious and Spiritual Life held their annual Lunar New Year celebration. Elon’s McBride Gathering Space came to life with lanterns, interactive games and Asian cuisine. 

Director of Multifaith Programming and Engagement at Elon Hillary Zaken said that what she loves most about Lunar New Year is the energy in the room. Seeing people excited to celebrate and learn new things is something that Zaken looks forward to.

“One wonderful thing about this work is that students may never have celebrated the Lunar New Year before,” Zaken said. “They've heard about it, they've read about it, but they've never had the chance to be a part of a celebration. So the more the merrier.”

2026 is the year of the horse according to the lunar calendar. The horse signifies rapid change, fresh opportunities, personal growth and a faster pace of life. 

Elon sophomore and Truitt Center multi-faith intern Taylor Polonosky helped organize the event and said it took months of planning. 

“Today was like where the magic happened, where you got to see it all,” Polonosky said.

Though Polonosky said they are not of Asian descent, they loved learning about other cultures while putting together the event. Being able to celebrate other cultures is important to Polonosky.

“You get educated and you learn things and you see connections that you didn't see before,” Polonosky said. “You also get to appreciate things that you didn't have the capacity to appreciate to the extent that you do now.”

The fan favorite of the night was the lion dance by Empire Lion Dance, LLC. The lion dance is performed by two dancers who are connected through a costume; they dance to the beat of a drum and cymbal. The lion symbolizes power, wisdom and superiority. This dance is performed to drive away evil spirits and bring good luck.

Elon junior and member of Elon’s Asian-Pacific Student Association Anna Hayne said that although she is adopted and has not celebrated Lunar New Year annually, she finds the celebration as a way to connect with her culture, especially with APSA. 

“I was more insecure about being so disconnected as someone who is visibly Asian,” Hayne said. “Lunar New Year, at this point, I can appreciate from a distance definitely as something that's part of my culture and something that I'm proud of.”