--- title: SR 423. Conyers Cherry Blossom Festival; commend collection: bills id: 2025-2026/sr423 cite_as: SR 423, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.) canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr423 md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr423.md text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr423/text source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/71483 date: 2025-03-21 status: passed corpus_version: bills-2026-08-28 license: Public record of the Georgia General Assembly, via LegiScan; see about.md publisher: Georgia Commons, an independent project of Georgia Civic Data. Not the State of Georgia. Not legal advice. up: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026.md previous: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr422.md next: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr424.md index: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/index.md omitted: votes and history omitted_chars: 94 omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr423.md?full=1 bill_number: SR 423 session: 2025-2026 Regular Session session_slug: 2025-2026 chamber: Senate bill_type: resolution status_date: 2025-03-21 last_action: Senate Read and Adopted sponsors: - Tonya Anderson - Kenya Wicks - Randal Mangham text_version: Enrolled has_text: true legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/SR423/2025 upstream_id: 2012224 summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5 topic_tags: - Conyers Cherry Blossom Festival - Georgia Senate resolutions - Rockdale County - cultural festivals - Georgia-Japan relations --- # SR 423. Conyers Cherry Blossom Festival; commend ## Text 25 LC 112 3460 Senate Resolution 423 By: Senators Anderson of the 43rd, Wicks of the 34th and Mangham of the 55th A RESOLUTION Commending and congratulating the Conyers Cherry Blossom Festival for its outstanding1 efforts to foster a long and steady friendship between the City of Conyers and country of2 Japan; and for other purposes.3 WHEREAS, the 44th Annual Conyers Cherry Blossom Festival, prese nted by Robins4 Financial Credit Union, takes place on Saturday and Sunday, March 22 and 23, 2025, at the5 Georgia International Horse Park; the 2025 theme of "Spring it on!" encourages6 festival-goers to embrace the fun and excitement of the international festival that heralds the7 start of spring; and8 WHEREAS, the Conyers Cherry Blossom Festival unites thousands of participants from the9 region to encourage better understanding of Japanese culture and other diverse nations and10 to celebrate 44 years of cultural history through international music, dance, arts, crafts, food,11 games, and family entertainment; and12 WHEREAS, the history of the Conyers Cherry Blossom Festival stems from the gifting of13 several Yoshino Cherry Blossom trees that were planted througho ut the City of Conyers,14 signifying an alliance; and15 S. R. 423 - 1 - 25 LC 112 3460 WHEREAS, these cherished gifts, also known as Sakura, came from Hideo Ogino, former16 President of Maxell Corporation of America, to represent the friendship between nations, the17 renewal of spring, and the ephemeral nature of life; and18 WHEREAS, in 1982, Maxell and the Chamber of Commerce held the first Conyers Cherry19 Blossom Festival, scheduled during the blossoming of the beautiful Yoshino Cherry Blossom20 trees, the subject of nationwide adoration since the Heian period in Japan, more than 1,00021 years ago; and22 WHEREAS, traditionally, the Conyers Cherry Blossom Festival featured cooking classes,23 silk flower arranging, Oriental doll exhibits, Origami demonstrations, Kabuki theater, bonsai24 tree exhibits, karate demonstrations and a Haiku contest; the festival still incorporates many25 of these cultural connections; and26 WHEREAS, its growth in attendance and exhibitors made it necessary to relocate the festival27 from the grounds of Maxell to the Georgia International Horse Park; the City of Conyers and28 the Georgia International Horse Park now oversee and present th e annual Conyers Cherry29 Blossom Festival; and30 WHEREAS, the Conyers Cherry Blossom Festival continues to carry on the tradition of this31 important community event; the festival has become one of the largest and most successful32 events in the Southeast; and33 WHEREAS, the Conyers Cherry Blossom Festival is faithful to family and to the community34 and prides itself on giving back through year-long student art projects, pageantry, and35 auxiliary events, including mosaic and canvas art classes at Th e Sketching Pad as well as36 S. R. 423 - 2 - 25 LC 112 3460 Frog Habitat and Stepping into Nature projects that contribute to the conservation and37 beautification of the Big Haynes Creek Nature Center; and38 WHEREAS, since 2016, the Conyers Rockdale Council for the Arts and Rockdale County39 Public Schools have teamed up to present the annual Conyers Che rry Blossom Festival40 Student Photography Contest; winning photographs were on display at the Conyers City Hall41 and were recognized at a public reception, at the City Council meeting, and later at the42 festival; and43 WHEREAS, recreational partners such as the Georgia Quarter Hors e Association have44 partnered with the Georgia International Horse Park to offer Co nyers Cherry Blossom45 Festival Speed Classes to their showbill during the weekend's festivities; and46 WHEREAS, the Conyers Cherry Blossom Festival, with the support of the City of Conyers,47 its participants, and all of their partnering sponsors from the community, has the distinctive48 honor of being named a Multi-Award-Winning event; it has achieved top honors in multiple49 categories of the Kaleidoscope Awards, recognized by the Southe ast Festival and Events50 Association (SFEA), including Best Event, Best Marketing Campaign, Best Event within an51 Event, Best Mascot, Best Video and Best Photograph. The festival has also been recognized52 as a Signature Event in the Southeast awarded by Southeast Tourism Society for consecutive53 years.54 NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE that the members of this body55 commend the City of Conyers and Georgia International Horse Park for their dedication to56 the community and state through the festival; congratulate the Conyers Cherry Blossom57 Festival on the remarkable occasion of its 44th Anniversary; and extend their sincerest best58 S. R. 423 - 3 - 25 LC 112 3460 wishes for the festival's continued successes to strengthen the unity and embracement of all59 cultures.60 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Secretary of the Senate is authorized and directed61 to make an appropriate copy of this resolution available for di stribution to the Conyers62 Cherry Blossom Festival.63 S. R. 423 - 4 - ## Summaries written by Georgia Commons The following was written by claude-sonnet-5 from the text above and is not part of the resolution. Quote the text, not the summary. A Senate resolution honors the Conyers Cherry Blossom Festival's 44th anniversary, recognizing its role in building cultural ties between Conyers and Japan. ### Plain-language summary This resolution does not change any law. It is a ceremonial statement from the Georgia Senate recognizing the 44th Annual Conyers Cherry Blossom Festival, held March 22 and 23, 2025, at the Georgia International Horse Park. The resolution recounts the festival's history, which began in 1982 after Hideo Ogino of Maxell Corporation of America gifted Yoshino Cherry Blossom trees to the City of Conyers to symbolize friendship between the United States and Japan. It highlights the festival's cultural programming, community partnerships such as the Student Photography Contest and the Georgia Quarter Horse Association's Speed Classes, and its recognition with multiple Southeast Festival and Events Association awards. The Senate formally commends the City of Conyers and the Georgia International Horse Park and directs that a copy of the resolution be given to the festival. ### What it does - Formally commends the City of Conyers and the Georgia International Horse Park for their work presenting the festival. - Congratulates the Conyers Cherry Blossom Festival on its 44th anniversary in 2025. - Directs the Secretary of the Senate to prepare and distribute a copy of the resolution to the festival. - Creates no new law, funding, or regulatory requirement, as a ceremonial resolution. ### Who it affects The resolution directly names the City of Conyers, the Georgia International Horse Park, the Conyers Cherry Blossom Festival organizers, and the Secretary of the Senate, who must distribute a copy of the resolution to the festival. ### Why it matters The resolution carries no legal or financial effect but serves as an official state recognition of a long-running local festival and its cultural ties to Japan, which can boost the event's public profile and community pride. ### Key provisions - The whereas clauses describe the festival's origin in 1982 from a gift of Yoshino Cherry Blossom trees by Hideo Ogino of Maxell Corporation of America. - The resolution notes the festival's relocation from Maxell's grounds to the Georgia International Horse Park due to growth in attendance. - The resolution cites the festival's recognition by the Southeast Festival and Events Association's Kaleidoscope Awards and the Southeast Tourism Society. - The resolving clause commends the City of Conyers and the Georgia International Horse Park and congratulates the festival on its 44th anniversary. - A final clause directs the Secretary of the Senate to provide a copy of the resolution to the festival for distribution. ## Status - Status: Passed (2025-03-21) - Last action: Senate Read and Adopted (2025-03-21) - Sponsors: Tonya Anderson, Kenya Wicks, Randal Mangham - Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/71483 > The history, votes, and amendments (94 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr423.md?full=1