If you weren’t down at the Archuleta County Fairgrounds Saturday, July 27 along with several hundred participants, then you missed out on the highly anticipated 22nd annual Pagosa Springs Spanish Fiesta, put on by the Pagosa Springs Spanish Fiesta committee of Archuleta Seniors Inc. This group of over 10 different families, ASI board members and community volunteers came together over the last 8 months to rekindle the fondly remembered Pagosa Springs Spanish Fiestas for a second year in a row.
The day’s activities kicked off earlier in the day, along the walking path below Pagosa Peak Open School, for the ribbon cutting of a bronze sheepherder sculpture by the talented artist Chad Haspels. The Town of Pagosa Springs, the Pagosa Springs Arts Council, the ASI Spanish Fiesta committee, along with the Spanish Fiesta Royalty youth and families joined together to share stories about sheepherding and the rich Hispanic heritage in Archuleta County.
Then the Archuleta County “fiesta” grounds opened at 2pm and guests started arriving early to grab food, beverages and check out the vendors and to catch acknowledgment of the class of 2024 Spanish Fiesta BIPOC Scholarship recipients. This year, eight youth and elders were awarded $1000 scholarships to pursue their educational goals from funds raised from last year’s fiesta.
All funds raised by the fiesta go towards services/programs to support the older adults of Archuleta County through the services of Archuleta Seniors Inc. and a Spanish Fiesta BIPOC scholarship fund to benefit youth and elders.
The emcees for the 22nd Annual Pagosa Springs Spanish Fiesta were the distinguished Leonard Martinez (Town Council member, and Spanish Fiesta Committee member) and Elsa White (Archuleta County Treasurer and Public Trustee, and Spanish Fiesta Committee member) who facilitated the event in both English and Spanish.
Up next on stage were the 2024 Spanish Fiesta Royalty youth who gave speeches about their leadership experiences and community service opportunities they have been involved in over the past several months as they have worked to promote this year’s fiesta.
Dance performances by Ballet Folklorico de Durango started sharply at 3pm and reflected the multiple different regions of Mexico.
The Pagosa Springs American Legion Honor Guard then joined the community under the big tent to honor veterans in attendance and lead the attendees through the pledge of allegiance and singing the national anthem.
Next on stage was Tejano singer Candace Vargas and her band NortherN 505, who continued into the afternoon and early evening with high energy and music to get the crowd dancing and moving through the six o’clock hour. After a brief intermission, the emcees acknowledged the many sponsors, volunteers and vendors who came together to make the event memorable.
The Spanish Fiesta Youth Royalty made a final appearance before Ballet de Durango wrapped up the six o’clock hour with a final dance set.
The evening continued with much jubilation and dancing when Darren Cordova Y Calor took to the stage at 7pm for a three-hour set of music. The evening wrapped up by 10:30pm.
Archuleta Seniors Inc. is so grateful to all the families, attendees, sponsors and volunteers who made the 22nd Annual Pagosa Springs Spanish Fiesta possible and such a huge success this year. This year’s event was the second year of a three-year implementation plan to bring back the Fiestas in their full capacity. This year, the Spanish Fiesta Committee worked closely with past royalty to establish the Spanish Fiesta Youth Royalty organization with the hopes to nurture leadership and community service opportunities for Hispanic/Latino youth in Archuleta County.
Next year we plan to add more components to the fiesta to fulfill our commitment to the community to fully reestablish the Fiesta in Pagosa Springs. We welcome anyone and everyone to attend future planning meetings and thank the community again for all your support and enthusiasm in celebrating the diverse heritage of Archuleta County. For questions or more information about the Pagosa Springs Spanish Fiesta, please contact Rose Chavez at 970-264-2167 or rosa@psseniors.org.
Stay tuned for announcements about future Spanish Fiesta meetings, in the local media.
Rose Chavez is Executive Director for Archuleta Seniors, Inc. and Public Health Consultant at Archuleta Food System/Food Equity Coalition.