On February 18, like a regular Wednesday at Neumann University, while most students hurried between classes, a small table in the Bruder building offered something different: red envelopes filled with chocolate, quiet blessings, and a reminder that the world’s calendar does not always begin on January 1.
The tabling event, organized by the university’s Global Engagement Association (GEA), marked the Lunar New Year on a modest scale. Though simple in setup, just a tablecloth from the Center for Global Engagement and three student organizers, the event carried cultural significance for those involved.
Sophy Yonjan Lama, the president of the GEA, said the association itself is still new. Established about a year ago, the group only began actively hosting events in fall 2025.
GEA’s Lunar New Year information table in Bruder Center. By Nguyen Ta.
“This is my first event,” she explained. “We just wanted to introduce people to the fact that there are different traditions all around the world.”
In her Nepali community, Yonjan Lama celebrates a Lunar New Year known as Lhosar, which follows the phases of the moon.
She noted that Nepal also observes another New Year in April based on the Nepali calendar, highlighting how even within one country, traditions can vary.
Her goal for the event was simple: share blessings and happiness. About more than 20 students stopped by the table, double the 10 she initially expected.
Each student signed in and received a red envelope filled with chocolate candies, funded by a $50 budget approved by the Student Government Association (SGA).
Unlike larger Lunar New Year festivals often seen in major cities, there were no decorations, music, games, or performances.
Yonjan Lama described it as “just a table and us.” Planning took about two weeks, much of which involved waiting for event and budget approvals.
Sophy Yonjan Lama, first from right. By Nguyen Ta
As a new organization, the board – currently Sophy, Sarah, and Klea – relied heavily on their advisor, Victor Betancourt, to finalize decisions.
Promotion was minimal. No campus-wide emails were sent; instead, organizers relied on in-person outreach and a same-morning post in their group chat.
“We were just planning on talking to people in person,” said Yonjan Lama. Obviously, earlier promotion through email or social media might have increased attendance.
Owen Brown, a junior communications and digital media major, stopped by the table after hearing about it from friends.
Growing up in an area with a large Vietnamese and Chinese community, Brown was familiar with Lunar New Year but admitted he did not know much beyond its timing and celebratory nature.
“I learned that the candy is delicious,” Brown joked, referencing the red envelopes decorated with horses to symbolize the Year of the Horse.
Red envelopes filled with coin chocolate, provided by GEA. By Nguyen Ta
“It’s good that they had something going on… better than just completely ignoring it.”
Still, he suggested that visuals such as videos of lion dances or Chinatown celebrations might have drawn more attention. “If they had something on a screen, people would be like, ‘Oh, okay, I see it.’”
Both Yonjan Lama and Brown expressed openness to expanding future celebrations. Yonjan Lama hopes that with more preparation time, decorations, images, or music could enhance the experience next year.
Though small in scale, the event signaled an important step for a young student organization: creating space, however modest, to acknowledge global traditions on a campus where Lunar New Year might otherwise pass unnoticed. In a setting defined by routine, a simple red envelope became a quiet invitation to look beyond it.