By Louis Zylka
The 830 Times
Del Rio’s Cinco de Mayo celebration started Sunday with the crowing of Miss Cinco De Mayo and continues throughout the week. The Brown Plaza Association is holding the annual festival in historical downtown Del Rio Wednesday through Friday.
The Cinco de Mayo events kicked off on Sunday with the Cinco de Mayo pageant. The Brown Plaza Association honored Natalia Sandoval as Miss Cinco de Mayo and Esmeralda Esparza Meza as the honorary Señora Cinco de Mayo for 2023. They also announced Roy Musquiz Sr. as the General Grand Marshall and Cindy Salas as the Parade Marshal.
The Cinco de Mayo celebration continued on Wednesday with a night parade on Garza Street at 8 p.m.
On the same day of the Cinco de Mayo pageant, the Brown Plaza Association held an art contest for elementary students from across the city. The drawings will be auctioned off to the highest bidder at the festival.
Normally held at the historic Brown Plaza in the San Felipe area, this year’s festival is being held on South Main Street in downtown Del Rio. Dolores Martinez, Brown Plaza Association treasurer, said the change in location was due to construction being done at the plaza. She said there was more planning this year to accommodate all the vendors.
“Due to the changes, we had a lot of help from the City of Del Rio in lots of ways, and we want to thank them for their support,” Martinez said.
Food vendors and booths will be set up on Main Street at 6 p.m. on Thursday and Friday. Martinez said it was the first time their organization held the Cinco de Mayo festival on South Main Street.
Thursday’s events begin with an opening ceremony at 6:30 p.m. and the national anthem will be sung by the elementary school district choir in English and Spanish. The evening continues with Bailes de Ballet Folklorico performances at 7:30 p.m. and music performed by Destiny Navaira at 9:30 p.m.
The Cinco de Mayo festival ends on Friday with music by Lucky Joe, Solido and Mariachi de Media Noche.
