Northland Unity Festival highlights community pride

Kelly TuckerColumbus Dispatch
Sept. 6, 2026, 6:00 a.m. ET

• The Northland Unity Festival aims to showcase the community’s diversity and counter its negative reputation.
• This year’s festival will feature various cultural dance groups, a local singer-songwriter and diverse food vendors.
• The festival is organized by Elevate Northland, a community development organization.

Northland resident Jenny Leal is tired of the community she loves getting a bad rap. She wants central Ohioans to see her home the way she and her neighbors do, and chairing the Northland Unity Festival committee each year gives her the perfect opportunity to do just that.

“I wish [people] knew that it was just such a cool place,” Leal said. “There’s just so many different foods, there’s so many different kinds of people you get to know – and really good people who really care about [Northland] and call it home.”

Leal, co-founder of the community development organization Elevate Northland and vice chair of its board of directors, will head up the community’s ninth annual festival, taking place from 3-7 p.m. Sept. 19 at the North YMCA, 1640 Sandalwood Place.

Situated between Worthington and New Albany, the 25-square-mile northeast Columbus community boasts an incredibly diverse population that includes thousands of Somali and Nepali Bhutanese refugees.

The festival has become an annual staple that showcases the best of the Northland community. It’s a way for residents to come out, embrace their unique cultures and share their identities and traditions with their neighbors through food, entertainment and local vendors.

This year, Leal said the festival will welcome performances from Wuyue Dance Group, Bankema African Dance Academy, Nepali Cultural Dance Club and local singer-songwriter Benjamin Marshall.

Haitian cuisine from Bibi’s Patties we also be available in addition to an array of baked goods, jams, sweet treats and beverages.

When asked why she continues to chair the festival committee year after year, Leal said despite the hard work it takes to pull it off, she does it for all the Northland residents who have come to anticipate the unique celebration each year.

“Northland has a real do-it-yourself kind of vibe to it. The community really comes together and gets things done when we need to things done in this area,” Leal said. “There’s just so much potential in Northland.”

To learn more about the Northland Unity Festival or become a sponsor or volunteer before the Sept. 19 event, visit elevatenorthland.org/events/northland-unity-festival.

Reporter Kelly Tucker can be reached at ktucker@dispatch.com.