- The Obon Festival, organized by Salt Lake City's Buddhist community, returns to the city on Saturday.
- Held at Salt Lake Buddhist Temple, the traditional event honors ancestors and loved ones who have died.
- Activities include temple tours, drum performances and traditional street dancing.
SALT LAKE CITY — The Obon Festival returns to Salt Lake City on Saturday, putting the focus on the Buddhist community and providing an opportunity to remember loved ones who have passed.
"This is a joyous and happy time for us to remember all those who have passed on before us. It's not a time to be sad that they're no longer with us. It's a time for us to be happy that we knew them and got to have them in our lives," said Trey Imamura, chairman of the festival and a member of the board of the Salt Lake Buddhist Temple, the hosting organization.
The event is inspired by annual Obon week activities in Japan traditionally held in mid-August to honor ancestors.
The free event, now in its 89th year in Utah, starts at 3 p.m. on Saturday, July 12, and goes until around 9 p.m. Activities will be held at the Salt Lake Buddhist Temple, 211 W. Japantown Street, and on a closed section of Japantown Street, or 100 South, in front of the temple.
"Having our celebration in historic Japantown is very important to us. This is where our parents and grandparents held the festival. And we want to carry on that tradition to honor them and the sacrifices they made," said Troy Watanabe, the temple president. Japantown, just one city block long, is a gathering spot for Utah's Japanese community and has been focus of heightened debate about redevelopment.
Festival activities include tours of the Buddhist Temple, drum performances and street dancing in traditional garb like kimonos and happi coats. Food will also be offered on sale.
Tracy Akimoto, one of the performers and dance instructors, said she uses Obon to remember loved ones who have died, including her grandparents, her father and a son who died when he was just a month old.
"It means so much to me because of my infant son. I feel closer to him while dancing at Obon. It's kind of painful, but at the same time it's a happy occasion," she said.
