Going out Latino style

The Hispanic Heritage Month [HHM] committee spiced up the night with its annual Gala at the Doral Country Club on Friday in commemoration of the last day of HHM.

“Tonight is the culmination of this month-long celebration we had of diversity, of heritage, and of contributions,” said Alex Ortiz, senior and chair of the HHM committee.

Staying true to Latin time, the party scheduled for 7 p.m. started at 9 p.m., and a dinner of Caesar salad, chicken basted in mushrooms, rice pilaf and a rich chocolate mousse was served.

“I’m here with SABOR, the Puerto Rican student association, and we all come out every year and have a good time,” Laura Lugo, first-year grad student, said. “The food is always good, and they never start on time, but that’s Hispanic time. I mean, if you get here at [the time it’s supposed to start], you’re not Hispanic.”

Once the food was served, the members of the HHM committee were publicly recognized and given ovations on their magnificent job in putting the events together.

“I’ve gone to a couple HHM events this year-my friends are really involved in it. I think they did a great job of getting it all together,” Curren Mulkeen, sophomore, said. “The presentations and the speeches that they gave was a good ending to Hispanic Heritage Month.”

For the rest of the night, the DJ played the flavorful sounds of Latin salsa, merengue and hip-hop.

“I had a lot of fun. The music was great, the dancing was great, and it was a really good party,” Jenny Rodriguez, senior, said. “I think it was a nice way to culminate it all, and a nice ending where [Hispanics] got to celebrate everything they’ve done.”

“I thought this was a good way of being a part of [HHM], and seeing how all the people come together and see this great thing for the university,” Rafael Birriel, second-year law student, said. “I’m having a really good time and I think it turned out really well. The place was nice, the music was good, and people had a good time – everyone was dancing. I think it was a true success.”

The month of HHM events was successful in its goals of spreading awareness of Hispanic culture.

“I think the Gala turned out really great. The food was awesome, and there were a lot of people on the dance floor having a good time,” said Andrea Mendez, sophomore and committee member in charge of the gala. “More people should be aware of our culture and learn about it, and Hispanic Heritage Month is just a great way to do that.”

Christine Dominguez can be contacted at c.dominguez3@umiami.edu.