For more than a decade, Perry has been celebrating its Hispanic culture every year with the Latino Festival, and it’s coming up this weekend.
Hispanics United for Perry (HUP) will be hosting the event in conjunction with the Perry Chamber of Commerce this Saturday. The festivities will get going at 10 a.m. with the parade lineup at the corner of 12th Street and Willis Avenue. The parade will begin at 11, travelling down Willis before turning right at 2nd Street and ending in front of Raccoon Valley Bank. Following the parade, there will be a benediction, and the rest of the day’s events will take place on 2nd between Willis and Lucinda Street. Activities include: food stands; clothing, craft, and information vendors; music and dance performances; and prizes.
Additionally, there will be a contest between the young ladies of Perry, where they will be selling raffle tickets. Whoever sells the most will be named the Festival Queen. HUP representative Jon Wolseth says the tickets will give attendees a chance to win a special prize, while also helping a great cause. “We will be raffling off a pinata in the shape of a graduation cap, courtesy of New Opportunities who have been kind enough to do the labor and make it for us. And so we’re looking forward to that. You can buy a raffle ticket onsite for $5. And of course, all the funds that we raise from the Festival goes to supporting our scholarships at the high school for graduates who are considering going on to college or a trade school after graduation.”
The 2018 Latino Festival will run until 8 p.m. Saturday, so Perry residents are reminded that the downtown area will be inaccessible during that time. To learn more about the event, click the link below to listen to the Perry Fareway Let’s Talk Dallas County program with Wolseth.