With puppets and henna tattoos, ethnic foods and maps of the East, a group of volunteers made efforts to educate Holmes Hall students Sunday.

The Asian-African cultural night was part of an effort by the group Raising Awareness by Internationalizing Students’ Education, or RAISE, to visit the residence halls and promote awareness.

RAISE is a program within the Office of Internationalizing Students, which is a part of the Department of Student Life. More than 25 students volunteered for Sunday’s event.

RAISE adviser Consa Torres said more than 10 countries were represented from four continents.

“Our main goal is to exchange cultural values,” she said. “It’s not just a show.”

Torres said RAISE will bring its program to any residence hall that invites them.

“We come or go anywhere,” she said. “Just tell us what you want.”

Kyialbek Toksonbaev, an exchange student from Kyrgyzstan, was one of the students volunteering in the RAISE event.

He wore a traditional black robe embroidered in gold and a matching hat from his country. Kyrgyzstan gained independence when the Soviet Union fell in 1991.

“It’s usually worn on festivities or certain occasions,” the graduate student said.

“If it’s simple without the bright colors people wear it on a daily basis.”

Toksonbaev was in charge of the map since he said he’s an expert in geography.

“We are nomadic people,” he said.

“In the summer they move from one pasture to another.”

The event was brought to Holmes Hall by resident mentor Emily Perhay, a science and elementary education senior.

“It’s really good to have some culture brought in,” she said. “Students won’t get to experience it otherwise.”

She said last year’s event had more than 60 participants, and this year’s event was an even bigger success.

“You always hear mentors talking about how hard it is to put together a multicultural event,” she said.

“This is a perfect example of how it can perfectly come together.”

Mathematics freshman Andrea Buck said she appreciated her mentor’s efforts in bringing the event to the hall.

“It’s pretty cool,” she said. “You get to explore what other cultures are like and experience their traditions.”

Buck said the real benefit was learning directly from members of the other cultures - like the students from India explaining the cultural meaning behind henna tattoos and the Taiwan students demonstrating the stories told by their colorful puppets.

“Most of the ideas we get of other cultures are from movies,” she said.

“Now we get to experience it firsthand.”