Walter Johnson is a notably cosmopolitan school, with countless clubs and student unions that celebrate and educate students about cultures from all over the world. With a congruent mission of recognizing the unique culture of the Southeast Asia region, the Southeast Asian Union, or SEAU, will join the club roster next year to educate through the lens of cuisine.
Experiencing culture through food gives this new club a unique signature, and the first-hand experience it provides was one of the main reasons the club’s founder and president, Junior Sareen Papangelou, decided to create the club.
“I wanted to spread how unique Southeast Asian culture is because I think Southeast Asian culture is often underrepresented, and I just wanted to give people an experience to see what Southeast Asian culture is like through the vision of food because everyone likes food,” Papangelou said.
The demand for food at each meeting opens up an excellent SSL opportunity for members who enjoy making and sharing food. The club can also provide SSL hours through participation in cultural events and managing concession stands.
“The plan regarding the food is that we’re going to let our club members make it themselves. So the plan is they get to set up the food and the officers get to cook it at their house and deliver it to the members the next school day. If the food is already cooked, they can just eat it right then and there,” Papangelou said.
Food is not the only way members can learn about Southeast Asian culture; each meeting will have a presentation about a certain topic and a discussion for the members to engage in. Honorary officer of the Southeast Asian Union, junior Skylar Zheng, explains how each meeting will be conducted.
“We’re usually going to have a presentation and afterwards everybody gets to ask questions. We get to talk, have fun and then at the very end, we get to eat some food,” Zheng said. “To me, the most interesting part is the language, how people communicate and how people pronounce and enunciate certain sounds. The second most interesting part is the culture and traditions, like how people view certain things based on where they’re from.”
The Southeast Asian Union is intended to be a friendly and educational community that brings people together over food and culture. Junior Secretary Alexis Batac reveals why she is excited about SEAU’s launch next year and encourages anybody interested in Asian culture to join.
“I want to experience new cultures and food all while helping others experience my own. Come for the food and the experience, and make a lot of friends and have fun. SEAU there!” Batac said.