4th annual Tamalada Festival serves culture
Families gathered to eat tamales, watch colorful folklorico dancers, win prizes playing Loteria and make maracas at the 4th Annual Tamalada Festival held Saturday.
The Conner Museum hosts the annual event, and this year’s festival spanned from Peacock Auditorium to the Tejas Room in the Student Union Building (SUB) and courtyard.
“The Tamalada Festival I think brings together a lot of people. We love having it with family weekend because people just get to celebrate. They have a lot of things to do. We have different activities and the most important thing I think is when we have a lot of students and faculty and staff who come together and share their expertise or their knowledge and they get to just have a good time and then get to be educational at the same time,” Kathy Pawelek, director of Administration and Operation of the Conner Museum, said.
The Tamalada Festival is a way for students and their families to learn about the different cultures and to encourage them to visit the Conner Museum.
“It shows us how our past relatives, our ancestors lived and how they had different foods, how they had different events, how they had different things to express. I think it’s awesome to learn,” Andrea Lozano, with Grupo Herencia folklorico dancers, said.
With a range of activities from arts and crafts to music performances, the event made sure to inform the people all while having a good time and making memories. So, if you couldn’t stand the Texas heat, there were activities like lectures and Loteria in the cool indoors.
Along with Kingsville’s only radio station, KTAI-FM 91.1, playing a mix of Tejano hits and cumbia music, the MSUB courtyard hosted a few different bands like TAMUK’s jazz club. The folklorico dancers had two performances throughout the day, dancing in bright colors and intricately designed dresses to a carefully rehearsed routine.
“All the bright colors you see throughout all the dresses and all the different regions, they celebrate life, they celebrate how colorful Hispanic heritage can be,” Audrey Ibrahim-Martinez, folklorico dancer, said.
There were other stations outdoors like the masa making station and maraca making for anyone who wanted to participate. It included filling a plastic egg with rice, using two plastic spoons as a handle, and decorating the outside of the instrument with colorful tape and ribbon. Of course, there was a free tamale tasting table under the pavilion and food trucks that lined University Boulevard.
Thanks to the Conner Museum, the Tamalada Festival continues to be an annual event that brings together students and their families to learn more about different cultures and to celebrate each other.
“We don’t want it to go extinct. I think keeping the tradition alive, I think that’s very important especially for us Hispanics to continue bringing that up with our children. The food, the culture, the dancing, the love, the family, I just think it’s very important to keep the tradition alive,” Melissa Nicholas, proud TAMUK parent, said.