Valentine’s Day

While Valentine’s Day is rooted in romantic love, it has blossomed into a holiday to celebrate all types of love - family, friends, and self. We shared our sweet tradition of sharing love through candy such as candy hearts, fun dip, and skittles and boxed scratch-n-sniff punny Valentines. Each box was carefully prepared and delivered by our coordinator Shannon. Through each box, we shared a piece of our culture and spread a little love.

Orlando City Game & Tailgating

Tailgating has been an American tradition dating back as early as 1861. The tradition laid its roots starting with American football but has grown to become a highlight in many sports played throughout the country. The tradition involves plumes of smoke from hot grills cooking hotdogs and hamburgers, lots of music, laughter, and games to pass the time. Or in our case, some very famous, and delicious, Publix subs.

We spent 2 days in Orlando sharing what American tailgating is all about. In Orlando, the soccer season kicked off for the Lions on Feb 27th. Participants gathered to enjoy an early lunch of subs on the tailgates of trucks, indulge in each other’s company over music, laughter, and some corn hole. We shared stories of soccer (or football games) from each other’s countries and how they celebrate their home country teams. Before the game, some of us joined the block party put on by the Orlando City Soccer Club right outside the stadium entrance. Participants got a taste of a high energy season opener in American soccer, with Orlando City securing a win. Again, on March 12th, we hosted our participants to an evening game to cheer on the Lions.

(Contributed by Shannon Ortiz)

Louisville Slugger Museum

Since 1884, Louisville Slugger baseball bats have been manufactured in Louisville, KY (except for a brief stint in the late 1900s when they were moved across the river to be closer to rail lines). The Louisville Slugger has been used by famous pro baseball players such as Babe Ruth, Joe DiMaggio, Ted Williams, Jackie Robinson, Roberto Clemente, Hank Aaron, George Brett, Ken Griffey Jr, and Derek Jeter. The Louisville Slugger Museum & Factory was created to share the passion for craftsmanship and baseball. The museum and factory offers a factory tour to learn how the bats are made, a ‘hold a piece of history’ experience where guests can hold a baseball used by famous professional ball players, and a look into baseball history through memorabilia. During Shannon’s visit to our participants and partners in Louisville, she hosted a cultural event for our participants to learn about this important sport in American culture.