Northland Unity Festival on Saturday aims to show diversity of Columbus neighborhood

Micah Walker, The Columbus Dispatch
·4 min read

Anyone who comes out to the second Northland Unity Festival on Saturday should come away with a sense of the neighborhood's diversity thanks in part to a host of local venders, music and dance acts, and food trucks, organizers say.

The free event is a partnership between the community development nonprofit Elevate Northland, Columbus Recreation and Parks and the Columbus Department of Neighborhoods. It will take place Saturday from 3-7 p.m. at the North YMCA, 1640 Sandalwood Place.

Elevate Northland director Judith Cockrell said the festival is a way for people to know about the various resources and people that make up the Northland neighborhood, which is known for its growing Somali and Bhutanese Nepali populations.

"We really want to make it easy and fun and encourage people to come out," she said. "It's a free event. They just have to show up."

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Judith Cockrell began her position as the first executive director of Elevate Northland on Oct. 1. Founded in 2019, Elevate Northland serves residents in the neighborhood who are seeking to learn, grow their businesses and access resources.
Judith Cockrell began her position as the first executive director of Elevate Northland on Oct. 1. Founded in 2019, Elevate Northland serves residents in the neighborhood who are seeking to learn, grow their businesses and access resources.

Columbus mayor, city officials to attend Unity Festival

Columbus Mayor Andrew J. Ginther is expected to attend the festival as it will be the last stop of the summer for the city's Rise Up CBUS initiative.

The program consists of collaborating with community organizations on events across the city to promote the 21 aspirations Ginther has for every Columbus resident, according to its website. The "aspirations" include topics such as workforce development, mobility and financial security.

More than 30 city officials and community organizations will be at the festival, said Department of Neighborhoods Deputy Director Todd Dieffenderfer. One of those organizations will be the Somali-American Youth Concern, which helps connect resources and information to young Somali people in Greater Columbus, he said.

"We'll have City Year there looking at opportunities around jobs and employment," he said. "Action For Children will be there focused on child care. We have a couple of groups from Ohio State coming out looking at chronic disease."

Along with the mayor, Department of Neighborhoods Director Carla Williams-Scott, Council member Emmanuel Remy and other city council members are expected to attend, Cockrell said.

What kind of food will be there?

Fernando Alcauter, owner of Toro's Meat Market, holds two tomahawks of beef earlier this year. The business is sponsoring a tamale-eating contest at the Northland festival.
Fernando Alcauter, owner of Toro's Meat Market, holds two tomahawks of beef earlier this year. The business is sponsoring a tamale-eating contest at the Northland festival.

A variety of food trucks will be at the festival, Cockrell said, including Northland-based WF Foods, which serves breakfast and lunch items from omelets to fish. The nonprofit Economic and Community Development Institute will provide a truck, and Toro Meat Market, which took over Carfagna’s Market space on Dublin-Granville Road in May, is sponsoring a tamale-eating contest.

What's more, the food is free as long as visitors fill out a special passport at the event.

"What will happen with the food trucks is when people enter the festival, they'll get a passport that the city will have, and when they go to different tables to get information, they give a stamp," Cockrell said. "And when they turn in their completed passport in, they get a food ticket and they can use that ticket at the food truck to get a whole meal, which includes a drink, a main course and either french fries or tater tots."

Valerie Cummings will be there with her Italian ice business, I Cee Rainbows. The 62-year-old who lives near Northland said she likes being a part of small neighborhood festivals.

"It (the Unity Festival) brings people together in the neighborhood, especially where it's located at the YMCA," she said. "There's a lot of houses in that area and people can come out and enjoy an evening of good foods."

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Who are the entertainment acts?

Vaud-Villities Productions, which performed "The Greatest Showman" in its spring show, will be at this weekend's festival.
Vaud-Villities Productions, which performed "The Greatest Showman" in its spring show, will be at this weekend's festival.

On the entertainment front, the event will feature music and dance performances from diverse groups that make up the neighborhood. The Nepali Cultural Dance Group is scheduled to perform as well as ASA Warriors and Royal Legacy, which are West African drumming and dance groups.

Variety show company Vaud-Villities Productions will perform a 20-minute multicultural dance and music show, and its ensemble group Vocalities will take the stage at some point, too.

"You can come out, relax and listen to the music," Cockrell said.

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mwalker@dispatch.com

@micah_walker701

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Northland Unity Festival to show diversity of Columbus neighborhood