GALESBURG, Ill. — With July 4th just around the corner, people from the Democratic Republic of Congo came together to celebrate in Galesburg.
Congo Independence Day is on June 30, but on July 2 people gathered at The Vault at Reserve Artisan Ales to celebrate Lipanda Day.
The name comes from the Lipanda Foundation, a nonprofit focused on supporting Congolese immigrants in the U.S.
"The goal of Lipanda Day is not only to share our culture, but it's also a way for us to bring the community together — to learn from each other," organizer Gogo Kupa said.
Kupa and her husband Yannick Capita run the foundation, hosting its second Lipanda Day celebration. Music, food, shopping and exhibits on Congolese culture and history were at the festival.
"Monmouth, Galesburg, Moline and Peoria — that's where most of the Congolese people are living," Capita said. "We are more than 1,500 people living in this area."
The couple said the biggest challenge for Congolese immigrants is communication.
"We are French speakers, and it's very hard for us to be on the same level as all the Americans," Kupa said.
Capita added that the festival is a way of saying thanks for the opportunities.
"We always want to give back to the community, because this community is the one who accept us as we are," he said. "They didn't ask us to know English or anything like that to live in the city."
That story couldn't be more true for Josue Bashombe, a recent Carl Sandburg College graduate.
"When I moved in 2019, I moved by myself, I was 20 years old," he said. "I had actually $120 my pocket."
Bashombe had his own struggles picking up the English language, doing everything he could to learn. "I had to change my phone in English, I had to start watching movies in English — I had to do everything in English," he said.
Now he is grateful for the abundant opportunities in the U.S. "I'm going to U of I Champaign-Urbana," Bashombe said. "I was accepted, and this August I'm moving to Champaign to continue in aerospace engineering."
The community also celebrated with an evening performance at the Orpheum Theatre.