Colorado River Valley Team, in collaboration with the Garfield County Public Library District, organized the Valley’s first Children’s Day event on April 27. Esmeralda Zúñiga, founder of Colorado River Valley Team, a nonprofit organization, shared that the idea for the event arose from a desire to share Latino traditions. Zúñiga commented, “We want to share our culture with Latino youth and children who have not had the opportunity to experience these customs.”
Along with partners Focused Kids, Colorado Mountain College, Great Expectations, Pueblo Azul and Alpine Bank, a warm welcome was extended to 315 participants, including adults and children, who attended this grand event.
The afternoon began in the children’s area of the Rifle library, where they were greeted with a story read in Spanish and English and various activities such as crafts and face painting. All were then invited to the second floor, where collaborators awaited them with gifts such as books, candies and bracelets.
A rainbow of balloons and a banner that read “Feliz Día del Niño” (“Happy Children’s Day”) adorned the background of the room as volunteers shared the history and origin of this celebration. The day continued with a crazy-hair contest and concluded with a pizza party for the young honored guests.
Children’s Day was initially established as Universal Children’s Day on Nov. 20, 1959, when the United Nations General Assembly declared it with the intent to highlight rights and well-being of children worldwide. Today, this celebration takes place on April 30 in several Latin American countries, such as Mexico, Peru, Argentina and Colombia, among others. This day is considered an opportunity to celebrate the innocence, joy and freedom of children, as well as to recognize and promote their rights.
In Mexico, for example, elementary schools celebrate Children’s Week, where children participate in crazy-hair days, receive goody bags and engage in activities like dressing up as what they want to be when they grow up.
With this event, the aim is to foster inclusion and cultural exchange by inviting the non-Spanish-speaking community to participate in the festivities. Zúñiga affirms, “We are not seeking to change their customs, but to share ours.”