Hispanics United for Perry (HUP) hosted their annual Las Posadas celebration Thursday night, and in spite of the cold weather they were pleased with the outcome.

HUP representative Jon Wolseth said the event snuck up on the organization this year, so he wasn’t able to get the word out as early as he would have liked. However, he felt those in attendance enjoyed themselves and learned a bit about the Latino culture. Las Posadas is observed throughout Latin America and focuses on the struggle of Mary and Joseph in finding a place to give birth to Jesus. A key aspect of the celebration is a processional through the public with traditional music, and the participants in Perry did their own version of that.

The evening began with an ecumenical service at First Christian Church, which was conducted in both English and Spanish. Following that, the attendees gathered lanterns and followed two local children dressed as Mary and Joseph along 2nd Street. The processional stopped first at the La Pasadita restaurant, followed by Ben’s Five and Dime and Casa De Oro. At each stop, a group of people would stay outside and sing a song asking for shelter, followed by an inside group singing that there was no room. The group eventually made its way to First United Methodist Church, where they were at last welcomed in.

Once at the church, the attendees were treated to a meal provided by HUP, in exchange for a free-will donation. All proceeds will go towards the HUP scholarships given each year to graduating seniors at Perry High School. Wolseth said while he was happy with this year’s event, he admitted he learned some things to help make next year bigger and better.