Jesus Ortiz welcomed the residents, their family members and friends to the 36th Annual celebration in Barnes Park on May 6th. He was the Master of Ceremony and greeted the audience in both Spanish and English.

Victoria Chavez displayed the famous Money Hat worth $100 and the other raffle prizes at the beginning of the party.

Children enjoyed having their favorite cartoon figure, action figure or more painted on their faces by Love By Ramos (626-632-8338) as part of the celebration.

The event features information booths, a clothing booth and the food and beverage booths.  The smell of delicious Mexican food filled the air and many guests relished the good food and beverages as they enjoyed the entertainment.

Silvia Villegas, Mayor Stephen Lam, Sergio Tovar Alvarado from the Mexican Consulate and City Clerk Vince Chang joined the party.

Director and choreographer Esperanza Flores was born in Mexico and has been dancing for over 40 years sharing traditional Mexican and Spanish dances with her community. She thanked the staff and said that this is their 7th year attending Monterey Park’s ceremony.

The Aztec dancers opened the celebration by dancing to the beat of the drum and blowing the conch shell.

The Flamingo dancers enjoyed the beat of their castanets as they performed for the audience.

These folk dancers celebrated the fiesta.

These little dancers really enjoyed being on stage and gave this dance their all.

These folk dancers celebrated Mother Nature.

The folk dancers used colorful napkins as part of their act.

These folk dances celebrated the colorful history of Columbia.

These folk dancers are dressed in shimmering and colorful outfits that reflect the influence of the Chinese culture in Mexico.

Mayor Stephen Lam, Mayor Pro Tem Peter Chan, Councilmember Teresa Real Sebastian, City Clerk Vince Chang, Commissioner Delario Robinson, Silvia Villegas and Sergio Tovar Alvarado posed for a picture to remember the celebration.

These folk dancers perform with ridding crops and spurs on their boots.

The dancers enjoyed dancing the Mexican Polka.

These dancers shared the Mexican culture with the audience.

These colorful dancers shared their dancing skills.

These dancers were serious about protecting their rights.

Esperanza Flores thanked the city and the committee for this wonderful celebration. Please share your culture with everyone. She asked God to bless America and all of us.

Mayor Stephen Lam, Mayor Pro Tem Peter Chan, Councilmember Teresa Real Sebastian, City Clerk Vince Chang and Sergio Tovar Alvarado were introduced to the audience.

Mayor Lam welcomed all to this special event. He celebrates the Mexican culture. He learned Spanish while attending East Los Angeles College. Monterey Park is a great place to live. He thanked the people for bring the Mexican culture to Monterey Park.

He spoke about our city being the 3rd best place to live in the United States and the 1st best place to live in California.

He announced that Costco would be opened in the end of May and Home Depot in June. Please shop in our Market Place.

He thanked all of the guests for their support.

Mayor Pro Tem Chan welcomed the guests to Monterey Park. We are a diverse city. Thank you for coming to this event. We also celebrate the Lunar New Year and the Cherry Blossom Festival. He thanked the committee, volunteers, staff and the audience. Enjoy the afternoon!

Councilmember Real Sebastian welcomed the guests in Spanish, a little Chinese and English. Monterey Park is a blend of so many cultures. She asked for a round of applause for everyone for sharing their cultures. Viva Monterey Park and Mexico!

City Clerk Chang welcomed everyone in Spanish and English. He congratulated the Cinco De Mayo committee for their 36th celebration. Today we remember the Battle of Puebla and the fight to save their rights and our rights. Please vote in our elections.

Sergio Tovar Alvarado from the Mexican Consulate addressed the guests in Spanish. He gave a lengthy history on the Battle of Puebla and what the battle meant to the Mexican people and their freedom.

Guillermo Quiroz, Weather Anchor for Channel 34, said he is participating in a joint venture with NASA to educate the young people on space science. He also joined the party. Enjoy the celebration!

Lupita Infante sang several Spanish songs. She dedicated one to her Granddad. She is happy to be here in Monterey Park to celebrate Cinco De Mayo.  She said that she just graduated from UCLA and tried out for the Mexican version of “The Voice”. She had a good time but did not win the contest.

One young man enjoyed the music as he danced to the beat.

Roger Del Norte sang several songs in Spanish to the delight of the crowd. He said that he is a Japanese-Mexican.

Roger Del Norte and Lupita Infante sang several songs together.

Victoria, Gloria and friend posed in a Cinco De Mayo frame.

Carol Sullivan, Shirley Hwong, Jessica Mei and O C Lee jointed the celebration.

Grupo Ornelas played wonderful music as several guests joined in to dance to the beat.

Mariachi Relampago, a family group, entertained the audience at the end of the party.

Several lucky people won raffle prizes during the afternoon.

Mr. Ortiz thanked the committee members, student volunteers from Mark Keppel, the donors, the city staff and the public for this celebration. He did mention that the committee could always use more volunteers.  See you next year!