Thousands gather for Longmont’s vibrant Cinco de Mayo festival

In its 20th year at Roosevelt Park, the Longmont Celebrates Cinco de Mayo festival encompassed the lively energy of the community with a full day of music, dance and embracing diverse cultures.

Held one day after the Mexican holiday, which commemorates the country’s military victory over French forces at the Battle of Puebla, Saturday’s festival included over 100 booths and food trucks representing community partners and local businesses at the downtown Longmont park at 700 Longs Peak Ave.

Mary Vigil, an event coordinator who’s long been involved with the city’s celebration of the holiday, remembers when the festival had just about 10 vendors — a stark contrast to Saturday’s turnout.

“People really look forward to this,” she said. “It seems like everybody’s enjoying it.”

Vigil said over a thousand people were already at the park when the festival began at 11 a.m. With Saturday’s nice spring weather, she thinks the festival will likely exceed its goal of bringing in 8,000 guests.

U.S. Rep. Joe Neguse, D-Colo. helped kick off the festival by acknowledging the attendees who have been putting it on for over 20 years, which drew cheers from the crowd.

“Let’s give them a round of applause for carrying the torch and for continuing this important tradition as we celebrate culture and as we recognize that we are stronger together,” said Neguse, who lives in Lafayette.

Neguse’s address was followed by a ceremonial blessing from Grupo Tlaloc Danza Azteca, a Denver-based ensemble that celebrates and shares Aztec culture through dance. Members dazzled the crowd with their elaborate costumes and traditional instruments as they danced to honor community elders and deceased loved ones.

“We want our prayer to happen here today to bring peace and unity amongst all of us,” said director Carlos Castañeda. “We all need that healing.”

The car show, a staple of the festival for several years, brought over 130 vintage and custom cars, motorcycles and bikes to the park. The show was hosted by local group Suavé Car Club, which had judges peruse the colorful vehicles to determine winners in two dozen categories.

“It brings cultures together in the community,” club member Robert Espindola said of the show. “We all are in this, as car enthusiasts, together.”

Another popular feature of the festival was the breakdancing competition, where both kids and adults faced off in “break battles.” This is the fifth appearance of the competition at the event, which Vigil’s co-coordinator Louie Lopez said was established to make even more people feel welcome at the celebration.

Partners manning booths included El Comité de Longmont, Longmont Humane Society, Longmont Public Safety and OUR Center. Longmont mayor Joan Peck, who helped distribute a community survey at the Longmont Multicultural Action Committee booth, said she’s amazed at how big the event has gotten.

“We have such a huge Latino, Spanish and South American population, and they’re very engaged,” she said. “And we just want to celebrate it.”