The Cherry Blossom Festival

TUPELO, Miss. (WCBI) – The third annual Cherry Blossom Festival took place in Tupelo on Sunday.

Dozens of residents came out to the festival at Ballard Park.

The goal of the event is to bring awareness and share the Japanese culture with the community.

There was Japanese food sampling, music, demonstrations, and crafts at the festival.

The cherry blossom is an important symbol of the Japanese culture.

“Cherry blossom is very significant to Japanese folks. Every spring, we have a picnic or a celebration and the Cherry Blossom Festival, like today, we gather friends and family together to celebrate the beginning of the spring,” says Cherry Blossom Festival committee member, Mieko Kikuchi.

Kikuchi says she hopes people take away an appreciation of the Japanese culture.

Festival organizers also plant 50 cherry blossom trees around the park each year.