LYNNWOOD — When JiYeon Cheh and her husband started a place for kids to learn Korean dance and music 25 years ago, they hardly expected it to blossom into a stronghold of tradition.
But it did. Members of the Morning Star Korean Cultural Center performance group have traveled to 23 countries and performed 1,500 times since the center opened its doors, sharing their culture.
The dancers recently traveled to Vancouver, B.C., for a performance that marked a traditional celebration.
It took place on Feb. 14, the day of the Lunar New Year, Cheh said. The fact that the event happened during the Winter Olympics made it all the more memorable.
More than two dozen members of the group, which includes 100 kids and adults, performed their part in an international event alongside people representing other cultures.
“All these different nations got together,” Cheh said. “With the music and dancing, we were one. We didn’t need language.”
The performance made for a truly special New Year celebration, she said.
Cheh and many other Koreans in Snohomish County celebrate the Lunar New Year with a traditional meal at Bethany Korean Church, where Cheh’s husband is a pastor. Children receive money as a gift, for good fortune. After the meal, people bow to their elders to honor them.
Members of the center are a close community, Cheh said.
On a recent Sunday afternoon, the center was empty save for Cheh working on her computer.
The center felt like someone’s home, where shoes are left at the door, Korean style. In her office, Cheh sat on a colorful electric blanket laid out on the wooden floor in front of a low table with a keyboard and a computer monitor. A special pillow supported her elbow and a blanket covered her feet. Her tiny white poodle lay curled up nearby.
Cheh is a writer published in South Korea. Her daughter, Sinae Cheh, is translating some of her mother’s work into English.
Sinae Cheh, 29, also teaches dance classes at the center.
“Because I’ve been doing this my whole life, I never lost touch with my heritage,” she said.
Anyone from 4 to 70 years old can take classes at Morning Star. The children learn traditions, and the older people stay healthy by being active, JiYeon Cheh said.
Besides traditional dancing and music, Korean language classes for kids also are available.
JiYeon Cheh was 27 when she moved to the United States. Her husband started the center soon after. They struggled to find the money, she said. But before long, the center took root and became a part of the community.
People of Korean heritage growing up in the U.S. and other countries may face an identity crisis at some point of their life, Sinae Cheh said. They don’t belong in Korea, but they don’t completely fit in where they grew up either.
“I never felt that confusion about the roots of my culture,” she said.
Katya Yefimova: 425-339-3452, kyefimova@heraldnet.com.
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