West Linn High School Latino Student Union excited for Cinco de Mayo celebration with Historic Willamette

Historic Willamette Main Street and the West Linn High School Latino Student Union are once again teaming up to celebrate Cinco de Mayo Sunday, May 5.

The high school club joined forces with Historic Willamette for the first time last year to hold a Cinco de Mayo celebration.

This year’s event will take place from 2-6 p.m. in the Historic Willamette area along Willamette Falls Drive.

The students are excited to share the history of Cinco de Mayo and information about Latino cultures in general with those who attend the event.

“This year it’s going a bit more smoothly since we have the experience from last year,” Latino Student Union President Melissa said of this year’s planning efforts.

Melissa said Historic Willamette Executive Director Rebecca Hollenbeck and other leaders from the organization have come to several of the club’s after-school meetings to talk about goals for the event and coordinate planning.

“Those meetings really help to see where everybody is at and if there’s anything else that can be taken on,” Meilssa said.

The students are mainly focused on the educational aspect of the event. Melissa said they would be incorporating fun facts about Cinco de Mayo and Latino culture into the kids’ scavenger hunt and sharing information at their booth.

“Our main goal is to have as big of an outreach as possible and connect as many people as we can,” she said. “We think of what could attract people who swing by to stop for a couple of minutes. That’s all we’re really looking for is a little bit of their time and attention to make the celebration more lively.”

Melissa is particularly excited for the scavenger hunt, saying it’s fun to see the kids get excited.

“Seeing their enthusiasm and passion and attention is really inspiring and they all get treats at the end,” she said.

Vanessa, another leader from the Latino Student Union, said she is “excited to give out recipes and share our traditions with those that come to celebrate again.”

The club is working on a recipe book to share recipes and tastings of Latin foods.

In addition to the kids’ scavenger hunt, the event will include market vendors selling food and crafts, as well as a raffle drawing and a photo booth.

“I know our club is not the biggest or the most well-known so this is a really big deal for us for people to see some sort of culture aspect that we’re really passionate about sharing,” Melissa said.