Hundreds gather for Día de los Reyes celebration

LEAVENWORTH – The second annual Día de los Reyes celebration drew in hundreds of attendees for a day filled with food, music, community, and cultural traditions.

Last year, the Wenatchee River Institute (WRI), with help from community partners, hosted its inaugural Día de los Reyes celebration with about 150 attendees. The idea for the event was created when a group of Leavenworth Latinas, which included Norma Gallegos, Norma Ramirez, Carla Sarabia, and Brisa Peacock, reached out to WRI’s Executive Director Canuche Terranella about a need for a community event that would welcome the region’s Latino community to Leavenworth. 

This year, the organizers leaned into the community event, expanding its offerings and locations. The Leavenworth Chamber of Commerce donated the use of the Festhalle, LG Driving School and Danzas Multiculturales assisted with performances, and the Rotary Club of Leavenworth provided volunteers.

Camp Camrec and Ingalls Creek Enrichment Center provided meal support, which consisted of pozole, a traditional Mexican stew, rosca de reyes, a sweet bread, and ponche, or punch.

“It's really rewarding to see so many people, both locals and folks from down valley, and folks that we know and folks that we don't know, all here enjoying the event together,” said Terranella.

The event drew in an estimated 170 people for the afternoon activities, such as snow play and face painting at the WRI campus. The event carried over to the Festhalle for food, dance performances, gift giving, and presentations. The centralized location drew an even larger crowd, with over 600 meals served.

“I saw so many faces I recognized from Wenatchee, from everywhere. It really made me happy…That's made me feel like I still have my people, you know, there’s still a lot of people that follow that tradition we got from Mexico,” said Carlos Sarabia of Sarabia Landscaping.

Sarabia’s Landscaping donated 200 gifts and 500 bags of candy for children as part of the holiday’s gift giving tradition.

“It's a pleasure for us, for my family, to provide something to the kids around the town…We like to see the kids' faces when they get their gifts – big smiles, they love it,” said Sarabia. 

The evening celebration was followed by a procession from the Festhalle to Kiosco, or Front Street Gazebo, led by los tres reyes, or three kings. The evening closed with a performance by nine-year-old ranchera singer Kataleya Garcia with mariachi.

In addition to in-kind donations and volunteers, the event was also made possible by grants from the Williams International Fund, Woods Family Music and Arts grants, and the City of Leavenworth Fund.

Planning for next year’s event will be led by the aforementioned group of women along with a small group of other local representatives. Those interested in getting involved can reach out to programs@wenatcheeriverinstitute.org.

Taylor Caldwell: 509-433-7276 or taylor@ward.media