ROBERT PIERCE
• Leader & Times
Christmas time is here, and that means time for lots of cheer.
Early December provides plenty of yuletide fun locally with this weekend’s Downtown Christmas Parade and Holiday Marketplace Expo in Liberal and Christmasing in Plains Sunday in that Meade County community.
The fun continues the following weekend with Bienestar Total’s Posada Navideña Dec. 15 in the Seward County Ag Building.
In Spanish, Posada Navideña means “the Christmas inn,” and coordinator Patricia Fierro said is the event is for people in not just the Liberal community, but those in the surrounding area as well.
“It is an event where we invite families to come in and enjoy a good time,” she said. “There will be food, music and entertainment for all.”
Booths at Posada Navideña will have activities.
“Some booths will be selling items, but they will all be provided a treat or game for the children to come in and participate,” Fierro said.
The event will run from 2 to 8 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 15, in the Ag Building, and some of the other fun people can have is provided by live music, games for adults to play and raffles, but no Christmas party is complete without Santa providing some gifts.
The 2023 Posada Navideña was the first edition of the event, and it was hosted by what was then Diversidad Latina. Fierro said that initial event went well.
“We had a great turnout,” she said. “We had about 17 vendor spaces. We’re hoping to multiply that this year by two. Everyone had a great time. The smiles on the children’s faces as they were unwrapping their gifts and being able to have a great time without the worry of having funds to pay for their food or to enjoy activities we had available to them.”
Fierro said Posada Navideña becoming an annual tradition in Liberal is something she is confident about for the future.
“We have a good crowd,” she said. “We have a good group of health promoters and volunteers in the community who have come together to help put this event on, and everyone is very happy and excited to be working on this project. We’re looking forward to making this tradition here in Liberal.”
Fierro said, though, she is still looking for vendors and sponsors for this year’s event.
“We are in the process of getting more people to participate,” she said. “To me, I would like it to be local businesses since they are the ones our audience we’re trying to attract visit. They’re their customers, so it’s just giving a little something back to our community. We’re hoping to continue having this help from everyone and it gets better every year.”
Fierro said those who come to Posada Navideña have much in the way of happiness to look forward to Dec. 15.
“They can look forward to a moment of joy, a sense of peace that their children will enjoy themselves, be able to engage in all of the activities, play and be worry free and be able to get a new gift,” she said.
With early December full of local holiday events, Fierro said Posada Navideña makes the transition to Christmas Day a little smoother.
“Things could get a little more chaotic as the days are getting closer,” she said. “A lot of times, people might be struggling financially and are trying to find a way to make ends meet. With our event being close to the day, I feel it would be an event that would lighten the load and be able to give a sense of peace. If they are going through these kinds of struggles, they can see this event as a form of a relief, a sense of not so much of a worry. What we’re trying to do is bring some Christmas spirit and a day of giving.”
Fierro said the 8 p.m. ending time for this year’s event was chosen to allow time for people who get off work later to also enjoy the fun Posada Navideña has to offer.
“We know there’s a lot of places that don’t get off work until later, so we want to be able to allow them to also have a little bit of time to enjoy with their families even if they get there a little bit later,” she said. “Usually, events are over by 6, so we’re giving them that little bit of extra time so they can come in and get to enjoy a little bit of time with their family.”
For more information about Posada Navideña, visit the Bienestar Total Facebook page, or call Fierro at 620-556-8941 or Paola Castillon at 620-621-1418.
Fierro is quite excited for this year’s event, particularly after the success of the initial Posada Navideña.
“It was very good to the community last year, and we’re hoping people continue to accept this event and continue to support us,” she said. “We invite everyone to come in and see how impactful it can be, and to be able to see these kids’ faces is so amazing. I’m very excited and hope to continue growing.”
