As promised, here's my brief report on last week's Lebanese Festival "Mahrajan."
Being that this was my first Lebanese Festival, I was surprised with the turnout as the evening progressed. Held at St. Anthony’s Maronite Church on Granville Ave., the festival was so well attended, that it was necessary to bus people in from different locations (due to the limited parking on the street). As with most festivals I make it a case to try out the food and if you never tasted Lebanese food, I encourage you to do so ASAP. I started with a simple Keftaburger (seasoned lamb with ground beef) but later stepped up to the plate and order a platter of lamb on rice with fattouch salad and hommus. Overall, it was a great meal as well as very healthy, and it reminded me how much I loved the food at the Sesame Seed Restaurant.
With it being campaign season, the local politicians were out in force. For the exception of Pauline Basso (who left at 5:30), unlike at the Italian festival, I noticed a couple Republicans were in attendance right at the peak time when most people were flooding into the grounds. Those in attendance included Treasurer Dan Jowdy, Mary Teicholtz, and Mayor Boughton (who arrived about 6:00 P.M).
The Democratic candidates were also in attendance as Lori Kaback and Master of ceremony, and Minority Leader Tom Saadi (with Democratic candidate for Treasurer Brian Cotter) shaking hands with just about every person at the festival. Also walking the grounds while I was there were Common Council candidates Christine Halfar, Warren Levy, John Esposito, Ben Chianese, as well as mayoral candidate Helena Abrantes and City Clerk Jean Natale's nightmare, candidate Eileen Coladarci.
When it came to visibility, Kaback clearly came out as the winner with just about a great deal of people walking around with Kaback stickers. Jowdy grabs the prize for best visibility placement with the placement of his lawn signs in front of the church right in the eyesight of those boarding and exiting the buses (smart move).
Anyway, this festival isn't about politics, it's about a celebration of heritage and on that note, here's my small video report on the event.
You can view the photos from the event by clicking here.
On September 26, 2007, ten plaintiffs filed suit in response to an arrest of aday laborers at a public park in Danbury, Connecticut. Plaintiffs amended their complaint on November 26, 2007.
