Connecticut Cultural Heritage Arts Program collections, 2015.196.55.36, Connecticut Historical ...

Ehden Lebanese American Club letter

DistributorDistributed by Ehden Lebanese American Club (American, founded 1915)

Date2006

MediumPaper

ClassificationsInformation Artifacts

Credit LineConnecticut Cultural Heritage Arts Program collections

CopyrightIn Copyright

Object number2015.196.55.36

DescriptionLetter from Michael A. Macary to members of Ehden Lebanese American Club, July 3, 2006.

NotesSubject Note: The Lebanese community in Waterbury is primarily Christian, celebrating the Maronite rite in the Antiochene-Syriac tradition within Catholicism. The liturgy is offered in a mixture of Arabic, Syriac and English languages. There are three Maronite churches in Connecticut – Our Lady of Lebanon in Waterbury, St. Maron in Torrington, and St. Anthony in Danbury. The Waterbury Lebanese community traces its origins to the area around the town of Ehden in northern Lebanon. Several families from Ehden immigrated to Waterbury from Ehden in the early 1900s to work in local factories. In 1915, they formed a social club which also held church services; the club became registered with the state in 1948. Priests would travel from St. Maron Church in Torrington to hold Maronite liturgy services, then in 1975 the community established its own Maronite church in Waterbury. Our Lady of Lebanon moved to its present home on East Mountain Rd. in 1982. The Ehden Lebanese Club on the Waterbury-Wolcott border held an annual “Mahrajan” or summer festival annually in August from 1959 to 2018, and the Club also presented a winter “hafli” or party in February for many years to raise funds for its charity activities. These popular social gatherings included Lebanese traditional music, folk dancing, traditional foods, crafts displays and sales, and children’s activities. In 2000, the community added a new event, the Taste of Lebanon, on the grounds of Our Lady of Lebanon, also featuring music, food, a dance group, crafts and hookah sales, raffles, and more. CCHAP has worked with the community for many years, documenting the festivals, assisting the Club with planning for activities, and supporting two apprenticeships in Lebanese liturgical singing led by Nehme Atallah, leader of the choir at Our Lady of Lebanon for many years.

Additional materials exist in the CCHAP archive for this community.

Cataloging Note: This project was made possible in part by the Institute of Museum and Library Services MA-245929-OMS-20.

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