Mineola ISD welcomed more than 200 Spanish-speaking families to their second annual Fiesta event on Friday, May 3.

The event was exclusively in Spanish with several community organizations who provided representatives and Spanish materials for the attendees.

The event, held in the middle school cafeteria, began with a welcome by district Bilingual/ESL Coordinator Annette Pecorino.

“This night is all about you,” she said. She thanked Mineola ISD Superintendent Cody Mize, Assistant Superintendent David Sauer and Curriculum Director Melisia Foster, all of whom were in attendance, for their support to make the event successful. She also recognized Mineola School Board member Janice Etheridge who was there to support the event.

The guest speaker, Flor Nichols of the Hand Up Network in Tyler, discussed services the organization provides, including immigration services, victim services and a mentoring program. Community service organizations, including Region 7, Estepoder.org and Sand Springs Baptist Church, also discussed services they provide.

Mineola Primary School teacher Wendi Gowan also discussed her ESL for adult program for parents to sign up.

Children who attended had fun and engaging activities in the gym provided by the floral design members of Mineola High School. The floral design group also created more than 20 floral arrangements to decorate the tables for the event, and those flowers were given away as door prizes.

More than 50 door prizes were given away, including gift cards donated by Whataburger, Taco Bell and Domino’s. Other door prizes included a free family photo shoot in downtown Mineola donated by Escudero Photography and two handmade bags donated by Papabuelo.

During the meal of street tacos provided by The Texan Hall by Jorgies, attendees were entertained by the dance group Folkloric Legacy of Mineola, who performed authentic folkloric dances and singing by member Luzy Tinajero.

Superintendent Mize said, “It was great to see so many families in our community come together for this special night. We look forward to continuing to grow our Fiesta Event each year to meet families and find ways to better serve our students and their families.”

Pecorino, who is also bilingual, organized the event.

“I’m happy with the number of families who attended for our second year,” she said. “Building a rapport with families and students is important to me and to our district so this is one way I can help do that.”