Community gathers to honor Hispanic heritage at MWSU banquet

Sep. 29—St. Joseph residents joined together to enjoy live music, dancing and food on Wednesday evening for the Hispanic Heritage Banquet held at Missouri Western State University.

The event began at 6 p.m. in the Fulkerson Center. Guests listened to live music from Alexis Arai y Su Grupo Latino. There was also salsa dancing and a buffet dinner for all that attended.

One of the speakers at the event was Isaura Garcia, who is a newly elected official at the St. Joseph Board of Education.

Garcia said she hopes that Hispanics in the St. Joseph area continue to grow into becoming pillars and leaders in the community.

"Real change does not happen overnight. Real change is doing the work that we can do over here to inspire those that come after us to keep fighting," Garcia said.

The event was sponsored by the Missouri Western Center for Diversity and Inclusion and the Association of Latin American Students.

Marian Montiel, president of the Missouri Western ALAS, is a senior from Nicaragua and said the events the organization puts on are meant for all students to enjoy and learn.

"We do it to where it's educational for the students, for them to learn more about the community, but also fun at the same time," Montiel said. "They can also get good knowledge and acknowledgment of the Hispanic community and what it brings to the United States, to Missouri Western's campus."

One of the other avenues the organization helps with is providing resources to members of the organization after they graduate.

"Everyone knows after leaving college is probably one of the most difficult things to do," Montiel said. "We want to make sure that all of our students within our organization are truly prepared with all the best resources they need, no matter what the circumstances."

Riley Funk can be reached at riley.funk@newspressnow.com.