Moving to a new country can be scary, especially to a new community where people don't share the same culture.

That was the experience of Emika Christian James when he moved to the Pembina Valley from Nigeria in 2015. Hoping to prevent that feeling of isolation for others migrating to the region, Afri-Pembina was formed, a celebration of African culture and a place to create a sense of community. Emika Christian James moved to the region back in 2015.

"To have a network and community system so that fear we had when we came and the feeling we were alone, won't be there for others coming to the region," says Christian James. "We are trying to make an environment and community of support and to understand the culture and heritage that's here so that they won't feel alone."

Afri-Pembina has already seen growth. Christian James says the first time they held the event in 2019, only 12 families attended, but now there are over 21 families in the group.

The celebration helps expose African culture through their foods, music, and style. Another significant aspect of culture is dance.


"In Nigeria, it's to express how you feel and a way to communicate," says Christian James. "In the traditional environment in Nigeria, dance is a way to speak with one another."

With over 54 countries that make up the continent of Africa, it's a land of many unique cultures, thousands of languages, and many different styles of dance. With such vast diversity, Christian James says it can be difficult sometimes to coordinate an event that encompasses all of Africa, but they want to create an atmosphere of unity.

The celebration is also an opportunity to teach the next generation of the cultures they are a part of, as many were born here in Canada. Chrisitan James says they've encouraged the children to write a short essay describing the culture of their family's home country and share what they've learned.

Each year, more people choose the Pembina Valley as their home and the number of cultures represented within continues to grow as well. With events like Winter Fest and Culture Fest, people have the chance to share their culture with others.

Christian James says this year, Africa will be represented in a big way at these festivals.
He adds he wants to see Afri-Pembina develop into a community that will support Africans coming to the region and help them better integrate into their new home.