Tanabata kazari workshop set for Saturday, July 30 - Little Tokyo KobanNEW

The community is invited to participate in the third annual Los Angeles Tanabata Festival, which will be held Aug. 12-15 in Little Tokyo.

This year's theme is "Uplifting Our Spirits" in recognition of the gambatte spirit of the victims of the March 11 earthquake and tsunami that struck northeastern Japan.

Workshops will be held on Saturday, July 30 and Aug. 6, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., at the Little Tokyo Koban for individuals and organizations to create their own Tanabata kazari, which will be displayed at the festival. Food, games, entertainment and a kazari contest will be featured at the festival, which runs from Aug. 12 to 15.

To register for the workshops, contact the Koban, 307 E. First St. in Los Angeles, (213) 613-1911, www.jhills.com.

The Tanabata Festival is part of the 71^st Nisei Week Japanese Festival (www.niseiweek.org) and sponsored by the Nisei Week Foundation, the Little Tokyo Public Safety Association (Koban) and the Nanka Kenjin Kai Kyogi Kai.