By Henry Gonzales
Staff Writer

Students excitedly celebrate the Lunar New Year with festive traditions and social gatherings. On Feb. 17, 2026, the Multicultural Center hosted a Lunar New Year event which offered traditional festivities. 

The event featured red envelopes, known as “Hangbaoi”, which is a traditional gift containing fake money that symbolizes good luck, vitality and blessings. It is specifically meant to ward off evil spirits and bad fortune. 

Table with Red envelopes. Photos by Chloe Brown.

For more than 3,000 years, the Lunar New Year has been the beginning of a new year in the Chinese calendar. It originated as an agricultural festival to honor gods and ancestors, celebrate harvests and welcome spring. The Lunar New Year is associated with 12 zodiacs, based on a 12 year lunar cycle rooted in ancient mythology and astronomy. 

Each year is represented by an animal: Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog or Pig. Legend has it that the Jade Emperor, the supreme ruler, held a race to determine the order of the zodiac, and these 12 animals earned their places, with each believed to influence the fortune and personality traits of people born in that year.

Heidi Mendoza, one of the coordinators for the MCC at Clackamas Community College said, “[Hangbaoi] is traditional for Asian culture. The New Year is highlighted differently than American culture, which happens to be in February. This year is the “Year of the Horse.”

For those wondering what the “Year of the Horse” means, it signifies a period of rapid change, intense energy, and bold action.

Students gathered and socialized and were also given a bamboo tree to plant. The bamboo tree represents good fortune, prosperity, health and positive energy. 

Students sharing a moment at the Lunar New Year event.

Eve Sukovic, a student at CCC said, “I got a bamboo to plant. I just showed up and I was given a cup, was given a bamboo plant and I planted it.”

When asked what brought students to the Lunar New Year event, Matthew Hua, a student at CCC said, “Just saw some posters about Lunar New Year and thought you know, maybe it would be interesting to check out.” 

As the students left the MCC with bamboo plants in hand, the event provided them a piece of tradition to take home.