The Hispanic Heritage Month parade and fiesta that were postponed by Hurricane Ike are now rescheduled for Oct. 18.

 

"We hope that the businesses and community organizations that had previously signed up for the parade and fiesta will call us to re-confirm that they will be there Oct. 18," said Robert Cortez, co-chair of the Victoria Alliance for Latino Education, or VALE, which is organizing events during the month. "We also hope even more people will be able to join us at the parade and fiesta now that weve extended the deadline."

 

Those interested in participating in the parade or having a booth at the fiesta are encouraged to call the University of Houston-Victoria Letting Education Achieve Dreams (LEAD) office at 361-570-4893. There is no cost to participate, but reservations must be made by 4 p.m. Oct. 15.

 

The parade will begin at 10 a.m. It will start at the corner of Commerce and Red River streets and will head east on Red River to North Ben Wilson Street and then north to UHV.

 

A traditional fiesta will be from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. both in front of the UHV University Center, 3007 N. Ben Wilson St., and in the Multipurpose Room inside the building. Representatives from UHV and The Victoria College will be there to talk to interested community members about higher education opportunities. The fiesta also will include traditional Mexican food, live music and dancers.

 

VALE is a collaborative effort involving UHV, VC, Victoria Chamber of Commerce, Cultural Council of Victoria, Victoria Art League, community volunteers and civic leaders to increase the educational attainment levels of Hispanics in Victoria and the surrounding region through cultural and educational activities.

 

Major sponsors for Hispanic Heritage Month are TDECU, H-E-B, Exelon Generation, Wal-Mart, IBC, Pooley Land and Realty Co., and Cal-Com Federal Credit Union. For more information, call the UHV LEAD office or go to www.hhvictoria.com.

 

Other events scheduled in October:

• Through Oct. 14 Art contest exhibit, 8 a.m.-4 p.m. Monday through Friday inside the UHV University Center.



• Oct. 3 Latin rock concert featuring Del Castillo, 8 p.m.-midnight, Power Avenue Warehouse, 402 E. Power Ave. Tickets: $15 from VALE members, Cal-Com Federal Credit Union, T-Town Music, Siesta Restaurant or online through UHVconnect, www.uhvconnect.org.



• Oct. 7 Retelling of Mexican-American history using songs, poetry and oral history by Jesus "Chuy" Negrete, 10 a.m.-noon, VC Johnson Symposium, 2200 Red River St.



• Oct. 8 Fourth Annual Hispanic Heritage Month Academic Conference, study abroad opportunities for students, 11:30 a.m.-1:15 p.m. (in conjunction with the Victoria Chamber of Commerce) and 2-7 p.m. Both sessions in UHV University Center Multipurpose Room.