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Couple posing in the El Faro Cafe, Salinas Chinatown, 1950s. Cathy Chavez-Miller Collection.

An Asian Cultural Fashion Show featuring traditional dress or costumes from five local Asian communities will be held at the Steinbeck Library, 350 Lincoln Street, on March 17, from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Admission is free and refreshments will be served at the end of the show, which is co-sponsored by the Library and Asian Cultural Experience (ACE) of Salinas, CA to promote the 8th Annual Asian Festival in Salinas’ historic Chinatown area on April 25.

Fashion show participants are from the Chinese, Japanese, Filipino, Korean, and South Asian communities. Mistress and Master of Ceremonies will be Susan Aremas and Larry Hirahara.

ACE will also present a pop-up museum, Salinas Chinatown In Style! featuring photographs, clothing, and accessories worn by family members in and around Chinatown from the 1920s through the 1970s. The public is invited to bring in their own photographs of stylish family members in Chinatown and/or Salinas or accessory items to exhibit in our pop-up. We will provide pens and labels for you to write down information about your items.

More details are available from Kristan Amaral, Steinbeck Library, 831-758-7311, or Cathy Chavez-Miller, ACE Co-chair, 831-809-8310 or www.meankitty132@gmail.com

More images from the ACE Pop-up Museum at the 1st Annual Salinas Founder’s Day, 2015. More photos to come! All photos here were taken by Jean Vengua.

Photographs from Henry Gong’s collection:

Richard Villegas, Thomas Esmeralda, and Henry Gong (in the background) talking to visitors:

CSUMB student Qing Xu playing the uke:

Thomas Esmeralda under the arch — as visitors gather around the ACE booth:

Listening to Assemblyman Luis Alejo. The ACE booth can be seen on the far right:

First images coming in: these are of our early morning set-up. The deejay was already playing tunes, so everyone’s spirits were up. During the process, we received a surprise donation from Trish Sullivan of Destination Salinas: an Asian Archway! We immediately set it up, and it was a great addition to our pop-up!

Just one of many boxes we brought in:

I also put out our short Wish List for 2015 (we’ve got more than 2 wishes, but I thought it would be good to start with these two).

Trish Sullivan directs the construction of the gate, with help from the guys in the next booth.

Henry Gong and Richard Villegas complete the construction.

Trish Sullivan standing under the Gate.

Before the ceremonies begin, I walk over to the historic train station, and discover this literary marker, mentioning authors John Steinbeck (Grapes of Wrath) and Carlos Bulosan (America is in the Heart). I remember reading Bulosan’s book review of Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath in a Filipino newspaper published in the late 1930s. I think he’d be happy to know that this marker at the Salinas Train Station remembers both of them.

ACE will have a pop-up museum at the 1st Annual Founder’s Day event. We will be talking about Salinas Chinatown, Chinese Railroad Workers, and the presence of the three Asian communities–Chinese, Japanese, Filipino–and Mexican families that have historically lived in Chinatown and Salinas. Stop by for a visit, and bring any photographs or items for our temporary exhibit at our pop-up museum!

ACE will also be participating in an Asian fashion show with our Chinatown In Style! Pop-up Museum at the John Steinbeck Library on March 17. More on that soon.

This pamphlet was recently donated to ACE, with a number of related items, from the Lila Vezzola collection. Featured is an undated 29-page essay by Hilario Camino Moncado, probably published during the 1930s, when the Philippines was a colony of the United States. It claims that Philippine independence would release the U.S. from its then economic woes:

Founder of the Filipino Federation of America, Inc., Moncado was a charismatic and controversial figure among Filipinos in the U.S., especially during the 1920s-40s. A number of his followers lived in Salinas Valley, and would go up to the hills near Salinas to meditate and fast, according to the spiritual and health regimens specified by Moncado. For more information, see Steffi San Buenaventura’s article, “The Master and the Federation.”

Leonard Han teaches Tai Chi, a Chinese martial art, in the Republic Cafe, 37 Soledad St., on the second Tuesday and fourth Thursday of every month at 10 a.m. Leonard’s discipline brings a sense of peace to the people who live in the Chinatown neighborhood, helping to ease stress and promote health. Take a moment to watch the video:

[youtube=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WN1cQ2jwke8″]

As the camera moves around Leonard, one can see the daily realities of Chinatown neighborhood all around him, the residents, the tent encampments, the old buildings, cars passing by, and the railroad tracks–which have long separated Chinatown physically from downtown Salinas. Just a few steps away are Dorothy’s Place, the Chinatown Community Learning Center (CSUMB), Victory Mission, and further down the street, the Republic Cafe, the @risK artisan gallery, the Chinatown Community Garden, and just around the corner, the Buddhist Temple of Salinas, and Filipino Community Hall.

We are grateful for Leonard Han’s healing presence in the area, and for all the good-hearted people who help out and are part of the neighborhood.

From Monterey Bay Healing Tao: Born in Carmel, California, Leonard Han, is a native of the Monterey Bay area. He holds a B.A. degree from the University of California Santa Cruz and a Masters Degree in Fine Arts from the University of Pennsylvania.

His experience as a teacher, student and practitioner includes a comprehensive system of Traditional Chinese Qigong approaches to Healing and Self-Transformation brought to America by Master Mantak Chia. He is a certified instructor in the Tai Chi for Arthritis program developed by Dr. Paul Lam.

In addition, he is a 59th Rumen disciple of 19th Generation Grandmaster
Chen Qingzhou, of Xulu Village, Henan Province, China. Find out more about Leonard Han HERE.

Chopsuey Republic! The Republic Cafe sign. Photo by Jean Vengua, taken right after our meeting on 1/14/2015.

ACE just had its first meeting of 2015; we got caught up on the neighborhood news, and began planning our programs. This will be a year of intensive fundraising; we need electricity and plumbing for the Republic Cafe, so we can hold more events there; we also need an office and storage space for our expanding collection.

In the near future, look for us on March 7 in the Founder’s Day celebration at the Salinas Train Station; we are also participating in the upcoming Asian Festival in Salinas Chinatown. Work on collecting, cataloging, and archiving images and objects continues. Expect to see ACE events, pop-ups, and collaborative partnerships throughout the year. We welcome your ideas and participation in fundraising, events, collections, and arts and educational programming!

“Love Will Set Us Free” sign above 39 Soledad St., photo by J. Vengua, taken 1/13/2015

An interesting article from the National Park Service on the preservation and use of historic gas stations. This reminds us of the old Shell gas station that served the Chinatown area for many years. It no longer exists, but here’s a reminder from the ACE archives and the Ahtye family collection: