October 15, 2024
By: Bill Conger
A pinata, tamales wrapped in banana leaves, and Southern fried chicken were part of the delicious bounty for the celebration of National Hispanic Heritage month. Smithville First Baptist Church English Language Learners, teachers, and their families gathered together on September 28 for the second special soiree.
“National Hispanic Heritage month is a celebration of the history, cultures, food, art and contributions of American citizens whose ancestors came from Hispanic countries,” explained FBC member Perla Rico, who has played an integral part in the church’s ELL ministry.
“The Celebration allows us to learn more about their culture, and we have a fun time with our students,” ELL Coordinator Kay Quintero said. “As people from various cultures get to know each other, respect and love grows.”
“I saw joy and gratitude from the Hispanic community that participated for the support received and for the interest and love they have for us,” Rico added. “No matter the cultures or the language, there was a fellowship full of harmony.”
“We had tables set up all around the perimeter of the room, and then, the students set up a display area for their home countries,” ELL Teacher Andrea Sams said. “They brought flags, table decor, wore traditional clothing, and cooked foods that were home region specialties and favorites.”
“The food from both countries are similar,” Perla said. “Only the flavors, the seasonings and methods of preparation vary. Mexico is the only Spanish-speaking country where most of the food is spicy. The other Hispanic countries don’t eat spicy. Two sayings of mine are that “A taco without salsa is not a good taco” and “The spicier the food, the better.”
This year the folks from America decided to step up their game for the occasion.
“Last year was the first time we had done the event, and the English instructors were extremely impressed by the effort put in by the students in their decorations, native clothing and food items they prepared,” Sams said. “We even had amazing things like tamales wrapped in banana leaves!
So this year, the instructors decided we needed to do a better job of representing good American Southern cooking and decoration. We pulled out our best patriotic table scape items, including a hand carved wooden Uncle Sam figurine, a stars-and-stripes table runner bought at Betsy Ross’s house in Philadelphia, and a light up “America, Land That I Love” sign, among other things. We also had a great spread of fried chicken, and a wide variety of sides and desserts. We felt much better about our representation this year!”
About 60 people joined in the fun including people from Mexico, Venezuela, Honduras, Panama, and the United States.
“[The celebration] helps break down the communication barriers that may exist due to language, but despite that, we all laugh in the same language, and this event is always full of laughter!” Rico said.
“The goal of the event is to connect with and show appreciation for all the students and the various countries they come from,” Sams explained. “In addition to teaching them English, we really work to tell the students about Jesus and show them God’s love. One of the best ways to build friendship and trust with them is to show interest in and respect for their cultures. This event really helps accomplish this goal, plus we all get the bonus of eating some amazing food!”
Smithville FBC offers ELL classes on Wednesday nights at 6 o’clock, and this year two members travel to Pirtle’s Nursery to teach English to the Hispanic employees after work.
“We had noticed a need for the English classes,” ELL Coordinator Quintero explained. “After several of us prayed a few months, we decided God was leading us to start this. We arranged training through our Tennessee Baptist Mission Board for the first of 2023 and actually started the first class during May 2023.”