[Music] live from Union Square in San Francisco KTVU Fox 2 presents the Alaska Airlines Chinese New Year parade and now your host Mike meback and Claudine Wong tonight tradition taking Center Stage family lining the Streets of San Francisco soaking in those vibrant colors and the loud sounds of Celebration this parade we have the young the old and everyone in between tonight we will be shining that Spotlight on a community with deep roots here in the city tonight we will be shining the spotlight on this the year of the dragon live from downtown San Francisco we welcome you to the Alaska Airlines Chinese New Year parade good evening everyone and welcome here in Union Square I'm Mike me back and I'm Claud Wong this parade did start as a community parade and even though it is now grown to be the largest Lunar New Year celebration outside of Asia it is still at its core about Community this is a source of Pride for the Chinese American Community for the San Francisco community and for the entire Bay Area and KTVU is privileged to be a part of this for almost four decades hundreds of thousands of people line the Streets of San Francisco for this rain or shine but tonight we have picture perfect weather to celebrate the year of the I think it actually hit 70 degrees here in the city by the bay today all right enough of us let's get to that opening act it's an amazing group out of Fremont celebrating 20 years parade organizers actually saw this group at the Chinese New Year celebration for the Warriors a halftime celebration they said they've got to be in this parade and tonight they are here for the first time to perform for you this is Lisa Performing [Music] Arts [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] oh [Music] n [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] telling the story of cultural Pride new and the joy of coming together Lisa Performing Arts out of Fremont doing just that what a phenomenal start at the Chinese New Y year parade amazing the founder of that group was a principal dancer in China her daughter is now the choreographer so it's really all about family amazing to see them also amazing the Grand Marshal of this year's parade the Golden Globe winning actress Aquafina here she's got a new movie coming out next month kungu Panda 4 she's a brand new character and it is a crowd pleaser to see her here tonight all right let's get right to our colleague Amber Lee she's going to be joining us throughout the evening along gir Street Amber hey Mike and Claudine I love this parade but let me get to the person we've all been waiting for our Grand Marshall Aquafina Welcome to our city by the bay what is what are your thoughts about being the Grand Marshal of this big cultural event oh man it's it's such a deep honor to be here this was so exciting we did half the route already the whole city is is is lit up there's energy is off the charts and I'm so happy to be here it's it's an honor and you see all these asian-americans it's a very diverse crowd being of Asian a Chinese American and Korean American descent what do you want them to see when they look at you I mean I want I want them to see you know them themselves you know in living in a world where I mean this I love San Francisco because the community here is so strong and and I can feel it and I think that uh it it's I I just I just hope that that the younger Generations feel feel feel good about about uh who they are and and where they are this at this time in the world yeah going up Asian's not easy sometimes right I mean I know that I had it tough sometimes New York yeah I mean I think it's it's always different to to to be different but it also means a lot to come together and celebrate something that means a lot to you and and uh and you know I'm thinking about my own family when I'm here today and it just means a lot I'm I'm so happy to be here right and I know that your latest project is Kung Fu Panda four and hi po I want to say hi to you po and what Drew you to this project I mean I was I was a huge fan of Kung Fu Panda growing up um huge fan of of of Jack and and everyone there so when I got the call it was very surreal to be a part of something that you know you kind of grew up watching um so yeah I know a number of your projects have Asian American ties is that deliberate I mean it's it in sometimes it's I mean it's the story it's who I am and it's it's the stories I want to tell that I think are important to tell that we should we should all contribute in telling now for the fireworks are you ready whoa look that's so long I know yeah like the most fireworks I've ever been exposed to but yes I'm ready and you said you got you're going to put in some earplugs you got your goggles apparently I I have to put in okay yeah put in that so it doesn't blow out your eardrums okay then I won't hear anybody but okay you guys you all right all right let's do it all right let's do it I am ready all right happy New Year [Applause] everybody [Applause] happy is it it's okay it's all good it's all that was a uh really exhilarating that was so many fireworks um happy happy happy New Year great time at thege thank you so much I will pleasure meeting you yeah same well like and Claudine we're off to the parade off we go indeed Amber thank you Aquafina thank you for that I mean just before we came on air to talk about the popularity Claudia of altina we heard the entire crowd screaming for and I'm talking about all ages out there yes everyone loves her and really her work has been amazing and so diverse and uh she has made us laugh she has made us cry and so it certainly have been so fun to watch her so G jooy we are excited for this parade to now get underway as Alaska Airlines presents Yao Kong mu Kung Fu the dragon and lion dance Association if you're looking at this group and saying I recognize them it's because this is their 45th year in the Chinese New Year parade dedication right there they have been around and really it's traditional martial arts but it's also lion dancing and they have 10,000 members around the world so we saw those flags leading the group right there and then students will be performing Kung through pattern here over the next minute or so uh students they're colorful Lions they also follow are followed by a large dragon in gold and red and all of this is of course to welcome in the year of the dragon this is about Prosperity this is about long life this is about about health and this is a way and this is part of what makes this so special is the colors the lights and really how many generations are involved in celebrating the Lunar New Year and the theme this year really is embracing the dragon from within and we have dragons in in all parades here over the years but when it is the year of the dragon we're going to see a little bit more dragons remember Clon this is the only mythical creature among the 12 Chinese zodiac signs yeah so it's a lot of fun for for people to really welcome and celebrate this this dragon and celebrate this year as we hope for prosperity and good luck what an amazing way to see both the Lions there you have one of the Lions and really the Artistry and the training that goes into it and you can see some of those lines going right up to the crowd and that really is part of this these two person teams that take this art and this tradition to a wonderful level of all ages being a part of showcasing this amazing culture this is one of the best parts about having a nighttime parade too cuz you mentioned the colors the colors definitely popping right now on gir Street and you also mentioned the crowds and I will say we are on gir and pal right in that area these Crowds Are 10 Deep along Market Street along post and Kerney as well of course Alaska Airlines is our sponsor and when you talk about their float there are 19 floats total in this parade this Dragon one of our favorites and we went down and visited disco Dragon that's what they call it disco Dragon I love disco and I love dragon and the float title is May your fortune fly in 2024 so this is a dragon that is soaring through the skies above mountains and rivers bringing Prosperity with hundreds and hundreds of mirror tiles shining its way so you can see it right there Claud and I had the opportunity to go down to Pier 54 earlier in the week and talk to the person who Stephanie who is really in charge of all these major flows she loved it this year she's like to brought out my creativity and you can see you talk about those mirrored tiles right there on the belly of the Dragon she said there's about a thousands of them uh on this particular dragon and days they sat there and their job this crew was to Simply place them one by one I mean it's they start yesterday right we should tell home they started actually the design process started back in October and then they really started getting into construction around December and if you look at the folks behind the parade those are the Alaska Airlines employees and I know from talking to folks in the past it is really such a privilege I will Point your attention as this float comes by to the flight attendance that are actually behind his grade we saw this in years past is that the flight attendant will come and they actually practice they have a fan drill routine and it's really quite remarkable to see the amount of time and effort that goes into being a part of this parade and what it takes to really showcase you know the joy of really participating so you have the people on the top of the parade with their bands and then you have the flight attendants actual flight attendants behind that float just showcasing their own skills and their talents hey I flew Alaska last year the good Airline gets me to and from non-stop all the time they're going wearing comfortable shoes because this is going to be a long parade rout it is a long Parade route they've already been going by the time that they get to this Zone they've been going already for a couple uh I should say for about a half a mile or so and then they hang a right here on pal in front of the Western St Francis Hotel and then make their way down post to Kerney I love the energy of this parade it is absolutely spectacular and as Alaska Airlines employees make their way through behind them we have our first band of the parade which uh looking forward to seeing them welcome to the UC Davis marching band that follows up all these Alaska Airlines employees home up the agies performing at UC Davis sporting events and really other events all across uh campus and in the community throughout the year of course this uh band is open to all students at UC Davis you know really regardless of experience I mean if you just want to pick up an instrument for the first time they say come on in we'll do it for you um they played a lot of the football games this year good football team by the way claan seven and four with that big win over sack State this season all right well let's listen in to the UC Davis marching band [Music] [Music] all right there you have the UC Davis marching band as col said our first band of the night all right if you're feeling lucky in the Year of the Dragon Enter right now for a chance to win 250,000 mil from Alaska Airlines not 250 250,000 mil good on Alaska or their Airline Partners now just think of all the places you goodness 250,000 so many Joes to Eder go to ktv.com contest the Alaska Airlines Chinese New Year parade we'll be right [Music] back sunny saai ging Hong Ping On D San Francisco mayor London breed with a greeting in cantones wishing everyone a happy New Year good health peace and luck to you at home and welcome back to the Alaska Airlines Chinese New Year parade live from downtown San Francisco great start right off the bat the crowd is fantastic the weather unbelievable especially when you compare it to last year now a lot of the participants more than 120 entries by the way a lot of them from the Bay Area a lot of them from Northern California but of course there are those participants who come in from Southern California and up next coming in along G Street this exactly what we have there from Henda Heights California that is just east of Los Angeles in LA county we have the San Gabriel Valley Chinese Cultural Association lion and dragon team that's right they were founded in 1968 and they were founded to promote the enrichment of Chinese language and culture so this is a group that teaches Mandarin classes they also teach lion and dragon dancing you can see they're Dragon there as they it is supported by it takes anywhere from 10 to 14 people to make sure this dragon can make its way through uh the Streets of San Francisco and when I say they're from Southern California hey how about a little bit of Hollywood these they've actually appeared in TV shows Law and Order you may be familiar with that show uh as well as in a Maroon 5 music video and an LA Clippers halftime show as well now right now if you can hear it they're using drums and flags and symbols leading these Chinese dragons each by the way supported by 10 to 14 people right there these are not light buddy no they are not and you'll see them as they go they these dragons tend to chase the pearl of wisdom and so they make their way and they wind their selves through the streets of San Francisco again what is so amazing about this is how much interaction with the crowd we have our grand stands that are packed full of people and what a treat for them tonight all right up next we do have Wade lie the president of the Chinese Chamber of Commerce coming down in that Mustang this parade has been under the direction we should mention of the Chinese Chamber of Commerce since 1958 today the San Francisco Chinese New Year festival and parade it's the largest cling celebration of its kind out there in the world this is something that really has attracted the attention of really International folks you've got 3 million Spectators and televis viewers throughout the US Canada and Asia and when people people talk about this parade they talk about it as one of the top 10 parades of the world that is what the international festivals and events Association has said about this parade because it really is such a source of Pride for San Francisco and really the parade organizers have said even folks from Asia have come in and said we want to know how you do this parade and as you see Wade lie there he said earlier before the parade started he's very proud to have been part of really the support for this past Year's APAC conference which by the way was held here in s San Francisco uh he also owns an advertising marketing firm that focuses specifically on Asian-American communities and messages doing a wonderful job there with the Chinese Chamber of Commerce all right right behind Wade Li we have the Chinese Chamber of Commerce and we want to say that you know when they're a part of this parade every year they like to Spotlight a couple of organizations that are really vital to what happens in Chinatown so this year they want to highlight Chinese hospital and Community Health Plan and the Chinese culture center Chinese Hospital both my parents were born at that hospital 22 hours apart and I love this is another one of those floats that we saw earlier this week down around Pier 15 I believe and you can see the dragons on those pillars weaving their way up through the clouds right there and on the side uh but again you mentioned Chinese Hospital uh that hospital has Origins going back more than 100 years in Chinatown helping people who kind of may have a language barrier uh say let's say they go to SF General um and then also the Chinese Cultural Center as you mentioned as well is dedicated to elevating underserved communities now right behind this float the amazing group from Garfield elementary school and look at how adorable they are if you're wondering about those outfits those are maang tiles if you played maong they have a this is how you play this this game it's a tile game uh I played this game growing up in every holiday every birthday I still have a table in my house now it's a lovely to see these kids cele celebrating this is an immersion program here at Garfield elementary school that began 12 years ago yeah if you don't if you're not familiar with it it's up on Telegraph Hill kind of at the foot of quay to you know beautiful spot right up there especially for an elementary school um those costumes by the way they're handmade and I may say that a few times tonight those costumes were handmade but the detail in them are fantastic it really is and it really shows you how much work folks put into this when we've talked to groups that have been in this parade they start work months in advance to make sure that they will be ready to Showcase tonight and this is why we are so grateful as well for this perfect weather because while they would come rain or shine we love that these kids do not have to do it in the rain they're holding each other right there big smiles all around again the crowd as you can see in the stands I mean it's sold out here right the Chinese chamber told us they sold 4,000 tickets specifically for this area yes and they went so fast they said hey let's put 500 more out there and 2 Days Later those were gone gone so uh yeah this place is packed tonight this place is amazing the spirit and the energy is so good what they're about to do these kids is they're going to wrap the school song it was created by a third grade Cantonese immersion teacher at that school so good for them all right up next is the leader of San Francisco mayor London breed making her way down Gary Street in that car right there uh the mayor a native San Franciscan from Galileo high school and then she went off to UC Davis and then back here in the city by the bay attending the University of San Francisco and this is such an important event for the city of San Francisco and really for Beyond a time to really showcase and take the stage Amber Lee is down on the street waiting for her and as she comes closer we'll get a chance to talk to her but this is a point and I've talked to you know a lot of city leaders say when they come down here it is important to say to the entire Community like this is part of what makes our city special the diversity the people who come together to all celebrate this Lunar New Year celebration this is a celebration that's been going on for a couple of weeks now the Chinese New Year actually began on February 10th but it is a Spring Festival that lasts and extends for two weeks and so when we come out here what an amazing thing and as they're looking up we're looking at at really the people in the Grand Sands the people in the streets the people in the windows around us that have all come to really celebrate together and one thing about mayor London breed and and every time I've had the ability to to interview her uh she has that pass passion for the city it's it's never left she loves San Francisco day in and day out she tells us she's doing what she can to make San Francisco what it is and what it's going to be in the future Amber Lee is down there with the mayor let's send it over to Amber just caught up with her mayor oh this event is filled with so much joy so much pride so much love and excitement the Year of the Dragon signifies prosperity and progress and we are feeling the momentum and excit in San Francisco so I am so happy to be here what's your favorite part my favorite part are the people it's so many people this is one of the biggest crowds I've seen in a really really long time and they are pumped they are energized and they are fired up and ready to go and you can see all the people up at all the through the window yes it's a beautiful site and it's so amazing I love San Francisco I love the people who are part of our city that makes it so unique and amazing and Lunar New Year is a chance for us to uplift our city so we're excited to be here you know being natives it's a great event it's a wonderful feeling Sunny F thank you mayor all right Amber thank you well mayor is excited fired up for this year of the dragon honestly anytime I think you see the crowds like this and you talk about a city and and you know the entire country trying to come back and and have economic revitalization certainly that's something in San Francisco that there has been a lot of work towards and so all these crowds all these people that come here for this this is just all good stuff for the new year and good stuff for the city all right Philip Burton High School Puma marching band making their way down gir Street Philip Burton High School located right near McLaren park on the south side of San Francisco now this band program was founded a little more than 10 years ago 2011 uh the marching band then started cluding just about a year after and then they actually started competing getting serious in 2015 the only competitive Public School marching band in San Francisco and really when you talk about these bands the growth is what is so noticeable and how much people love it this started with 35 students and it quickly went over to 170 different people in multiple different groups in this music program what they want to do they say is provide a high level of musical education and allow the people in this band to prepare for opportunties of Music After High School I mean this band grew so fast that they're still waiting for their un it takes a while I am told by our band experts at the station to get these uniforms and so they had so many people join they had to order them and they're still waiting that's the that's that sometimes can take more than a year to actually get these uniforms let's take a listen real quick at the pH High School Mark all right right behind the Philip Burton High School Puma marching Grand Alaska presents the Argon Elementary Chinese after school program you talk about the Deep history in this city this program opened in San Francisco in 1920 with the Chinese after school program starting in 1999 so that's a more than 100 years you're talking about right there amazing and when you talk about family this was a parent run organization and they said we want to provide some Mandarin classes for students in grades K through five so that kids could be bilingual and the goal really is to teach them to be bilingual but then to also increase their their understanding their you could say appreciation of the Chinese culture and this is the third time these students have appeared in the parade again and all the smiles around I'm looking for the MVP the most valuable parader of this parade and there could be a couple candidates in there well we are so excited to have uh them here we are so excited to be here at the Alaska Airlines Chinese New Year Parade coverage we'll be right back welcome back to the Alaska Airlines Chinese New Year parade live from downtown San Francisco the McDonald's family camera showing us all the exciting fans out there enjoying the parade along Gary Street excited for really all that's still to come and what's still to come right now is Asian Inc founded right here in the Bay Area an organization trying to help asian-americans and other minority groups buy homes start and grow businesses CL in and really to accumulate wealth and what I love about this parade we talk about how it started as a community parade and so so many of the groups that are involved in this parade are so entrenched in the community trying to make a difference Asian Inc was actually established over 50 years ago and what they tried to do is they had a goal to fight for economic equity they are on this cable car tonight and decorated with the theme faster higher stronger together they've got a wood Dragon Motif and they're all wearing dragon themed apparel so we welcome them to the Chinese New Year parade all if you're feeling lucky tonight how about casinos this is our first Casino float coming down that Sky River Casino a newer Casino out of Elk Grove that's just south of Sacramento if you're not sure where Elk Grove is it opened in August of 22 and it's run and owned by the Wilton ranera tribe second year in the parade gladine yes I mean and I think that's kind of amazing it says to you right we're brand new but we know we want to be a part of this parade if you take a look at the float the name of this float is called Dragon of spade so they got the traditional I mean the middle there's the Spade there the Spade but it's got the dragon on it and they've got floral elements the Dragon for them representing wisdom and power and then of course they are Casino yes they have a lot of gold coins on there every Chinese New Year and Lunar New Year celebration does involve a little wish for Prosperity Sky River wishing everyone great success in the year of the dragon all right the Lincoln Middle School Marching Band out of the city of alam the home of the Lions mind you performing in the parade since the late '90s and performing in many other parades every year and they are performing tonight two Chinese folk songs and a Chinese dragon dance they've got 50 members marching tonight they've got flags and Banners and we can listen in to them for just a moment [Music] [Applause] all right by the way they were awarded special recognition in last year's Parade from middle school we go to elementary school and that is the Gordon J Lao Elementary School in the heart of San Francisco's Chinatown it is the largest public elementary school in the city nearly 700 students we're talking from prek to fifth grade and as we talk about the history of this city and the history of this country and the the history of the school it's important to talk about the Chinese Exclusion Act era of the late 1800s and at that time it was the only Public School in San Francisco for Chinese children it was actually renamed for Gordon Lao in 1998 Gordon Lao a former Civic leader you've got fourth and fifth grade students performing tonight you can see their dragon in SPID costumes they got the dragon here I love it they're fired up again little fairy lights representing scales and Claws and uh these are they are dancing to descendants of the dragon by Lee Hong Wong and dance a night by Dua you know do alipa by the way I don't think she actually got into her school choir wow initially initially that's the story I heard about Dua that's a good story but as you see them uh what a great time to see them in this parade tonight all right let's talk about Hyundai the theme is here is to an adventurous Year of the Dragon and so their cars rolling through this parade we got that's a that's a 24 Kona I believe I think they're going to have a couple Vehicles here the Santa Fe the Kona the Tucson plug-in hybrid EV battle it's a real thing clouding it's happening H in the midst of this and it is quietly rolling through the streets of San Francisco in front of the grand stands tonight uh this is you know something that we this is a green City that we we focus on this and Hyundai's motto is progress for Humanity so as they roll through the streets of San Francisco uh in their for Kona I love this I love that what a great job to get you're like you want to you want to go well you know what I tell you what one of the good things about parades in San Francisco is window watching we experienced this during the San Francisco Giants parades the three of them the warrior parades in Oakland as well as here look up at the Macy Windows right now I mean there's more than a thousand people up there looking down on the Union Square and it's amazing honestly because those are some of the best seats in the house when the weather is bad it's great tonight as well a great point but I mean they are some brilliant folks in there but I mean Macy's is always so gracious open because they're like let's go up here this is the best seat in the house we don't there's a Starbucks in there as well I mean you got you got everything you need and so you are good to go all right here is the uh Hyundai Motor Company a float making its way down giri street uh the company founded back in 1967 headquartered in South Korea and Claud and this is another one of the floats that was down at Pier 54 that kind of stood out uh you can see the two children riding the dragon there um and you know again to go back to what Stephanie said she had so much fun creating these dragons you know not to you know that what was it last year the rabbit or the ax they're all fun to do but she said the excitement about really creating a dragon was special to her because there's no specific color you have to stay to you can really you've got the clouds you've got on this float a pair of adventurers riding on the back of this Dragon that's Hyundai's signature blue hue for Hyundai they said that symbolizes reporting customers on their journey of life but you also talk about this being a nighttime parade and the Sparkle and the the joy of this is amazing looks great all right Hyundai wishing everyone a prosperous future in this the year of the dragon coming up next The Shaolin Temple USA founded in 2007 its mission to share the 1500-year old cultural heritage of Shaolin Temple in San Francisco but also headquartered in Fremont one of the oldest Styles oldest styles of kung fu okay they are going to do a performance for us and the program is soaring dragons that features Shaolin flying dragon fist martial arts that are often linked or likened to the Dragon for their superb skills their power the Vitality the agility and this team performed in barehanded form so when you look at this it is an art it is a skill it is tradition and culture and I love the various ages that we're also watching and really tells you not the generations that come into this old and young that you really pass down and it's very special it's tradition it's absolute tradition you could see it right there in their faces and when you talk about it too I mean it is this was the opening act by the way right back in 2016 2016 they've been participating since 2010 so this is a tradition and we've watched them over the years and every year they do not disappoint look at the flexibility Focus Fus the dedication and how much practice goes into this and again I can't say enough that when kids kind of grow up in the space too and they become the adults that you can see that this takes something they take with them for a lifetime discipline yeah and those flag teams those flags have colorful dragon designs on them um a lot going on here it's just magical to see it all coming together for shawin temple USA during this Chinese New Year parade and when you talk about the crowd that comes here what they come is to do and share in the culture and that is what so many of the acts are so wonderful at doing is giving you a glimpse into the culture of this community and how deep those roots really are for folks now when you talk about Deep Roots KTVU has deep roots in this parade and so right behind shol and devil with what we call Our Big Red Bus there's the Big Red Bus a lot of our colleagues as we do produce more than 12 hours of uh news broadcast every day and a lot of those people responsible on the upper deck of that bus and they know when last year I believe they were down below yes well because they didn't want to be up there in the rain this year they're like we'll take it this year they're all on top but you know 38 years this is not um something that isn't so worked into the fabric of kind of who we are Amberly you and I both know that people love being in this parade at KTVU well talk about tradition Claudine this is a KTVU family tradition let me get right to Christian Captain what does it mean it's so great to see you happy New Year Happy New Year to you too some friends hey happy New Year everyone what what does this meat parade mean to all of us so for the city for me you know I work here in San Francisco I love New Year it was a big part of my childhood I grew up saying Gung he Fat Choy to get to be here in San Francisco and celebrate is always unbelievable personally for us since we all work these different shifts at Channel 2 getting to see everybody who works the morning show and the daytime show and people from the South Bay everybody getting to be together it is amazing we all look forward to this time of year and it's really I think what the new year is all about like getting to be together with your best friends and your family and this is my KTVU family right here Al and we love spending time and love seeing all the viewers it's amazing I love being able to see all of you all in one place right so hard doing a great job Amber great job Amber here next year come on the bus it's super fun and you get to say hi to everybody I've been on the bus for many years I know it's always a thrilled to see my colleagues and Friends co-workers back to you one of the hardest problem is getting them back on the bus sometimes they like to go mix with the crowd but it's all great to see them up there we're waving right now to them up there I love it when they waved us it's so much fun I but it is as you mentioned it's been a proud tradition with us uh so we're very honored to continue that tradition here at ktbu bringing it live to all the homes across the bay area and Beyond since 1987 and a reminder to you that you can enter for a chance to win 250 50,000 miles from Alaska Airlines those are going to be good on Alaska and their Airline Partners so go to ktv.com contest to enter all right we are just getting Rolling Along beautiful night in the city by the bay you're watching the Alaska Airlines Chinese New Year parade live from downtown San Francisco welcome back to the Alaska Airlines Chinese New Year parade the Richmond High School marching band making it way down gir Street Richmond High School out of West contracosta County this was founded in 1907 the band reformed in 2012 by 10 students right now as they make their way this band is more than 80 strong and it's their third time in the parade this music department also has symphonic and jazz bands Orchestra they've got a music production class so they are all over the place and as they make their way through the streets of San Francisco they're going to play a lot of different songs traditional marches and popular music so you'll get a little bit of everything with this band which is lizo little lizo little beyon little Beyonce how could you not be a little lizo and a little Beyonce here they [Music] [Music] goist Richmond High School go get get them sound great out there all right coming up next our honorary Marshall tonight Mr Mayor himself Willie Brown with the red hat and the red shirt in the convertible former mayor of San Francisco and the longest serving assembly speaker ever in the state of California and he has launched or helped launch a lot of political careers here in California he has he is just one of those iconic uh people who is always kind of in and around that I feel like he's never really retired as he sits with one of the former Miss chinatowns uh this evening find a Powerhouse restaurant you'll find Mr Mayor right Brown who is always approachable and always a part of the community so great to see him here as a part of the Chinese New Year parade again all right coming up next we do welcome Comcast in Comcast employees the float theme this year creating a future of unlimited possibilities coming together 30 people in all coming in embodies the spirit of the Dragon they wanted to really radiate the power out there the nobility and and really focus on honor and good luck this year they are and we're told too they wanted this Dragon to be sleek and kind of he's thinner because they don't all have to be big right no and it's all about speed right if you're talking about Comcast you're talking about internet speed so this slim purple dragon meant to be Speedy like the internet those clouds symbolizing peace and good luck those Red Lanterns up there joy and good fortune you've got the employees from Comcast and their families walking on this float all right how about the San Franc Isco Police Department lion dance team now this group we should mention here is made up of not just active officers but also retired San Francisco police officers and Sheriff deputies one [Applause] to no shortage of firecrackers and sometimes that happens every now and then a lot but the crowd loved it as you could see in that wide shot a lot in this parade you know what I love about this the San Francisco Police Department lion dance team it is volunteers it started in 1988 and and and when you talk about this the diversity in a department and reflecting the community this is part of the community and and having these lions in here and the academy recruits are saying hey you can be a part of this lion dance team as well and right now there are two sets of six lion heads uh you can also hear some drums back there some symbols uh and a Gong all coordinating this movement and I was told that one of the individuals carrying uh one of those lion heads is uh a retiree 80 years old 80 years old 80 years old and still again this is a long parade so you your head for quite some time remember how we said that would happen a lot firecrackers through out it's just kind of one of those watch your step watch your step one of those things that happens kind of in and around the Bay Area especially in San Francisco's Chinatown a lot of firecrackers as we celebrate a new year and and the year of the dragon and so it is a a constant and fun and amazing part of really what is the celebration the Year of the Dragon I'm a year of the dragon I forgot we haven't mentioned that as well I'm a year of the dragon Bruce Lee Dr King Rihanna Adele Michelle Obama just nameing a you over there but every 12 years 1976 for me and look at this Dragon this is beautiful making its way through the streets of San Francisco really an incredible I mean you talk about the people if you talk about how many people it takes to make this happen and to have this Dragon make its way through the street it is quite a few people that will carry us down the parade route uh the Comcast dragon and their and dance team I just want to take a quick second to thank all of them for their service to the city of San Francisco all right up next we have the Alamo Elementary School in San Francisco this school was located in the Richmond District established nearly 100 years ago back in 1926 and the school has a motto and that is to be a friend and I love that moment simple simple to the point be a friend and when you talk about this school and the diversity that we recognize in so many schools in in the city this one Embraces the diversity through Visual and Performing Arts and language programs you have a lot of schools that say listen we need to make sure that the diversity is in what we teach and so they've got CH Chinese they've got Spanish they've got Russian they've been in this parade for 12 years and look at them they're dialed in they're focused and I want to mention for a lot of these students this is their first exposure to to dance is at Alamo Elementary School they never did it before professionally uh or even maybe for fun but now they're like wow look at this and now look at them yes they're in the Chinese New Year parade and when they learn about their performances they're performing to the TV show Warrior which takes place in San Francisco's Chinatown in the 1800s so that is super fun the Nagata dance choreograph this routine Incorporated the year of the dragon and you've got uh these great kids from Elm Elementary just performing their hearts out in front of our very God if I was their age I'd be a little nervous coming into this under the lights but you don't get that at all no not just from this school elementary school but other schools as well those K through 5 year look at them they're loving it running down the street here I mean they got thousands and thousands of people cheering them on the best Saturday night while I don't know why you wouldn't love it another Dragon making its way chasing that pearl of wisdom all right right behind them we have the Grand Avenue FES love this group they've got active retirees and they provide entertainment to seniors around the Bay Area they were established back in 2004 and performed everywhere all over the country and internationally all right more Parade coverage coming up right after the break and welcome back to the Alaska Airlines Chinese New Year parade as we take a look at our McDonald's fan camera and all the folks out there tonight Amber Le's down in the crowd somewhere who'd you find Amber I found a family from Pacifica their last name is Griffith hey Mr Griffith what do you think of the parade you told me it's your first time first time it's a blast I mean literally blasts everywhere having a great night tonight what's your favorite part so far uh I liked the firecrackers actually Po and lighting the firecrackers was awesome that was a lot thank you back to you Mike and Claudine I'm with them I love the firecrackers as well coming down under the lights right now is the St Mary's Chinese language school drill team drum and Bor their theme for the parade Chinese culture is beautiful beautiful performing March routines with traditional costumes and fans from China these costumes by the way are handmade with dragon and Phoenix symbolizing the emperor and emperess and cl in tell us a little story here because you you were involved with this group you did a story on this group yeah St Mary's Chinese language school they're amazing they've been around since 1921 so they've been around for a very long time and been a part of the phid for a very long time but they've had some changes in recent years they were a language school and a day school and the day school closed a few years back and when the day school closed you have the fan drill team in the back you have in the front there on your screen the bell and drum cor so the bell and drum cord dissolve and so last year it was only the F drill team but they decided you know what we've missed them and so they were able to get a former member to come back ask these kids to sign up they all got together so now you have the they sign up and here they are they did and the fand drill team there who are performing and they come together really an amazing group that they said they told me they just love being a part of the family that is the fan drill team and then you have the drum and belt for because really in the history of San Francisco in the history of St Mary's they've always been together and so it's so nice for the first time in a while together see them back together again same marriage Chinese language School drill team drum and bore thank you for being with us during this parade the Asian performing arts program of San Francisco now under the lights on Gary Street this group very committed to giving children of all backgrounds an opportunity to express themselves through the Asian performing arts and Dragon Boat Racing and this is amazing when you talk about the L of this parade they have stilt Walkers can you imagine doing this whole Parade route in stilts they do it every I I used to be a stilt Walker I don't believe you I'm not just joking I never still walk I knew it I knew it okay so these still unb they're recreating characters from an ancient Chinese fantasy and the Journey to the West they've got lion dancers in front of them as well but I mean this is really incredible but what an amazing way to kind of Express culture and really when you talk about crowd pleasing this group is always a crowd pleaser and this group is doing exactly really what this parade was meant to be back in the the 1850s and 60s and that's to educate many of us here about Chinese culture and about Chinese Community all right we've had a couple casinos rolling through how about another one Cash Creek out of Yolo County that's kind of West of Sacramento near 505 the theme for cash Creek roaring into a new year of prosperity and good fortune claing another one that we saw earlier at Pier 15 lots of gold as well yes and and it's beautiful they also had red envelopes what happens at the Chinese New Year is that you hand out red envelopes of money to family members one of many Traditions one of many great Traditions when you're a kid because it's the older people and the older married people in your family who will give those uh red envelopes to you with money and so as a child I always look forward to Chinese New Year it was amazing and and it helps you start off the new year well so that's why they have those red envelopes right there on the side there and then of course they have the gold coins and they have the Golden Dragon coin at the center uh again Red Lanterns on this to show the warm light of the path that's good to mention about the the envelopes but also food so Central um homes like the Traditions inside the actual homes cleaning their homes through there's a lot of traditions out there Lunar New Year TR yes that we celebrate all right right behind then we have sefue m's Kung Fu and Wu Academy they are lion dancers they're actually based in San Jose but they have schools across the barria three of them actually if you're wondering sefue means teacher a master if you want into a studio the seafu would be in charge I mean they're a Powerhouse yes they are they are Powerhouse their students have won national Kung Fu tournaments including listen to this number more than 680 gold medals I am not going toe to- Toe with anyone coming down the street right now I mean this is a phenomenal Academy all around and you know I I am partial to every generation that follows so they've got students as young as two who are learning this and when you talk about the sharing of the culture obviously there has been a lot of sharing in Hollywood and so seafu mang actually has been featured in kung fu movies in both Hollywood and Hong Kong so when you talk about an international reach and an International Way of expression this is a group that knows exactly how to kind of promote that culture and how to share it and the crowd lined up along the ra rout G to see it firsthand tonight you mention they were based in San Jose but they do have multiple multiple schools across the bay area suu Ming's Kung Fu and Wu Academy and when you look at them I mean really it is it is the Artistry but it's the physical prowess and skill that it takes to perform at this level and to perform continuously they are doing it for us right now but they do it throughout the Parade route and they do it with such Precision that we certainly are always excited and so impressed by the skill they showcase here at the parade as you can hear the crowd clapping giving thanks to the group for performing right in front of them showing off it and also celebrating what they've done and celebrating something that's been such a tradition for so many centuries out there okay and as they make their way past the grand stands right behind them we are welcoming the one thing that got a lot of people here tonight and I know what you're talking about they said make sure you use public transportation there it is there's the BART mobile the BART mobile designed to look like a Lal Minature BART train BART car this actually does include a real horn from one of the trains of course it does you know uh Bart if you don't know about it it started up in 1972 actually the idea was back in 1946 of B but those first trains began in in in September of 1972 um and then eventually expanding uh to the South B and as we know now Downtown San Jose has in the works and they have had a lot of changes they've got some new train cars in service now so people noticing that and really when you talk an EV about an event like the Chinese New Year parade and getting in if you were to drive into San Francisco from let's say the East Bay you're talking about an hour and half hour 40-minute drive there was this event there was also another event uh Treasure Island across the bay bridge and so it took forever to drive in but you took Bart that was a reliable space and we are glad to see the Riders levels coming up because since the pandemic because it's such an important part of the San Francisco Community even during a parade we just saw an example of bumper to- bumper traffic and this is why Bart officials want you to drop the car at home and take BART into the City by the bay to watch the parade tonight employees also a part of this and and being a part of this parade so they also have new Fair Gates too those are coming those are coming those are coming trying to make sure that everyone pays for their ticket on BART to keep that system economically healthy all right right behind them we've got Toyota welcoming in the year of the dragon with its float the theme of this float is let's go places in the year of the dragon and so you've got family and Adventure that gold dragon sitting on top of mountains protecting all got to give my props to Toyota I'm we're a 4Runner family we've had them for a while I've got a couple dogs for our black lab gets in the back window down um no we we love Toyota and again the float builders work with companies to turn the theme of the company uh wants for the float into what you see on the street right now so it's like it's just a they're collaborating from the process in October when they think about what they're going to do to Construction in December and now in February we have the parade and this is what you see and we have so many different forms of the Dragons coming through the streets of San Francisco and that is really what makes this parade so special okay right behind them is another group that I got the chance to visit this is the copertino language immersion program they're nicknamed clip and so this group in kindergarten they have a lottery so many people want to be a part of this group because K through 8 they will get Chinese language classes they learn Mandarin so a lot of families speak uh Cantonese they teach Mandarin and then they learn Mandarin all through Elementary School into middle school and this is one of the oldest programs right when when you specifically talk about uh public Mandarin imersion in California it was the first Elementary School immersion program it was the second in the country and so now other groups are looking at them saying Oh hey how do we do this and and they're really a Pioneer so when you did the story let me ask you what stood out the most to you about it you know just the dedication how much appreciation and how like I wish I had a you take a look at these kids those are handmade costumes as well these are car dress and turned into dragons as they swim through and so we love that these these were all that's a lot of felt and a lot of glue put on by folks uh at Clips program big smile big wave right there we love love the drums all right coming up next Community youth center of San Francisco founded Back in 1970 here's the goal of this group right the goal of helping High need and at risk Asian Pacific Islanders between the ages Young 5 and 25 uh and many who are recent immigrants many members are either first or second generation here in the United States and so they do have four or five offices kind of scattered throughout the city Chinatown Bay VI Richmond just to name a few there what I like about this too is that it starts with one group and it expands so now they do provide services to a lot of different groups of their families who are facing economic hardships or who are trying to adapt in schools so you're talking about over 8,000 Asian African-American latinx Youth and just getting involved right just getting involved what are those first steps I need to do and so they've got a brand new 20 person red and gold dragon as part of their group they have these flag bears that you're looking at right now danc drummers martial arts a brilliant night in the city by the bay the Alaska Airlines ch New Year parade is back after the break welcome back to the Alaska Airlines Chinese New Year Parade from San Francisco the city's Chinatown is the largest outside of Asia and because food is often really at the center of Chinese celebrations it's many restaurants are where families cling go to Mark special occasions here right it is very common uh this is what I do with my family we open the New Year together close it together and go out to eat everything from dumplings to long life noodles well how about a classic here right lucky California's big red shopping cart making another appearance here at the Chinese New Year parade I grew up with the lug it's a longtime store they have 70 stores in theay area right now but it did start uh 14,000 employees right now and it is it's big it is big and when you talk about that shopping cart I mean you've got all those piled into them and and that that cart actually has a the V8 engine right behind them though you've got the float which is also uh you may recognize the design because it's the same display that you're going to see at the lucky store on Sloat in San Francisco got the Dragon theme in the middle there and oranges and dragon fruit mango that's all civilizing good luck it's it it's very uh traditional to bring oranges and fruit mango right mang when you go to s's house to celebrate the new year a lot of florals also on that float fresh fruits as we were talking about and pink Blossom signifying new beginnings and a fresh start uh lucky California big red shopping cart making its way once again in the float falling right behind it they look like they're having a good time yeah right behind them we have the Southeast Asian Community Center walking in this parade happy to see them as part of this this parade this group was actually founded in 1975 and it was founded to help people flee into the US during the Vietnam war and really one of the focuses was Community Connection and engagement they really wanted to provide this sense of belonging yeah and then what they do is they they provide microloans for example job placement uh employment Training Services housing uh counseling as well for low income communities and I mentioned those I mean they're all critical Services when you think about it so what they're doing at the Southeast Asian Community Center uh on oeral street by the way uh some fantastic work yep and you can see them right now in their Vietnamese dresses and hats they perform traditional dances so happy to have them here as well right behind them great and casino and you can see uh the dragon wishes that's the theme of their float enchanting Dragon wishes for prosperity and the fortune ahead they've got that polygon dragon on there that so that's a different right the polygon Dragon sculpture decorated with kind of vibrant lanterns six lanterns and all really representing that warm path forward as we move out of winter and head towards Spring uh again another float that we had a chance to preview early ear out at Pier 15 uh it also has happy Lunar New Year and four different languages uh written over that Dragon which is great and if you haven't been to gron it's actually in open in 2013 so they just celebrated a decade in business back in November behind them we have doc by Wong martial arts center and again the lion dance is such an important part they've got their cyber truck going uh through this parade uh right now and and right behind them they've got uh the people who are part of this marching group that was established DOI in 1968 traditional K Fu and taii yeah uh the students are performing the Kung joined by a lion dance team um you don't see the Cyber truck that often it was an interesting choice to lead this troop down there but they're out of the sunset District um teaching traditional Kung Fu as Claud mentioned in taii um Flagship school for the plum blossom International Federation 30 three different countries as they make their way down gir Street here I've never I don't know how how much does that weigh when you're holding that above your head well they' said it like 20 lbs 15 it's a lot I have family members who uh you know trained on this but it is I mean if you think about the two people in in a lion too you have one person in the back who is bent over for most of the dance they are getting on each other's shoulders they are moving around and then you have the dragons that you are constantly moving that Dragon so that it is dynamic and going and so when you talk about the lion dance team and the dragon dancers and the Kung Fu forms like you're talking about an entire group of representation that is so important and a part of the culture phenomenal to see and up next we will see Jose Ortega Elementary School the school is in San Francisco's Engleside neighborhood 15th year in the prey we love when schools decide to come back it is one of only two Public elementary schools with mandarin Emer programs and we talked about the importance of those programs uh with some of the other schools earlier in the parade CL yeah it is uh such an important part and intricate to to what they're doing and these costumes couldn't be cuter if you see them they've got their red outfit the dragon designs on them and then they have light up bracelets as well and they are you can see they're kind of taken in the SES and the sounds but they're also focused on their routine and what they're trying to perform here and they're listening to a mandarin pop song so they've got a you know they're grooving and and moving along this Parade route which as we said is is not a short route so as these kids come through here they certainly are getting their steps in as they say all right right behind them you have the US Bank float with the theme achieve every dream this Lunar New Year and you see the folks there as that Dragon Soares over the landscape Dragon Soaring Over the landscape indeed with six dragons articulated into characters what are those characters success leadership Good Fortune intelligence confidence and guardian they're doing good work also uh US bank right here in San Francisco this company recently committed financing and funding to a restoration project for lowincome housing in the tender that they're headquartered out of Minnesota but doing good work here in San Francisco as well and they say they want this flow to serve as a reminder take action on your Collective dreams I love that because uh you know when you start a new year and this in the year of the dragon go after those dreams all right next San Francisco Renegade drum and bugle core this is a great band here all age drum core established back in 96 and I emphasize all age I love when I see this combine the group for this Year's parade with the spirit of Sunny Veil marching band coming together to give us this performance and they are playing Radioactive by imag dragons I wonder why they pick I like that tie in the Imagine Dragon I love it the first West Coast SC to compete at the drum Cor associ World Championships we are so glad to see them here and uh let's listen in as the Alaska Airlines Chinese New Year parade comes back in just a [Music] [Music] moment and welcome back to the Alaska Airlines Chinese New Year parade is the Moon shines down on us we have talked about this parade They Come Rain they come shine and the Moon is shining tonight and it is expected to be a record-breaking crowd you have people just piled into the streets tonight for what has been an amazing parade an amazing night of weather that's a live picture there down on gir street but also Market Street Kerney and post and pal it is an honor to be back with you once again for the Chinese New Year parade it's been a great start to this parade the first half really we had the Grand Marshall Aqua Phenix know with a wonderful interview with Amber Lee down there plenty of dragons as you mentioned Claudine great bands from grade school to Middle School to high school UC Davis so even a university here uh and there's a lot more to come and something's going to be very loud tonight not just the firecrack I'm talking about an actual firework show I mean they gave us the goggles like we are in the danger zone this is going to be right above our head yes right what you're looking at that is where the firework show it is something that you will not want to miss because it's going to be absolutely amazing and I think the we're not going to miss it we're not going to miss it we can't miss this one it's going to be impossible to miss and I'm looking forward to that but really there's so much to look forward to and when you talk about the smiles we are seeing on the crowd Amberly is down with all the folks that have packed their way into the Streets of San Francisco our grand stands Amber who have you found for us we found the TR family from Oakland uh to Tony tell me have you been to this parade before never been before only seen it on TV what brought you down here well we have a friend actually my wife's friend actually allowed us to come in cuz she's working the parade what do you think so far it's awesome what do you guys think so it's so incredible to be here in in person and seeing it just live I'm going to ask Olivia what she thinks Olivia what do you think it's your first time too right yeah it is I think it's great I think we really enjoy kind of having the kids really embrace the culture and and the celebration this year you come from Oakland I mean had a rough time but you know to come out and celebrate right yeah exactly so it's really nice to come into the city occasionally and enjoy the atmosphere here well I just got to tell you this C crowd is amazing the energy a lot of people are first timers here so very excited for them too I love this parade Mike and Claudine I know you're not a first- Tim Amber I know we're not first Tim in fact this is very important and it's it really is when I say it's an honor to be here growing up in the Bay Area watching this prade going to school in San Francisco and now here here being able to co-host with you Claudine it's very special y my family at Deep San Francisco Roots I love it all right I also love tat Wong Kung Fu Academy because this is their 40th appearance in the parade if you say to yourself I've seen them before it's because they were actually the opening act in 2005 again in 2014 and when you watch them perform you know why they keep coming back to perform at those headliner spots because they're amazing to watch we've got lion dancers and martial art routines going on here we have children dressed as Martial Arts warriors with costume elements based on dragons uh performers using movements U meant to simulate the movement of a dragon in this the year of the dragon and they were established back in 1983 grandmas tal Wong now spread to four locations so there are four different places in the Bay Area and this is what I love and a lot of when people talk about Kung Fu they talk about what it gives you and they start very young phical but not just physical no it's mental it's discipline it's all the things that you know as a parent people say I want my child to learn this not only will it be good for their health but good for their mental health and good to teach them lessons about life and so it's awesome to see them back here and a part of this parade look at those cute ones guys the dragons are adorable and as they head off we are so glad that this tradition for them continues such an important part of our Bay Area culture and diversity in this space and like you said tradition indeed all right Bank of America making its way under the lights right now the theme of this year's float growth and abundance this is actually a wooden Dragon right this is the one that's actually made of wood a lot of them styrofoam and carve to Perfection uh this is another one we got our chance to actually see down at Pier 54 and what's interesting about this the young woman who made this just graduated from San Francisco State and just happened to run in with Stephanie who is in charge of all the floats and she gave Sarah wizig a task and said come up with something special for the Bank of America float and this is what Young Sarah did right out of college her first big pain job really amazing and she's hoping to continue different projects that Challenger as well when you talk about the woods Dragon just for folks at home there are 12 Zodiac signs so every 12 years you have the sign come back again but they also mirror that with the elements you've got wood you've got fire you've got water you've got metal so every 60 years you will have that specific zodiac sign with that specific element so this is the year of the wood Dragon which is the significance of that why that's in Wood it looks spectacular and significance of Bank of America as well a lot of history here in San Francisco their headquarters to move but the old Bank of America building 555 California you know that's where I spent my 21st birthday at the Carnelian Room up at the top uh no longer the BFA building but yes the bank has a lot of history here in the city by the bay and I love the light on the wood Dragon really just helping folks you know come and see how special a nighttime parade really can be there's not a lot of nighttime parades out there clut there are very few anymore and so this you know every parade has its very special elements I feel like and I'm a little partial to the Chinese New Year parade but this one has so many special elements the fact that uh there's so much culture diversity so many performances so many bands so many businesses so many Community groups and then so many spectacular floats it takes a lot of work to create these vots it's no small task and so the fact that these companies these groups are committed to that it's really a remarkable you can see back in the Macy Windows the crowd uh still there tonight as we have another good hour to go here up the parade and those people started lining up well we went on air right at 6:00 so they were down there by 5:00 at least in the windows and when it doesn't rain and when you have a perfect night in the city um this is what happens you know we're expecting more than 100,000 people and that may even be more when all said and done tonight well you know when you have the good weather you know what's interesting is you have the Grand Sands and you have folks and Amber talked to a couple of people who would say they are first timers in this parade you also have some longtime participants who say they come every year and they have a whole strategy for how they're going to come down here and how they're going to enjoy this parade you know what's interesting about this parade too is is not to go back to how it all started but you know during the gold rush and in the 1850s when the Chinese Community came here and they wanted to share their culture and they said well how best are we going to do that well how how about a parade they didn't even know really what a parade was when they came this what interesting because yes right this is thought this is going to be a great way how we can teach everyone about our culture it's also important to remember when you talk about the Chinese Exclusion Act there was a lot of trying to integrate in the community parades are an American celebration so when people talk about the Chinese New Year parade this is at its core an American celebration for Americans of Chinese descent so when people say oh I want to go to China and see a Chinese New Year parade well you have to come here you to come here you have to come here this is how we do it this is where the American community of Chinese descent celebrates the Lunar New Year this is how we do it and we do it good we do the best right the Chinese Chamber of Commerce has been backing this for you know decades now more than decad 1958 I believe uh so it all starts there and then we jump on board and we're happy to be here I mean 38 years it's been an absolute privilege and you talk about what it's been for you as growing up in San Francisco what it's been for me I used to come here as a kid I used to when we rode in the parade when I first joined k2u I was so thrilled then I got to work the parade and now host the parade I mean when you talk about personally and professionally this is a profound thing for me to be a part of and when I first participated in this parade as a member of KTVU an employee I didn't have children at the time and now my children are growing up watching this so it truly is something you pass down even for us it's something important for us to pass down to our children and then hopefully their children as well well KTV is a family and a family that uh has deep roots in the Bay Area all across the bay area and so it is uh there's nothing like sharing the things that mean so much to you with our viewers as well our viewers at home that are watching on KTV our viewers who are watching on digital streams we are so grateful that you are here with us to celebrate what is an amazing tradition here's the crowd look at them couldn't they be happier all the red and the good luck and the perfect perfect weather I'm sorry I'm a little obsessed with this perfect weather and the fans everything is is uh shaping up to be a really spectacular think about what we went through with the pandemic and didn't have the parade and then even that first year it was somewhat and now to be back I feel like this is it we're back here as a community uh deliberating with this fantastic parade once again right now and and as it's just great it's just great and and let's go to Aptos Middle School who is right behind uh SCH yes this is a school in San Francisco's baloa Terrace neighborhood 1931 is the history of this middle school so it goes back for a long time St Francis Wood right there on SLO yeah and they also have this Mandarin immersion program that started back in 2012 so when you talk about the kids being able to study this since kindergarten it's integrated in their lives it's integrated in their schools all right let's talk a little bit about their performance here so they have this Dragon chasing the pearl of wisdom also have fan dancers with choreographed dance with orange yellow and red fans eventually you'll see them uh and then a number of lion dancers as well from those at apos middle school and they the eyes of this uh dragon light up as it's chasing that pearl of wisdom and so you will see that theme throughout as uh this winds its way through and the crowd absolutely loves the performance it is always a crowd Wier I feel like no matter what anytime the Lions and the dragons Dr come out the crow it is and on this year the Year of the Dragon we're seeing a lot of those dragons and and there's more to come not to talk about the end yet but I'm still talking about the big Golden Dragon the fireworks show there's a lot more to coming in all right Maywood Academy High School marching band The Nigh Hots from Maywood City where is Maywood City great question that's out of Los Angeles County so we've already had one from down South here's another band coming from down south to participate in the Chinese New Year parade here in San Francisco uh the city uh no God this band is new it was only created just a few years ago a little bit more summer of 2019 but when you talk about it new but also accomplished they've won the 1A division La unified band and drill team championship two years ago so that's like excuse me move over we're here three years ago and the marching Nighthawks are here and so it does tell you that when people pick when you have to travel you have to come up here from Southern California and Maywood says listen we're going to be in the Tournament of Roses Parade in Southern California and we're going to be in the Chinese New Year parade in San Francisco fact the instruments were headed north yes I don't know if they took five or flew but they did it and they're here we're glad they're here they're playing a uh I believe a John Philip Souza March elk capy time uh by the way John Philips soua I learned from our producer is known as the March King yeah has written hundreds of marches maybe like 130 to be exact yes John Philip Souza so a lot of what you hear from bands all written our producer and is our in-house band expert he gave you the knowledge on the the the uniform right yes it takes more than a year to make uniforms he know he knows and so we will take his expertise and we'll pass it on to you all right right behind that band we have the washing Arts group of San Francisco and their float washing is also known as a US Chinese dance Association so when you see their float this is a nonprofit of professional Chinese artists dance Educators and art enthusiasts and they promote Chinese culture through dance the group does host the annual we shine world dance competition bringing dancers from all around the world to here right here in the Bay Area uh their float features dancers representing some of the thousands of iconic murals and Buddha statues at the mogal caves uh and they're also wishing peace they're wishing blessings and good fortune to everyone out there for this the year of the dragon certainly glad to see them in the parade look at the costumes I mean it's just they're beautiful absolutely beautiful and the clouds and the flowers and the surrounding again and you can see the float and all the Sparkles that the washing Arts group has brought to this parade this evening exced a lot of Hearts a lot of love big smiles I love they're sending hearts to everyone you see that they're like and that's with their hands doing it I love it um so much energy and good positive energy from this group all right right behind them we have we are one now this is a group that wants to unite people diverse people whole ethnic backgrounds how do you bring them together you do it through music and you celebrate cultural heritage and you spread that hope and you spread that love all right we are one started back in 2021 promoting uh self-defense instruction meditation and fellowship and a spirit of mutual respect and solidarity I think that's important to say right there also promoting Brotherhood and Sisterhood and embracing diversity uh as for the performance they have Pearl and dragon made out of arts and crafts all made by volunteers as well as the team members who are walking down Gary Street right now this is their third appearance in the parade and so when you talk about we are one they have a lot of different cultures they're representing here you talk about the work and again these dragons aren not easy to either make we've seen so many different versions of them we know some people order them and they've come internationally from China some people make them we have recycled dragons we have brand new ones not just to make them but then to perform in them to make it just flow beautifully throughout the parade absolutely and if you see them coming together I just love to see the smiles on the faces this is about performing and for this Group performing as one and they all make a lot of sacrifices to get to this point to to show us what they're doing out there and the practicing and the you know multiple times during a week and Beyond yes absolutely I mean this is not an easy thing to do and all these Community groups they've got as they say a day job and so every time they're a part of something like this it takes that extra you got to find that extra time in your day to make sure but if you look at this shot I love right because that long light shot looking down towards it's like just when you think that you've seen something fabulous you look in the Horizon and you know fabulous keeps on coming right behind West Portal Elementary Chinese performing arts program this is out of West Portal in San Francisco they've been in the parade since 1990 first Public School in SF USU by the way with the Chinese immersion program teaching students to read and write in cantones and also learning cultural Traditions so very important and again the different dialects Cantonese is primarily spoken by the San Francisco Community Mandarin is the official language of China and so when you talk about diversity even in the Chinese community and learning the different languages it it is a a wide diverse group when you look at these guys we talk about youngers too right these are all organized by age group by the way kindergarten and first graders that's the littlest Dragon yes and so when you talk about the marching you see the adults trying to make their way through the streets of San Francisco and exhausted and these guys are five 6 years old you've got the carrying the dragon you also have drummers carrying on the traditions of villages along the Yellow River in Northern CH and behind them you have fan dancers ribbon dancers all wearing traditional Chinese folk dance costumes looking spectacular Under The Lights here in San Francisco another advantage of that nighttime parade West Portal coming out with big numbers tonight West Portal great little spot in San Francisco spent some time down there in Sub Center and Philly Club back in the day uh but West Portal Elementary Chinese performing arts program looking very solid on this Saturday night I love it I love it that they are here and the dragon just lit up so oh that's what they're all cheering forade yeah it's if you can see it that it's got little lights all along it and uh really so so when they get out of the TV Zone which is kind of what we call this area when you're on on the actual television it's a lot darker so that Dragon will definitely look very cool as it makes it way up pal Street and hangs right love these drummers and love seeing them being a part of the parade again the fan dancers behind them uh they call those fan dancers also often called fan Grill teams as well have you ever play an instrument have you ever been in a band or I have not been in a band my parents had me take a year of piano I learned two songs that I can still play but I don't know if I was quite as musically inclined I'm musically appreciative I'm appreciative me too me too I can play a good air guitar maybe I could do maybe I could do a little drum I'm not sure but this is what I was talking about all the ribbon danc the fan dances earlier and um that's a big group it's a huge group it's a huge group this is like their Super Bowl during the year I bet coming down here right they're like okay we're doing the Chinese your breid guys and also whatever you want to do they have something for you to perform all right another reminder that Alaska Airlines is giv away 250,000 miles good on Alaska or their Airline Partners just go to ktvu.com SLC contest to enter the Alaska Airlines Chinese new yor parve back right after the break and welcome back to the Alaska Airlines Chinese New Year parade what an amazing night it has been there's Amber Lee down on Below in Gary Street who do you have now Amber I have the Davenport family from Spokane Washington Aaron what do you think of the parade so far oh it's amazing this is a once in a-lifetime Opportunity did you know that there was going to be a parade when you came to visit I did yeah actually it was it's my wife's uh birthday so this is something she's always wanted to do and happy birthday what do you like the most so far oh I think all the dragons uh just seeing the uh just the walks of life out here and children all the way to adults everybody's having a great time thank you enjoy the parade Mike Claudine go all the way from Washington nice job I love it great birthday present yes great birthday present come to the parade all right the Eisenhower High School Marching Eagles joining us tonight another band who has made the trip from Southern California they're from Rialto which is near San Bernandino in Southern California so we're certainly glad to have them up here with us this band has been around for a while since 1959 yeah you could say that 1959 they've won multiple Awards since that school values did focus on Integrity or do I should say kindness and eagerness to learn also the alma moner and I'm HED to say this of San Francisco 49ers Legend Ronnie lot that's right number 42 at 10 seasons with the ners 14 in the NFL four Super Bowl rings with your San Francisco 49ers so Ronnie lot High School coming down G love that so then San Francisco has a connection to these folks let's listen in to the Eisenhower High School Marching [Music] Eagles all right there you have the I an hour High School Marching ban thank you for being part of it and making the trip up to Northern California and up next Salesforce float their theme this year Salesforce blazes forward in the year of the dragon of course CEO Mark benof a San Francisco native and if you take a look at this float this is what they've done with the dragon they've wrapped that Dragon around the salesp tower it is hard to miss the salesp tower when you're looking at the San Francisco skyline but this dragon is overtaking it I love it they have a a lot of their employees on that float following behind the dragon lighting the way towards and through what they say are sparkling clouds of data and AI you had to know that AI was going to make we got to put it in right we have to just kind of slide it in there somewhere uh a lot of Salesforce employees part of this uh float again uh this theme Salesforce blazing forward in the air of the Dragon uh the company celebrating tenacity resilience culture and contributions of Asian community ities in San Francisco and Beyond not just here in the city all right let's move on cuz right behind them we have the Pacific bridge club which is an organization based in Oakland after school after school clubs they got classes they got volunteer opportunities that's for high schoolers and also marginalized youth so this is a group that says to the youth hey we're here for you all right there uh goal is to really Bridge not the ID the bridge right Pacific Bridge Club but to bridge the gap for underserved teenagers and thus we do have the Pacific bridge club by the way this is their first time in the parade welcome I love it and next month they've got big plans too they do this parade today next month they're going to the going to Japan they're going to the Philippines they're interal I like it all right ywo Elementary School home of the pandas these students are from San Francisco's Russian Hill North Beach and Chinatown neighborhoods celebrating the diversity inclusivity that are prevalent in the school Community not their first time clouding either in this one it is not it's their sixth time and I grew up just down the street from Yo Elementary I didn't go there but I feel like I saw you knew some pandas you knew some students there probably I may or may not played in the playground at yo but uh this is a group of kids that are telling the legend of the Dragon's Pearl and they're going to tell the story of a boy who turned into a dragon after swallowing that magic Pearl and did that to save drought ridden vill so look I mean that's a very aggressive story to tell for these little guys here but I think they're pulling it off I mean I think it's great especially telling that story through the costumes that they're wearing tonight and you can see again those costumes I mean it's inventive every year these you know the year of dragon only comes around every 12 years so you either save those costumes or you make them new every year but that is a a a challenge for them to do and make all right right behind them that's right you have the Northern California Han Fu Association this group very dedicated to promoting Han food the traditional attire worn by Han Chinese as well as cultural heritage of Chinese Americans and a big welcome to the association as well because this is their first time also in the Chinese New Year parade here in San Francisco that's right and Amber Lee actually spent some time with them uh earlier in the week as they were practicing for their performance today and really uh as a firsttime uh group in this parade they were talking about how important it was for them to not only showcase and celebrate their culture but also come together they practice in Parks they practice together they all and their costume right they're all dressed in different styles of Han Fu many with you know Artful and delicate patterns and the embroidery I mean if you could really get close in there you can tell 600 members around the Bay Area so as far as Sacramento and Monterey so what a great group W May School is right behind them welcome W May the first Chinese American Bilingual presol School in San Francisco established back in 1974 so celebrating 50 years this year out of the sunset District you know I like the sunset District a special neighborhood out there connected to you for sure um this band has expanded Beyond uh or S the school AG has expanded Beyond Early Child education to become kind of this broader Community Center which is very cool and addressing uh neighborhood safety issues and and what I love about this float they said these performers on the float this is a a lunar New Year celebration then we call the Chinese New Year parade but other groups celebrate the Lunar New Year and really we're celebrate meeting together so the float with these performers they say look this represents the value and beauty of not just Chinese culture but all asian-americans who we celebrate tonight and celebrate the diversity we see in the city of just like the one entry we had we are one I mean that's just kind of a common theme you see in a lot of these entries and again you also see the different age groups as the walm made school is is talking about all the different uh students and adults all right we're getting closer to the big finale by the way a massive fireworks show right here and Union Square still to come you're watching the Alaska Airlines Chinese New Year parade live from downtown San Francisco the Alaska Airline Chinese New Year parade welcomes in a new golden dragon this year at 289 ft the dragon arve from China and is making its parade debut tonight welcome back everyone we are having a party tonight here in San Francisco what an amazing night we've had perfect weather we've had so many amazing floats and folks making their way through we still have so many firecrackers and an amazing fireworks show that we are expecting and we've got got the West Coast lion dance troop right now making their way through what we call our TV Zone this is a troop that is based in da City they've got 50 participants and the age range five to over 60 Mike five to over 60 and they're not just doing parades also they're doing grand openings they're doing weddings imagine that wedding well that'd be fun uh birthdays fundrais so much more the goal uh for the West Coast Lions dance group is really to pass on traditional art of Chinese lion dancing along with his culture uh and Customs as many as 30 Lions all different sizes down there yeah I had uh lion dance at my wedding but I did not have 30 lion dances and lions at the wedding and again you see the dragon making its way through so you got the Lions you've got the dragon and once again showcasing really the acrobatic nature of really when you perform and how much and and take a look you see the going by but also you see the L right they love to get right up in there and that is I think part of what they do that throughout the whole Parade route and so people feel very you know Incorporated you're not just sitting you're part of it you're in the middle of it you know that is one of the advantages again 4500 tickets sold for this one that doesn't even include the tens of thousands of people aligning Market Street and Kerney that are not part of the actual TV Zone and that don't have a ticket they just came and they are all in this Parade route with us sing toown daily is coming up next and their float now sing toown daily very important first established in Hong Kong in 1938 the San Francisco Edition is the first overseas edition of the paper that launched in 1963 with their full office established in 75 so they've been around and they're still a very intricate part of so big to support your local newspapers out there even more so today uh more than half of the Chinese speaking community in the Bay area receives sing to in really one form or another um a leader in Chinese media with radio stations as as well as newspapers um they also run a radio station I believe in cantones and Mandarin as well look at that right there this is an amazing skill set that's an individual Talent my goodness absolutely and when you talk about connection though in the Chinese community and in any Community really but sing toown daily for the cantones and Mandarin and how they connect it's about being able to connect and bringing everyone together and not letting language be a barrier in that space but also just an an additive space and this is their float right there another spectacular float with a lot of gold and the dragon on the back even some little sparkles right there on the front of the float coming down Gary Street making its way toward pal that dragon by the way reading s daily I can tell it's it's on it phone oh yeah yeah yeah you're right every Dragon needs a phone right I mean you can't get through life it seems didn't have that phone what 2007 is when it came around yeah I love the dragons on the side too right there as we get the camera really close you can see just the detail that goes in to all of these floats tonight and again the fire light that you have in front of it and just another Showcase of really why this nighttime parade is so so special and uh really why it's Unique and why dragon in the back also has the Beats you see the uh the headphones this is a very Progressive dragon all right right behind this float we have the Chinese emerged school at Diablo the fifth Chinese immersion program in the San Francisco Unified School District started in 2009 they had only five classes in now nearly 400 students you talk about a need and a desire to be a part of immersion it's here dual imersion you got both English and cantones again a lot of cantones spoken in the city agree and this school is located in the ha uh school's building dating back to 1896 even survived the 06 earthquake by the way uh but for the performance I should say they're dancing into sweet sweet celebrate New Year it's an unbeat Cantonese Chinese New Year pop song uh choreographed by Nagata dance students all with outfits decorated with dragon scales and dragon heads with chaperon also dressed as Phoenix is looking very sharp okay right behind them they have Rams which stands for the Richmond area multi-services I spoke to these folks I got a chance to talk to their peer counselor great organization a great organization they're very focused on mental health and they're very focused on making sure there are no barriers to getting the services they need so they serve 30,000 people at 130 sites across theara in 30 languages more I'm glad you mention that cuz some people think oh it's just the richment district no where it began and where it grow so you take a look at this group that Dragon right there they got that dragon and then on every side of it they made banners the different divisions with it so I talked to the pure division but there's lots of Divisions within Rams and they have about 75 people who said I want to be a part of this and I love the folks that are part of ram they we're we're waving do them right now as well couldn't have been Kinder and nicer to us as our crew went down there coming up next the SF Municipal Transportation sfmta as we like to call them motorized cable car um sfmta look they run mun uh they handle bicycling parking traffic and other Transportation issues in San Francisco of course the classic cable car going back here in the city to the 1800s yeah there are not a lot of motorized cable cars that we see in and around the city anymore yeah but you and I know mun I used to take the 22 to to the 29 and and you know I I took the 30 stock in Depot to the 22 fil 38 G well not running night at least 38 is not running down here that's for sure vintage cable car by the way right there built in 1907 converted to be motorized in 1953 and they've got the bell ringing tonight and we've heard a lot of people who have come from out of town right spok in different areas and the cable car is just one of those places you want to go there there's a cable car museum that people love to see as well Caesars how about this another casino another casino going in for the god of wealth again it is a big thing in the new year to wish people good health Prosperity Prosperity yes and and and so good health prosperity and uh wisdom and and happiness in the New Year it's I love to smile on the waves I know there was I was looking for the gold coins right all the casinos have the gold coins and that's Ken the god of wealth oh there he is right there at the bottom of Ken you can see the nice gold coins right there uh Caesar they own several Vegas hotels casinos and here in California uh also her locations in Amador County and down south in San Diego County Bido NL School 40 students uh from the school in the city south of Market neighborhood we are talking about students from preschool all the way through 8th grade again another important Mandarin immersion program with a goal of teaching students to be bilingual and engage with the world learn it now and take it with you for the rest of your life take it with you and you see these kids they're doing a dance routine that honors Bruce Lee of course Bruce Lee has uh big deep roots the dragon himself he uh actually had studios in Oakland and in San Francisco and back in 2022 uh his daughter Sharon Lee was Grand Marshall as well and so uh it is a you know it's got a lot of connections to how you connect these communities to each other and the connections we do in in the performances they are dressed in his iconic yellow outfit which and a dance Inc elements of kungu in there so this is all kind of a tribute to someone who has deep roots in the city and who has you know kind of just become one of those well-known figures to folks outside the city and and and and Bruce Le is Shar culture a classic and unfortunately gone too early uh San Francisco's lesbian gay Freedom ban making its way down gir Street founded back in 1978 this band says it is the first openly gay musical organization in the entire world yep their band jackets as you see them featuring those rainbow stripes and they provide they look awesome education musical development for members and promote visibility so they want you to see them the lesbian gay bisexual transgender communities through their performance they're named the official band of the City and County of San Francisco so let's listen in to the San Francisco lesbian gay Freedom band right you had a little saxophone there some trumpets plenty of drums looking fantastic again on this Saturday night uh don't forget now's a good chance so you can enter to win the Alaska Airlines miles they're giving away 250,000 miles good on Alaska or their Airline Partners all right if you want to get in on those 250,000 miles just go to kw.com contest to enter the Alaska Airlines Chinese New Year parade we'll be right [Music] back all right welcome back to the Alaska Airlines Chinese New Year parade a spectacular night here in Union Square you can see the crowd loving every bit of the parade this year no rain and just a phenomenal evening all around a lot of children in the crowd Claud in a lot of school I love the McDonald's family C showing us all the great Faces tonight also Alice alternative school coming down the street looking adorable in their homemade dragon costumes the school's animal is a dragon so it's your the year of the dragon and the school this is their year this is their year then they're fired up and they're dancing to dance the night by du Lia du Lia making a lot of bands right a lot of bands and schools are picking do AA song and we've talked about imersion programs this is also an immersion school for kindergarten through 8th in San Francisco sunset District which is near and dear to your heart ah pride of sunset go cats and when we talk about Alice fongu that is San Francisco's First Chinese American teacher for the Unified School District so you know it's you got Heritage and history by the way 27th year in the parade for that school San Francisco Public Libraries bookmobile welcome to the TV Zone the SF Public Library founded back in 1879 so you could say it's been around a little bit dedicated to free and equal access to information uh knowledge and you know it all comes down to it Joy of reading Claudine and I love bookmobiles right because they take the library and they put it on Wheels and they take it to the residents where they work where they play where they live so you know there are lots of ways to get to library but in this case there's the San Francisco Public Library bringing the library to you I always tell my children read read read then they call me out and they go well what are you reading now dad and then I'm like oh I'm under the spotlight now you're right it is so very important to continue reading throughout your entire life absolutely a papa a papa right behind that's the Asian Pacific Islander American public affairs Association which is why we call it AA because it's a little bit quicker to say the theme for them is moving together and they've got a Jupiter Train part of the golden spike ceremony which if you uh know what that is it commemorates the Transcontinental Railroad right so the float has a smoke step bubble machine brass bell and lights and then the memories you saw there briefly um they were having pickaxes and shovels and lanterns the goal of the association is to advance aapi communities uh through leadership Civic engagement uh just a huge Association they have 43 chapters uh Nationwide it's great there's the bubble machine I was talking about bu machine I love it making its way uh through the Zone today as we kind of celebrate really you know what we're doing in the future but also our history so important to remember so important to honor the contributions and and remember kind of well the history like you said right the chese and Asian rail workers making up 90% of those workers and that is a history that folks say has been ignored they igned so let's not ignore it let's recognize it all right this is a great group behind that group is The Great Well Youth Orchestra of Laney College I absolutely love this group because it takes anyone and says hey you've never played an instrument we're going to show you these are ch will teach you in this program grou and these are Chinese traditional instruments so there's a lot of people who like I've never played this I maybe they've played another kind of instrument but not this and so they started in '95 as a public school music program and then it grew into this program at lady college and now has all these students I mean think about what you just said there I mean it starts as a small public school music program in Oakland and then grows into a college I think it's fantastic uh thank you for being part of the parade the Mental Health Association for Chinese community mhac float theme here always hope it's a nonprofit raising awareness of mental health within the Chinese Community since 2012 they've been holding workshops cling support groups and courses even a telephone War line all free out there all of it that's so important and it's been expanded to help all these people their float as you can see there featuring these two giant pandas warming everyone with a warm hug K Shen that's the god of wealth again on that float and that's a wish of good luck and prosperity you also got the plum blossoms I think and their big message before we have to leave them but their big message is that people can overcome difficulties by facing them bravely be brave and overcome those difficulties I love it Recology uh I think people know about Recology right San Francisco's wasting recycling company long long history here in San Francisco over a 100 years always encouraging creation of art from wayte works with local artists to use materials found in facilities to create process so Daisy Daisy is the dragon that we see in this parade and Daisy is very special because Daisy we talked about all the different kinds of dragons Daisy specifically is made from recycled material so she looks a little different of course yeah she's uh unique but I have watched his dragon and only 12 every 12 years I mean dragons are always Lucky Dragons are always in this parade but this is Daisy's year Daisy's year and and it's nice to see really kind of the expression of Art and creativity that we see and for orology that is in uh their dragon again all recycled materials the founders of rology moved to San Francisco in the 1850s and then they needed to find work so they said well why don't we just start picking up other people's trash and then uh we'll start a company and there you have it and they've got a vintage truck there that follows behind Daisy so uh that is a old green garbage truck still honoring the way it used to be done we have modernized that process now but it's nice to have a classic right get rid of it still have it no keep it for the parade see it it's running it can carry people and not trash and not waste right now so glad to have them in this parade and bringing a little history all right right behind them we have the cow poly Mustang marching brand 240 members love the energy calpol always brings they have the special style of marching called Georgy oh what you know what they had a big battle the B by the way earlier today they already played today they went they went toe-to-toe with Davis uh out by the fairy building I they said it was the battle the bands I'm not sure if there was a winner no one wins no one wins everybody everyone everybody win I thought there was a winner but okay everyone wins but it's nice to have Cal Paulie making their way up the coast and coming here to San Francisco to perform uh yeah Paulie their fight song they'll be playing that along the parade route uh some Green Day Holiday over the mountains and valleys by composer Joseph all right let's listen in to the Cal po March [Music] sounded sharp there Cal H still to come this time of town USA the Golden Dragon fireworks the Alaska Airlines sh new your braid is coming back after the break welcome back to the Alaska Airlines Chinese New Year parade in downtown San Francisco you can see the live picture here the windows and Macy's the crowd still action- packed along the city streets and down below we do have the Thunder Valley Casino Resort float carrying Miss Chinatown USA 2024 recently crowned last night we welcome Tera Wong Nash from Foster what a long night for her but really amazing and really incredible to see her in this parade she's sitting on what is a giant replica of the Queen's sparkling Crown sitting on that bed of roses Amber Lee is standing by getting ready to talk to her and I talked to Tara this morning and she was just such a fantastic person to talk to Amber congratulations to her absolutely Tara can you hear me yes I can hear you loud and clear all right over here oh there you are hi congratulations thank you so much it's always wonderful to have someone from the Bay Area what are your thoughts about what this means to you well this means everything to me San Francisco the Bay Area there's nothing like it I don't know if you can hear the firecrackers in the background but there's no place better to call home and I'm so grateful that I representing Miss Chown USA and representing the San Francisco Bay Area you were just Crown last night what you you want to say to all the young women that are looking up to you yeah as a mixed individual myself as somebody who hasn't seen much representation growing up I want them to know that beauty is boundless you can be anything you can be a woman in stem you can be a woman in the Arts you can be a woman in a beauty pageant sitting on the throne at the Chinese parade yes I know that your platform has been immigrant healthc care that's near and dear to your heart tell me about that yeah so my mom immigrated here from Hong Kong and when I was in Middle School she unfortunately got really sick and the healthare system was not there for her even here in the Bay Area where we have such a diverse Melting Pot I want to be able to fix that I went to Columbia got my masters in public health and now I'm currently working on that as well congratulations have a great time thank [Music] you Miss Chinatown USA Terra Wong Nash congratulations from all of us here ABS went to Cal went to colia Cal colia she's saying in Cantonese at her columia graduation I heard hering well you played it during your interview she's a beautiful singer all right right behind Miss Chinatown USA 2024 we have the Arch Bishop Ruden High School Marching Band joining us the Crusaders Catholic High School in San Francisco's Westwood Park neighborhood band dates back all the way to the school's found we're taking you all the way back to 1949 you know who played in this band once before not you sou cast we know that we've already established you and I couldn't didn't have the music sal sal cast is his old T band that he played I'm not sure what instrument he did he claims he did a lot but I don't know about that all right let's listen in there they're playing build up [Music] butter [Music] there you have the Arch Bishop we in marching B making its way right down G Street here in Union Square where we do have much more to come including the big finale and I'm saying there's also some fireworks involved right they have a a huge finale that we love it is a a golden dragon and a lion dance but up in the sky that's where all wise will be looking in just a few minutes as we welcome in an amazing fireworks show don't go anywhere the Alaska Airlines Chinese New Year parade we'll be right back all right welcome back to the Alaska Airlines Chinese New Year parade I cannot believe that we've made it to the finale of this amazing parade and as you notice the lights are now off as we've come to this special moment of the parade here this is really almost magical as we see the Lions up uh high at top getting ready to drop those Scrolls that signify all the well wishes for the new year this is L's white Crane and golden dragon they've been around since the early 7s and those Scrolls filled with various messages long life themes of uh of money themes of Health in the years ahead yes and as you can see the Golden Dragon this is always a a crowd favorite that they have watched and waited for uh this Dragon making its way chasing that pearl of wisdom the lighted Dragon when you talk about the magic of this nighttime parade this is what you're talking about and there the Scrolls go down as you can see from the Lions as they're high at top and they drop those well wishes for the new year 289 ft long is the dragon this year it requires more than 100 people to handle the dragon and when the lights are off I will tell you it is just magical being just feet away from it and the scroll as Claud mentioned is now down with all those messages wishing long life and health for all and this is really just helping the entire Community celebrate and welcome in this new Lunar New Year we have done it in style tonight look at the delicate and and the detail on these dragons that are a part of this celebration and these lions that are that is a special one it's like a lion with a dragon head on it in honor of the Year of the Dragon as again a a 290 289 foot Dragon makes his way and they do that for a reason they want that odd number right there right they do want that and I will say soon we're going to have the firecrackers coming up and then we will have the fireworks as we're watching this still unfold right before our eyes here uh but right now the focus is on the dragons on the on the Scrolls and really this has been what they expected to be a record-breaking night and really uh we can't say enough about the people who have come out here to join us and the people who take this moment and celebrate really what is the magic of really having uh all this community come together it's all about the magic of this community we've said it before we are one not just one commity all of us is one Community to celebrate tonight and I've been down there amongst it and really the reason that this means so much uh to the people here who are part of this parade is how much support you get take a look at those streets and if you look all the way down they are lined from the entire sidewalk through 5 10 15 people deep again there's the dragon chasing the pearl of wisdom that is what you see whether the dragon is 5 long or 289 ft long the dragon always chases the pearl of wisdom we chase the Pearl we're always trying to get a little wisdom in our life there it moves out of space as you so what's you've been on the street kind of what Amber's been doing what's struck you the most being down there during this part of the parade you know personally we've said it already it's the magic it's the joy it's the ability when people get to share their culture and when people get to celebrate it and when it is celebrated along with them there is Magic and unity and in that look at that it's a brand new dragon lit up this is a little bit of extra magic we have that tonight in the Earth Dragon we have this Dragon we have the fireworks show that they're preparing for we have firecrackers that Amber is going to light up we have so many things that are a part of this that every year you take a tradition and then you level up and then how can you not walk away from this evening all the people in Stand walking just feeling great about oursel as a community as as a whole movie forward and that that is the goal right to also welcome in the new year and feel good about it also a very fun tradition lighting those fire crackers and that is where Amber Lee is right now ready to uh light the fuse and then clear out of there as quickly as possible Amber go get it Amber wait I'm having such a great time out here I want to wish everyone happy New Year F I'm going to bring in some good luck by lighting those firecrackers here we go [Music] you that does not disappoint never disappoint it's amazing but it is not over yet and that's what's really amazing to all of the people who have joined us here in San Francisco and at home we so appreciate you being a part of this this is means a lot to us it does mean a lot to us and what we have in store here in just about 30 seconds is a fireworks show that's called dragons assent really civilizing a dragon making its way slowly up to heaven after spending the winter underneath Earth it's going to be loud it's going to be beautiful and it's coming it's spectacular so we can't wait for you to enjoy this fireworks show we appreciate you being a part of this celebration it means a lot to the KTV family thank you so much for joining us for this Alaska Airlines Chinese New Year parade enjoy the fireworks show good night everyone good [Music] night [Music] [Music] n [Music] [Music] a [Music] [Music] [Music] [Applause]
