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Cinco de Mayo: This fiesta is a labor of love Midvale gathering on Saturday, to be enjoyed by thousands

By Pam Baumeister
Close-Up Correspondent
Salt Lake Tribune

MIDVALE-- As a daughter of the founder of the Cinco de Mayo celebration in Midvale, Dolores Lopez, 36, has been a integral part of putting on one of Salt Lake City's biggest parties for most of her life.
    Cinco de Mayo is the celebration the 1862 Battle of Puebla, in which the Mexican Army defeated French invaders. As one of the organizers of the Cinco de Mayo celebration in Midvale, Lopez says most people think it's the Mexican Independence Day. But, that doesn't happen until September 15.
    "I guess it's just easier to say 'Cinco de Mayo' than 'diez y seis de Septiembre'," says Lopez. People come to the Midvale City Park each May 5 to celebrate Mexican heritage and culture, hear lively music, eat traditional Mexican foods and socialize.
    Midvale's Cinco de Mayo celebration, held the closest Saturday to the actual date, is Saturday, May 7, from noon until 9:30 p.m. at the Midvale City Park, 7500 S. 400 West. This is the 19th year of the celebration. All the fun began as a family party at the restaurant of Mexican-born Fausto Rivas, who is Lopez' father.
    Rivas, now 72, has had several professions, including being the owner of El Sombrero in old Midvale. El Sombrero is no longer open to the public. It is now used exclusively for family parties.
    "The party kept getting more popular and crowded, so, with the help city officials, it moved to Main Street," says Lopez. The gathering eventually outgrew that space too, so the city helped move the celebration to the Midvale City Park. Now, the free celebration has an array of food vendors, musical acts, performances and a Miss Cinco de Mayo pageant held the day before at Midvale Elementary School. The crowds keep coming back every year.
    "We have anywhere from 5,000 to 8,000 people," says Lopez, the youngest daughter of six Rivas children.
    Even bad weather doesn't keep people from coming out in droves to experience delicious aromas and flavors of the Rivas family tradition. People are so passionate about the big bash that they disappear under the tents when it rains and reappear when it clears. The organizing committee keeps the tradition of the event going.
    "It's chaos! It's so much work," says Lopez. The committee and their sub-committees are all volunteers.
    They start to work on organizing the event around the first of the year. By the middle of March, Lopez says she gets calls from 7 a.m. to midnight. This year, she asked Jeff Jewkes to help her out. He works for Randy Draper, the carnival vendor and a board member for the Midvale Cinco De Mayo celebration. Because the celebration grows every year, they are always looking for more people to help carry the burden.
    Lopez and her sister are the only two Rivas children who participate in the organization of the event, but they have the assistance of 20 other dedicated committee members. Papa Rivas is still very much involved in the event. According to Lopez, he is determined to keep the celebration free. Lopez says her father usually sings the first song, "The Star Spangled Banner," and that he croons several songs through out the long celebration.
    With so many bands, dancers and performers that want to be part of the celebration, the committee members have a tough job selecting who will participate. Each year they have several bands, but the Rivas family always performs. There will be a semi-professional Latin dance group, which Lopez's daughter belongs to, performing traditional dances and wearing elaborate hand-made costumes.
    This year's Cinco de Mayo fiesta will be large. A total of 53 booths full of food vendors to retailers have signed up to participate. There will also be a community tent with information about non-profit and community groups and an American history tent full of educational material. For the kids, a carnival tent with rides, slides, a rock climbing wall and other games is sure to be a popular attraction. The food vendors will draw the crowds out with their offerings. The most popular are the savory carne asada tacos, corn-on-the-cob elotes and mangos with chili powder and limejuice served on a stick. There's even a food vendor that has come for years, the Churro Brothers, serving up all-American burgers, fries and hotdogs alongside the traditional Mexican churros.
    "Every year, I think I'm done, I've had enough," Lopez says with a smile, of all the hectic planning for the Cinco de Mayo celebration, "but, every year, I'm here. More than anything, I do it for my father."
    It's a labor of love enjoyed by thousands.

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