SAN ANGELO, Texas — Sept. 15 marked the start of Hispanic Heritage Month in the United States, where countries including Mexico, Honduras, Nicaragua, Belize, Guatemala and more are honored and celebrated.
On Sept. 21, the San Angelo Hispanic Heritage Museum and Culture Center hosted its first ever awards banquet honoring outstanding community members.
The ceremony was held at the McNease Convention Center, 501 Rio Concho Dr. and among the recipients were Dorothy Borden, Gustavo Manual "Manny" Campos, Tony Villareal, Elma Jaques and Ernest Perez.
"It's really neat because we've never had anything like this before," Borden said. "It's pretty monumental."
The evening itself began as attendees walked through the convention center to the sounds of Los Compadres, a San Angelo based trio specializing in rancheras, papangos, cumbias and other styles of Mexican music.
The group is made up of three musicians and they often perform at anniversaries, quinceñeras and other celebratory events.
The newest member, Jaime, was honored to play cultural music for such a large crowd.
"It feels great, it feels awesome especially for me because this is my first time," he said. "They've [the other members] done these kinds of events before but I'm new to it."
The music can also be described as norteño, often inclusive of instruments like the accordion and bass.
"It's real popular down south and in these parts of Texas," Jaime said. "It's very cultural to Mexico and music, it's very iconic, very beautiful, very romantic."
The evening continued with introductions, a dance performance and a dinner.
Then, the awards were presented as recipients stepped onto the stage.
Borden received the Eva Camunez Tucker Service Award, Campos was given the Captain Albert Tijerina Jr. Trailblazer Award while Villareal, Jaques, and Perez were presented with the Carolina Angelo de la Garza Dweitt Legend Award.
Museum president Del Velasquez spoke to the crowd, noting how the idea for a physical building began approximately three years ago.
Since then, the group has been fundraising to make this vision a reality in San Angelo.
"We adopted a mission statement that reads: our mission is to educate and provide public awareness for the Hispanic community's impact throughout the past, the present and the future," Velasquez said.
All of the funds will go towards the creation of a new museum.
Go to sanangelohispanicheritage to learn more.