Latino Fest 2013

Summers in the Baltimore and Washington D.C. areas are filled with many different events from cultural celebrations to sporting events, to many patriotic holiday celebrations. Just a few weeks ago, we wrote about the different cultural festivals held throughout the year ranging from The St. Nicolas Greek Festival to the Maryland Irish Festival. This weekend, June 22^nd and 23^rd is the 33^rd Annual Latino Fest.   held in the heart of Baltimore’s Latino community at Patterson Park. The festival is a celebration of Hispanic culture, music and art.

Latino Fest 2013 will showcase a variety of music styles from across the Hispanic region such as salsa, merengue, bachata, cumbia, reggaeton, duranguense, and mariachi. The entertainment for the 2 days event includes local and international performers Grupo Lamaquina, La Firma, Toby Lane, Spanglish Fly, Herman Olivera, and Frankie Vasquez to name just a few. There is entertainment on 2 different stages throughout the event. There also will be dancing and music spun by Latino DJ’s. Taste different Latino foods from North and South American and the Caribbean during the event. Plus, there is family activities including a rock climbing wall, clowns, face painting and crafts.

The Latino Fest was founded in 1980 by community activist, Jose Ruiz to celebrate Hispanic culture in Baltimore. Mr. Ruiz also founded Education Based Latino Outreach in 1980. This non-profit organization, which was originally named East Baltimore Latino Organization, was created to help Latino children with the basics of reading, writing and math. The organization currently covers a larger scope of services to the Hispanic community, but with the same mission of improving the lives of Hispanic children and families through education and cultural activities. The group sponsors many fund-raising events throughout the year including Latino Fest and the Cinco de Mayo two-day festival on Broadway and Pratt.

With so many different cultural celebrations held during the summer, it is a great opportunity to try different foods, dance to different music and learn new things about your city and community! ezStorage is very proud to be part of the culturally diverse Baltimore and Washington D.C. areas.