These men were not allowed to bring their wives and family, yet they found a gathering place in McMinnville to celebrate the Lunar New Year each year. Though they routinely faced bigotry, especially after the passage of the Chinese Exclusion Act, several prominent Chinese businessmen still chose to return to town. Quong Hop and Sam Yick are two men whose names show up several times in historic newspapers. Quong Hop owned several businesses including the noodle shop in McMinnville. Sam Yick owned a laundry business and gave out Chinese lilies during the Lunar New Year celebrations. 

This mural was created in consultation with the Asian Heritage Association (AHA) and recognizes their annual multicultural Lunar New Year event that has made McMinnville a gathering place for celebration once again.

I was born and raised in McMinnville and my maternal great-grandfather is from the same province in China that many of the workers who were brought to McMinnville in the 1800s are from. To my knowledge there is not a public marker honoring the immense labor of these men who contributed so much the local economy of our town. I hope the mural can be a point of pause and celebration of what they have left behind and the celebrations that continue today. This mural would not have been possible without the assistance of my parents. This is the first mural I have painted in McMinnville and the first one they have helped me paint from start to finish. So this process has felt extra special.

Artist bio:

Saiyare Refaei (they/them/she/her) is a Chinese Iranian artist based on the occupied lands of the Puyallup people (Tacoma, Washington). Saiyare was born and raised in McMinnville, and graduated with the 100th Class of McMinnville High School in 2010. They graduated from Pacific Lutheran University in 2014 with a Major in Environmental Studies and minors in Anthropology, Hispanic Studies and Studio Arts. They have been making public art since 2013. Their mediums include community murals, printmaking, digital drawings and poetry. They are a member of Justseeds Artists' Cooperative and strive to utilize art as a bridge for community building, education and healing. Saiyare has been published in "We Need at Reckoning: Poetry, Essays, and Memoir by Women and Non-Binary People of Color" (published by Blue Cactus Press) and illustrated the accompanying workbook for "Let This Radicalize You: Organizing and the Revolution of Reciprocal Care" by Kelly Hayes and Mariame Kaba (published by Haymarket Books). They enjoy working collaboratively and being a conduit to visualize the stories that need to be told in our communities. You can find more of Saiyare’s work at justseeds.org/artist/saiyarerefaei/ or @_saikick_ on Instagram.