A feast for the senses at Ernest Ullman Park
From vibrant dance performances to flavour-packed food stalls, the Ernest Ullman Park Summer Market served up a delicious blend of culture and community spirit.
The sounds of music and laughter drifted through Ernest Ullman Park on February 28 as locals gathered for a lively Summer Market aimed at raising funds for the park’s maintenance and supporting local arts initiatives.
The event was organised by Subhashini Naikar of Natya Anjali alongside Carlo Gomes of Duality Fitness and Jenny Rahme of Jenny Rahme’s Dance Academy.
The fundraiser also supports Natya Anjali, a Bharatanatyam school based at the centre that plays an active role in community outreach.
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“We are hosting this fundraiser to raise funds for the upkeep of the park, as well as for Natya Anjali,” Naikar said. “We do a lot of work within the community, and we are so happy to have so many vendors here today. It’s a mixture of culture and cuisines.”
Market-goers were treated to a diverse array of stalls featuring Mexican and traditional Indian cuisine, home-cooked foods, spices, jewellery, clothing and accessories.
Families and friends relaxed on the lawns, enjoying the summer sunshine while eating food and browsing handcrafted goods.
Rahme, the Friends of Ernest Ullman chairperson, has been teaching at the Ernest Ullman Park Recreation Centre for 43 years.
She said the committee was formed by teachers who collaborate to raise funds for maintenance projects at the centre.
“At the moment, we want to refurbish the bathrooms of the centre. As the Friends of Ernest Ullman, we work together to raise funds to maintain the centre. Today we hosted this beautiful Summer Market so that we can actually raise funds for the park’s upkeep.”
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The day began with a morning of entertainment, featuring Indian classical dance, modern dance and jazz performances.
“We all came together to provide this so that people can have free entertainment, come out for the day and then come and eat and drink and see all these beautiful stalls,” Rahme said.
“Carlo Gomes has got a restaurant here, called Food Cafe, Subashni organises the market and teaches Indian dance in the centre, and I do the organising and the marketing and getting everybody and all the dancing and all the entertainment together. We’re a very good team.”
Rahme added that they are hoping to host the market monthly or every two months, building on the strong turnout and positive atmosphere of the February 28 event.
“We are hopefully going to hold these markets monthly or every two months, and we’d like people to come and support us and come out for a beautiful outing and a lovely day out.”
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