The veil of the night sky had not yet fallen over Hickory Hill Park when participants began gathering. Before long, the park was filled with the twinkling golden lights of paper lanterns.
The Lantern Festival project was created by the Golden Beaker, a nonprofit organization founded a year ago by Iowa City City High Junior Amal Altayib. It was held on Sept. 28 from 6 to 9:30 p.m.
“We started [this club] because we wanted to raise money for the low-income elementary schools in the district, and we also want to increase access to STEM opportunities,” she said. “We saw there was this water lantern festival in Cedar Rapids, where they were releasing lanterns onto the river and then cleaning [them] up. We wanted to bring something similar to that into Iowa City since we know that’s far away.”
Vice President of the Golden Beaker Siena Brown also mentioned that their last event raised over $1,000, which provided supplies to over 600 elementary schools in the area.
Participants had the chance to decorate three types of white paper lanterns of various sizes with markers and colored pencils supplied at a main table. Designs ranged from hearts and sparkles to inspirational quotes and spirals scattered on the lanterns.
On top of the financial benefits of the event, the Golden Beaker Lantern Festival is also beloved by the parents of Iowa City who wish for the betterment of their children’s schooling.
UI Associate Professor of Philosophy Jovana Davidovic and Shea Brown, parents of one of the event organizers, expressed their appreciation and awe at what the Golden Beaker has achieved. The pair have children who attended schools supported by the Golden Beaker, including Southeast Middle School.
“I think in general, a lot of the schools like to see that the kids are supporting them,” Davidovic said. “I know a lot of the teachers in City High are really excited, even though this event isn’t for City High. A lot of the teachers in the sciences are really excited to see their own students being supported.”
Davidovic and Brown have also followed the events of the Golden Beaker closely, recalling a music festival that was held over the summer.
“We weren’t there, but they had, I think, five or six or seven student bands playing at Chauncey Park, and it was really good,” Davidovic said.
The couple served as the perfect example of the importance of the work the Golden Beaker does apart from the funding. When it comes to schools and their programs, morale can be just as important as money.
At 8 p.m., Golden Beaker members led everyone into the woods for a lantern walk. The trees were illuminated with yellow lights, if only for a brief moment.
The festival was filled with groups of all ages, allowing the families and youth of Iowa City to come together for a beautiful evening. Along with raising money for schools, the communal creation process allowed for bonding with others.
“In the end, I’m just really impressed by how much money they’ve raised,” Davidovic said. “They’ve only been around for, like, five or six months and, to be honest, they’ve raised a lot of meaningful funds and made a lot of connections with the local teachers and businesses.”