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BID Programs > Marketing > National Cherry Blossom Festival  National Cherry Blossom Festival ®
The Downtown Business Improvement District (BID) has partnered with the National Cherry Blossom Festival, Inc. since 2001, providing office space and staff support for the city's and the Downtown's premiere springtime event - a fresh, delight-filled, Spring Celebration of the arts, natural beauty, and community as only DC can produce. Recognizing the Festival's importance as a cultural asset , the BID is working to promote the National Cherry Blossom Festival organization as it continuously advances the quality and creativity of the Festival to ensure that it remains the nation's greatest springtime celebration, delivering real economic, social and cultural benefits to all its stakeholders including the city, the region, and the country..
Visit the National Cherry Blossom Festival's official website.
Mission
The National Cherry Blossom Festival, Inc., the nation’s greatest springtime celebration, is a not-for-profit, 501(c)(3) organization that produces and coordinates the annual two-week long Festival celebrating springtime in Washington, DC, as well as the 1912 gift of cherry trees and the enduring friendship between the people of the US and Japan. The Festival raises funds to keep most of the events free and open to the public. Contributions to the National Cherry Blossom Festival are tax deductible to the extent allowed by law.
History
The National Cherry Blossom Festival has a rich history. In 1912, the first cherry trees were planted around the Tidal Basin in Washington, DC. The Mayor of Tokyo presented these trees to the nation’s capital as a symbol of international friendship. As the cherry trees grew and endured, so did the rich traditions surrounding them – springtime strolls, picnics, photo opportunities and eventually an annual blossom festival.
In 2012, the Festival will celebrate the centennial of the original gift of trees. To prepare for the centennial and to build on our heritage and success, the National Cherry Blossom Festival is transforming the organization to focus on the strengths of the past and to advance with great growth. The organization has identified the following centennial themes:
- Celebrating Arts & Culture - promoting international friendship by showcasing inspiring traditional and contemporary arts of diverse cultures (especially Japan)
- Preserving the Natural Beauty and the Environment - restoring the beauty of the trees and conveying the fragility of nature as something that we must protect
- Welcoming, Embracing, and Building Community Spirit - celebrating the best of our cities and neighborhoods in the Washington Metro area.
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