GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — The Grand Rapids Public Library has announced multiple events celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month. The events will run from September 15-November 3.
One of the events will be a community conversation with Elisa Pérez-Arellano on Wednesday, September 21. The conversation will be held in Spanish over Zoom from 6 p.m.-7:30 p.m. Pérez-Arellano is a clinical social worker. She is also the owner of Inclusive Empowerment Services, which offers mental health therapy, professional coaching, consulting, and training. During the event, Pérez-Arellano will talk about the impact of Latinx parental involvement and the effects of emotional absence on children and the family unit. A recording will later be available on the Grand Rapids Public Library’s YouTube channel with English subtitles.
Grand Rapids Public Library’s Hispanic Heritage Month celebration will also include live music performances. The Latin rock collective Cabildo will perform on Thursday, September 29 from 6 p.m.-7 p.m. at the Main Library. The group’s music is described as a blend of cumbia, ska, folk, and other genres of music from Latin and South America. Gabriel Estrada III will perform at the Main Library on Thursday, October 6 from 6 p.m.-7 p.m. Estrada started the first mariachi ensemble at Grand Rapids Community College. He also received a Legacy Award for Regional Mexican Music at the Grand Rapids Latin Music Awards for his representation and outstanding leadership in ranchera/mariachi music in West Michigan.
Hispanic Heritage Game Day will be held on Friday, September 30. It will be held at the Main Library (111 Library St NE) from 4 p.m.-6 p.m. It will feature loteria, a game similar to bingo, with trivia about Hispanic history and culture. The games will be played in both English and Spanish.
There will also be bilingual book readings called Fiesta Storytimes. One Fiesta Storytime will be held on Monday, October 3 from 5 p.m.-6:30 p.m. at the Seymour Branch (2350 Eastern SE). The other will be held on Thursday, October 20 from 5 p.m.-6:30 p.m. at the West Side Branch (713 Bridge St NW). The storytimes will feature Latino music, as well as snacks and free children’s books while supplies last.
From October 21-November 3, there will be altars available to view, which were created by artist Reyna Garcia. They will be displayed at the Madison Square Branch (1201 Madison SE), the Main Library, and the Grandville Avenue Arts & Humanities’ Cook Library Center (1000 Grandville Ave SW). The altars show the importance of the Día de los Meurtos celebration within some Hispanic cultures.
Grand Rapids Public Library’s Hispanic Heritage Month will culminate with Grand Rapids’ Día de Los Muertos Festival on Sunday, October 30 from 3 p.m.-8 p.m. at Roosevelt Park (1340 Godfrey Ave SW, Grand Rapids 49503). There will be a community-created Día de los Muertos display, as well as elaborate altars honoring those who have passed away. There will also be music, Latino food, workshops, and crafts.
On October 30, there will also be a Day of the Dead procession from 2 p.m.-3 p.m. The procession will go from the Hispanic Center of West Michigan to Roosevelt Park.
Throughout the celebration, free take-home craft kits will be available at any Grand Rapids Public Library location and at the Grandville Avenue Arts & Humanities’ Cook Library Center from September 15-November 3. They will feature inserts on three different Latinx figures: Louis Agassiz Fuertes, Ynés Mexia, and Susana Torre. There will also be altar kits available at all Grand Rapids Public Library locations and the Grandville Avenue Arts & Humanities’ Cook Library Center from October 3-30. They will include a Día de los Muertos altar fact sheet, tea light candles, incense sticks, fake marigolds, paper sugar skulls, fake fruit pieces, cut paper banners, tissue paper craft, and picture frames.
The Grand Rapids Public Library’s Hispanic Heritage Month celebration will run from September 15-November 3. More information on the celebration can be found on the library’s website.
