May 21, 2026 - Things to Do

CelebrAsian returns this weekend with a record 70 food vendors

Linh Ta

Crowd of people in colorful traditional clothing on an outdoor stage decorated with bright flowers and pink and yellow streamers, with a modern glass building and trees in the background. — CelebrAsian 2025. Photo: Courtesy of Iowa Asian Alliance

CelebrAsian is back this weekend for its 23rd annual event, and it's using the moment to launch a fundraising push for a new refugee memorial project.

Driving the news: Festival organizer Iowa Asian Alliance (IAA) wants to plant flowering and canopy trees along Robert D. Ray Drive and near the Capitol, with each tree symbolizing a refugee family as a "living legacy" to their stories, executive director Nu Huynh tells Axios.

State of play: The project, called LegaSEA 50, launched last fall as part of the 50th anniversary of Southeast Asian refugee resettlement in Iowa.

Beyond the trees, IAA also plans to build spirit houses, which are protective shrines, in honor of refugee families.
Organizers are steering away from corporate money to fund the project and want it to focus on local families who have helped shape Iowa, Huynh says.
A special LegaSEA 50 tent will be at 13th and Locust to serve as the public kickoff for donations this weekend.

Zoom out: The festival will also feature a record 70 food vendors, a Bruno Mars tribute band Saturday night, and a performance by the Asian Queens, a popular drag show.

If you go: 11am-10pm Friday and Saturday at Western Gateway Park.

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CelebrAsian returns this weekend with a record 70 food vendors

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