COLUMBIA — Igala people in Columbia celebrated their heritage, culture and traditions Monday at Cosmo Park.
Igala people living in Columbia and their neighbors have held this event since 2012 in different parks across Columbia. In the U.S., Igala Day is celebrated in April or May, coinciding with the Igala Kingdom USA Ocho Festival.
“This is a way of celebrating our heritage and culture,” said Victor Abutu, this year’s event coordinator. “Most of our kids were born in the United States … they don’t know much about the traditions or culture. This is a way of bringing light to them, to see where we come from, to remember our roots.”
The Igala ethnolinguistic group comprises over 2 million Nigerians living along the Benue and Niger rivers.
The picnic-style event primarily focuses on celebrating Igala children and their “dual heritage,” Abutu said.
“They are American children first,” Abutu said. “Their parents brought them in from a unique background … it’s good to understand that unique background, and it helps to build who they are.”
The event’s founder, the Rev. Fr. Patrick Adejo, came to Columbia alone on the weekend of Memorial Day 17 years ago from Waco, Texas, to start a job as a chaplain at the Truman Veterans’ Hospital. His move to Columbia became the reason Igala Day is celebrated on Memorial Day every year. Other families from Nigeria followed Adejo to Columbia, which became the foundation of a community.
Adejo said the event started as a way to get to together and “celebrate the land that has blessed them.” At Cosmo Park, attendees cover picnic tables with traditional Nigerian foods, beverages, and grill chicken and other meats as they celebrate one another with music, dancing and laughter.
“We bring people together to enjoy the local food and celebrate together. (We want) people to see the kind of food we enjoy, share and eat with us,” Adejo said.
Adejo said that the event is not meant to take away from Memorial Day, which honors U.S. service members who died in the line of duty. He said Igala Day serves to appreciate the Igala people’s experience as Americans and their dual heritage.
“Apart from celebrating our culture and the great event of Memorial Day in America, it provides an opportunity for networking … and a cultural base for our children,” Adejo said.
Felix Oguche also assisted in Monday’s event. Oguche moved to the United States in August 2023 and attended his second Igala Day celebration Monday. Oguche is a biological engineering research assistant at the University of Missouri. His work focuses on developing tools for farmers, specifically making certain tools more accessible for female farmers.
“It’s a way of bringing history to our children, to know their roots, and where they come from,” Oguche said.
“It strengthens the identity of the individual — it builds a certain belief for oneself to know that you are a part of something bigger, tied to something great,” Abutu said.