Posted on Dec 14, 2014 by Jeremy Arias A steady roar of hundreds of voices echoed Saturday evening throughout the Hillcrest Elementary School auditorium at the second Centro Hispano Christmas party. Red and green decorations decked the walls, while throngs of laughing, screaming children ran in wide circles, many of them trailing balloons. A few children, and surprisingly, about as many parents, wore reindeer antler headpieces, while Santa and Mrs. Claus sat side by side on the stage above the main floor, waving happily to all present. All in all, it is a very different Christmas celebration than what Maria Teresa Shuck, Centro Hispano’s executive director, was used to growing up in Nicaragua. “First of all, it was a lot warmer,” Shuck said with a laugh, gesturing to the heavy red and white fur-lined coats and winter hats worn by the Clauses onstage. “And it was much more of a religious celebration, so instead of a Christmas tree, we had a manger, and of course, all of our presents came from el Niño Dios.” And while Santa Claus hasn’t completely edged out el Niño Dios — baby Jesus — in many Latin American countries where midnight Christmas Mass is still said in Latin and Roman Catholicism reigns supreme, such traditions are a thing of the past for the more Americanized youth at the nonprofit organization’s party, Shuck admitted. “A lot of these kids were born here, so they’re pretty Americanized; they expect Santa Claus and presents, and we want to give that to them,” she said, smiling as another group of excited children rumbled past on their way to see Santa. “Some of the families here wouldn’t be able to give their kids this kind of Christmas otherwise.” Last year, about 500 people showed up to the nonprofit’s holiday party, where partner groups like the Frederick County Commission for Women helped to collect donated gifts to hand out to children. This year, Centro Hispano brought in close to 600 gifts, and the auditorium was even more packed, Shuck said. For kids like Meiber Ariztian Hernandez Arias, 3, who waved around a toy power tool excitedly after his visit with Santa on the main stage, the simple joy of the gift was the most important thing in the world. But to some parents at the party, like Arturo Granados, who immigrated to Frederick County with his family from Honduras several years ago, the small presents symbolize a much greater gift. “When I was younger, when I was a child, we couldn’t celebrate Christmas with presents because we didn’t have any money,” he said in his native Spanish before gesturing to his two young daughters sitting at the table in front of him. “But for them, for my daughters, now we can.” Granados also expressed his relief at even being able to celebrate the holiday without the burden of worry he carried with him everywhere in his home country, where violent clashes between drug dealers, corrupt police and other criminals can easily turn even the happiest of holidays into tragedy. Despite the good cheer, Granados often finds himself thinking of his sister who still lives in Honduras and cannot visit because she does not have a visa. “I worry because it is dangerous for her. You never know what is going to happen there,” he said of his home country. “It is safer here in the United States because there is less violence, and there are more police here to protect us.” Granados’ attitude toward police is one that many local police, including Frederick Officer First Class Richard Molina, wish were more prevalent in the ever-growing Spanish-speaking community. Molina, originally from Puerto Rico, does his best to reach out to families who may distrust law enforcement for one reason or another. “The Latino community a lot of times are misunderstood, and a lot of times, they can’t make themselves understood,” he said as he worked the fringes of the crowd, greeting familiar faces and trying to learn new ones. “But it opens a window for me to communicate with them and to build understanding with them, because, well, I’m Latino.” And that attitude of understanding isn’t restricted to people like Molina who straddle the line between two cultures, said Miles Ward, director of the Human Relations Department of Frederick County. “Frederick County is a fine place, and it gets a bum rap sometimes for things that may have happened it the past,” Ward said as he watched a small group of latecomers to the party, County Executive Jan Gardner among them, swaying and moving happily to the beat of a small band onstage. “The people here are open-minded and caring,” Ward said. “And so are the Hispanic folks that live here.”
Posted on: Sun, 14 Dec 2014 19:04:38 +0000
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