Batesville celebrates Hispanic Heritage Month with festival

BATESVILLE, Ark. (KAIT) - The City of Batesville celebrated Hispanic Heritage Month by hosting AmigoFest on Saturday, Sept. 22.

Hispanics have called Batesville home for decades, the city celebrated Hispanic Heritage Month for the first time.

AmigoFest brought a blend of cultures to one spot. Megan Renihan is one of the board members for AmigoFest. She helped coordinate the event.

Renihan said the Hispanic community was invaluable to Batesville.

“They are instrumental to and for our industry businesses. They help to keep the culture within our community,” she said.

People enjoyed food, music, and even got to experience a couple of Hispanic traditions like Quinceañeras and taking turns hitting a piñata.

Lidia Arjona has lived in Batesville for nearly 20 years. For her having a Hispanic Heritage festival close to home, gave her and her children a little taste of her home back in Tamaulipas, Mexico.

“Batesville is their future, but it’s important to keep that Mexican heritage alive,” she said.

Arjona said the festival can teach a lot to those who aren’t Hispanic.

“They can learn about each one of the different nationalities, there are so many nationalities here and it’s wonderful to learn about each other and communicate,” she said.

Arjona hopes the festival continues to grow, to show others what Batesville has to offer.

“The town is growing with many Hispanics, from Central America [and] from many countries, and that’s the beauty,” said Arjona.

Organizers said over 2,000 attended the festival and they plan to bring it back next year.

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