Middle schooler Linares-Mendoza leads charge to create a neputa for Camden’s Memorial Day parade
A Japanese neputa, which is a parade float.
A Japanese neputa, which is a parade float.
CAMDEN — Seventh-grader Karen Linares-Mendoza has spearheaded a project to create the first ever Camden-Rockport neputa, which is a large fan shaped float. Linares-Mendoza and a troupe of seventh-grade girls made it with the help of her dad, Hector Linares. The hope is to inspire others to make more neputas for future parades.
This Japan-inspired festival structure will be parading down Route 1 on Memorial Day. This neputa has been constructed as a small gesture of appreciation to the Camden-Rockport Middle School’s Japanese friends half way around the world. This neputa is an offering for the Memorial Day parade and signifies peace and friendship between our countries, two countries that were once at war.
Look carefully at the neputa on Memorial Day because it depicts a story that is the background for the schools’ Japanese Exchange Program. The Japanese characters in the center of the neputa translate as "Sending a message of courage and love across the seas." These words are from the Bath–Tsugaru Student Exchange Program, the first exchange program that catalyzed the beginning of the CRMS sister-state relationship with the Aomori prefecture of Japan.
Related link:
Event Date
Address
United States
