SILOAM SPRINGS — The city will host its first Hispanic Heritage Festival today from noon to 4 pm at Memorial Park.
There will be vendors, live music, other performances, a children’s zone, food trucks, giveaways and more, according to Holland Hayden, city communications officer. The Rev. Salvador Marquez-Muñoz, a priest at Santa Maria Church, will give the welcome and blessing at the start of the event, Hayden said.
Arvest Bank will sponsor the children’s section and the Cherokee Hotel and Casino West Siloam Springs will sponsor the entertainment stage, Hayden said.
The Hispanic Heritage Festival came about as part of the City Council’s 2021-2022 goals, Hayden said. Because Siloam Springs has a large Latino population, it was a good place to start, Hayden said. Another of Hayden’s hopes is to bridge the gap between the Latino community and the rest of the city, he said.
“Culturally there has been a divide,” Hayden said. “I want to continue building a relationship.”
Activities include two bounce houses, a balloon artist and a face painter, Hayden said. There will also be plenty of food trucks, including a Colombian food truck and a snow cone truck, he said.
Entertainment will include the mariachi band Mariachi Amistad of Arkansas and Chinelos Morelenses Unidos En Arkansas, a group of cultural dancers, said Irma Chávez, executive director of Connecion de Negotios Latinos.
Chavez has helped Hayden connect with different vendors and businesses for the festival, Hayden said.
Along with the festival, there will also be an indoor soccer tournament from 8 a.m. to noon on the John Brown University campus, Hayden said.
After the festival, the futsal tournament will continue from 4 to about 7:30 or 8 p.m., Hayden said. Futsal is similar to soccer but is played on a hard surface or covered court and with only five players per team, according to uefa.com.
“We are excited to have this opportunity to connect with the Spanish-speaking community in the city and beyond,” Hayden said. “This is a year of building trust and reaching out to include all members of the community.”
