BLIA Chinese New Year Youth Party         

On February 23, 2002 the Toronto BLIA YAD hosted its inaugural Chinese New Year Party. The plan of events was a hot pot dinner with games and lucky draws in between. There were weeks of preparation involved for this very large event and the whole youth group did a tremendous job in helping advertise, setting up the decorations and tables, bringing their friends, and giving their support whenever it was needed.

          The day started off at around 1 P.M, and that was when most of the preparations began. Tables were being organized, food was being arranged, balloons were being blown up -things were looking great for the huge night ahead of us. Youth members brought friends who also helped us a lot and their generosity is greatly appreciated. At 6 P.M, the party officially started and the basement looked incredible. The decorations were beautiful, the tables were set up perfectly, the food was ready, the music was great and you could sense an exciting atmosphere was growing.

          People were arriving at around 6 P.M and this was a great sign, because all the work that was put into making the party a success, was going to pay off. The welcoming committee was great and they helped ease our guests into a good mood to start the party off. Tours were given, snacks were served, friends were laughing - life was good. By 7 P.M, more than 200 people had arrived and they were settling down in their seats and the vibe was great. When everyone was seated, after a short introduction to the party and a brief speech from Venerable Miao Yu and the BLIA President Stanley Kwan, dinner started.

          The hot pot dinner was a success and it was a great way for people to get to know each other and have a fun time eating. Although the hot pot was vegetarian, I think the guests had forgotten about that small fact and enjoyed it, just the same. During the dinner, there was the first round of the lucky draw. There were three draws being made and one of the nicest prizes was a limited edition watch. The winners were ecstatic after receiving their prizes.

          Shortly after the lucky draw, the first game of the evening commenced. Each table sent a representative to the playing area and they were lined up in two single file lines. The object of the game was the deliver a message from one end of the line to the other using only actions and passing it from one person to the next in line. Everyone seemed to enjoy the contestant's attempts at explaining the action. The winners received phone cards, courtesy of the temple.

          While people were finishing their dinner, the second round of lucky draw was held and fine gifts were won. Desert was ready and that consisted of fresh fruit and delicious soup. People helped themselves to the fine foods to their heart's content, and it was perfect timing that the second game started. The people divided themselves into groups and the object of the first game was to collect what the MC's asked them for. There were a couple great ideas, such as collecting shoelaces and belts.

          The last game of the night was the human twist and chain game and this required a lot of teamwork. The participants were asked to make a circle and hold hands with the people ahead of them, but not holding onto the same person's hand. When they were queued, they had to untangle themselves, without letting go, until they all faced each other in a circle again. This was a fun activity that had people "all tied up", but they were having a marvelous time.

          After the games, there was the last lucky draw and the final winner won a big Miffy doll, which seemed to be one of the crowd favorites. To conclude the exciting party, balloons were given to every person and they had to pop the balloon to find out if they had won the grand prize of the night, a JVC sound system! The winner of the sound system was BLIA YAD's very own Matthew Lo. There were also 10 BLTV teddy bears given out and the venerables were giving out more presents to everyone before they left. The party was a success, and it's too bad that it is a Chinese New Year's party, because that means we all have to wait until next year!

Clynn Hsiung

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