A decade worth of intercultural celebration in Avoca D37

Ten years ago, the Avoca School District 37 community decided to come together in celebration of all the cultures that make up the diverse school district.

And on Friday evening, Nov. 14, that tradition continued, with students and their families filling the Marie Murphy School gymnasium for the Intercultural Dinner and Talent Show.

Guests enjoyed food from more than 20 countries, dined with people from their own backgrounds and others, and watched as their classmates displayed talents ranging from musical performance and dance to martial arts and fashion.

D37 Superintendent Dr. Sandra Arreguín told The Record that the Intercultural Dinner and Talent Show is the district’s most well-attended event, saying more than 400 people came to Friday’s event.

“It speaks to one of our missions, which is nurturing diversity, so I think that’s why there’s that investment in the community,” she said of its longevity. “This is a place and an event where the people feel seen, they feel like there’s a belonging, and I think that’s what really gives it that momentum to continue and to keep on going.”

Avoca District 37 includes students from portions of Wilmette, Winnetka, Northfield and Glenview, a coverage area Arreguín referred to as Avoca Township. She said that in addition to celebrating cultural diversity, the Intercultural Dinner and Talent Show allows families who live in all of Avoca’s communities to unite.

“I think it’s a great opportunity to say, ‘This is something that we really hope will go on,’ because we might feel we are members of all of those communities, but we don’t have one thing to call our own,” she said. “This event allows us to do that.”

Sowon Lim, a D37 parent volunteer, has been to seven previous intercultural dinners, but this year was her first time planning and organizing the event.

She believes one of the major reasons that the dinner has sustained over the past 10 years is because of the school community itself.

“This is not just a place you got to read (and) learn math,” she said. “We are really invested in having our kids learn (academically), but also learn about what it feels like, maybe a taste of the world.”

This year, Lim said she got 24 local businesses to contribute to the event, donating food and raffle prizes and supporting in other ways. Among the local business supporters were Happ Inn, Taco Nano, Jersey Mike’s, Adam’s Kabob and more.

Lim said she believes that not everybody on the North Shore gets to regularly interact with people of different cultures, and she said D37 has many immigrant families attending the school, some of whom don’t speak English.

“They feel uneasy about joining in the school community,” she said. “And then you come to an event like this. You meet other local people from your country.”

What’s impressed Lim is that despite Avoca experiencing an enrollment decline, the number of Intercultural Dinner attendees has remained stable.

Lim added that the event represents “just a taste of the communities,” and that not every country was represented.

“But I hope it makes the kids know that we are living in a world, and we all have to get along and respect one another, and learn from each other, and every culture is valuable,” she said. “I hope that lesson was taught here today.”

Arreguín said she’s proud of the community’s support of the Intercultural Dinner and Talent Show.

“You can feel the excitement and the joy and it’s just a day full of color, music, and it’s just a very beautiful event,” she said.

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