BSM Celebrates Students' Rich Cultures

Written by Marketing & Communications EPIC interns Jae Benham '26, Raphael Johnson-Nixon '25, Madeline Yacoub '27 and Bella Yacoub '25

On Friday, Nov. 8th, Benilde-St. Margaret's hosted its annual Culture & Heritage Fair, where students represented different countries from around the world and presented their cultures to their classmates. This year, students created presentations based on food, history, and family experiences. This event is important to the BSM community because it provides students with opportunities to share their culture and allows their peers to learn about their classmates' backgrounds.

"I love getting this unique opportunity to learn more about the world through my classmates," Katherine Berthoud '25 said. BSM strives to raise awareness and respect for each background in the community and this fair is an opportunity for students to get excited to learn about each others' history. 

Students in attendance were given passport booklets, which they could fill with fun facts and notes about the featured countries. Trying traditional foods from other countries has been many students' favorite experience at the fair. Deandre Mayaka '25 has been a part of the fair each while in high school at BSM, celebrating Kenya, his parents' home country. "The day before the fair, my mom and auntie made mandazi. Mandazi is a fried, sometimes sweet puffy bread and is one of the favorites at the fair," Mayaka shared. 

The Culture and Heritage Fair was reintroduced by BSM's director of equity, inclusion, and belonging, Dennis Draughn. He has curated the fair and helped guide students up to the event. "One of the best parts for me is seeing students showcase their culture and being able to celebrate all cultures," Draughn said.

He also highlighted the importance of knowing and understanding your classmates' cultures and where they come from. Draughn explained that for BSM to exemplify diversity, events like the Culture and Heritage Fair should be cherished and seen as an opportunity for students to expand the bubble of comfort they normally reside in. 

Isabella Yacoub '25 and Madeline Yacoub '27 presented about Egypt, representing their own family and culture. "This was a fun opportunity to share my heritage with my classmates and let them know how proud I am of my family," Yacoub reflected. 

The Yacoub sisters focused their presentation on their personal experiences with family and the cultural events they witnessed when visiting Egypt. They shared their favorite landmarks in Egypt and the Arabic words they know. They also made flatbread to share with their classmates and enjoyed seeing them try food from their culture. 

Jae Benham '26 and Elle Lindstrom '26 represented Germany for their second year. They both spoke about Germany's presence in the modern day. Benham and Lindstrom have German ancestors and shared their connection through the food they presented. Benham said, "My family has a lot of German recipes from my mom's grandmother. Hearing the stories of her connecting with our German roots through food is very important to me and many people with similar experiences."

Some students were encouraged to research a country's history and culture, even though they have no personal connection to it. Raphael-Johnson Nixon '25 ad Jeremiah Johnson '25 have worked with Andretta Hanson '00, a Jamaican theology teacher at BSM, to represent the island country of Jamaica at the fair. 

Thank you to all of our dedicated Red Knights who presented and attended the Culture & Heritage Fair. This fair is a unique opportunity to celebrate our students and their heritage. We are #BSMproud of our beautifully diverse community!