The Latina Book Club
wishes everyone a Happy New Year and a Happy Three Kings Day!
January 6, 2016, was the
39th annual Three Kings Day Parade sponsored by El Museo del Barrio. This is my fourth year attending and each
year the parade is spectacular, as was the company. Members of Las Comadres Para Las Americas, of
which I am one, gather to attend the parade and then finish with a fabulous
lunch at La Fonda restaurant.
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| Julia, Tess, Dora, Maria, Ingrid, Carmen, Clara, Gladys, Nikki & Julie |
Wednesday was a magical
day full of shiny crowns, music, dancing, colorful puppets and live camels! The
day was sunny and bright so it was easy to see the smiles and joy on the faces
of the kids and adults lined up on 106 Street and Third Avenue; all eager to
catch a glimpse of the Baby Jesus, his parents Mary and Joseph and the Three
Kings.
Aside from the parade,
El Museo del Barrio also honored Latinos who have made a contribution to the
community. This year’s honorees included actor J.W. Cortes;
actor and writer Sonia Manzano; musician and educator Arturo O’Farrill; and King Emeritus Jesus "Papoleto" Melendez.
Madrinas included poet
Nene Ali; family and community coordinator Elsie Encarnacion; poet Sandra Maria
Esteves; artist Elena Martinez; and author and activist and Comadre Sofia
Quintero.
Also, in attendance was New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, who spoke passionately about the Puerto Rican debt crisis and how we are all Americans, whatever island we inhabit -- Manhattan, Puerto Rico or the U.S.A.
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| NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio |
For the full list of
honorees and their bios, visit El Museo del Barrio’s website by clicking here.
Join The Latina Book
Club on Monday, January 11, for our first Book of the Month of the new year. We are looking forward to an amazing year full of book reviews,
excerpts, Top 10 Lists, author interviews, giveaways, etc., so stay tuned.
Happy 2016 and Happy
Reading!
Maria Ferrer
The Latina Book Club
Founder
Twitter: @latinabookclub
PHOTO ALBUM
HAPPY NEW YEAR!