Music filled the air and dancers filled Niagara Street for the 16^thannual Puerto Rican Hispanic Day Parade.

If there were ever a year to support the Annual Puerto Rican & Hispanic Day Parade of WNY, 2018 would be the year. President of the committee, Crystal J. Rodriguez, said in an interview with Panorama News. “There could be no better time to come together as a community than now, to combat the ethnic struggles that are underway throughout the US’. That’s why this year’s theme is Esperanza – “Everything starts with HOPE.”

The theme of this year’s festival was “Esperanza,” which means hope. The theme has special meaning in the wake of Hurricane Maria, which devastated Puerto Rico. Buffalo’s Puerto Rican and Hispanic community led a multi-city-wide effort to raise money to assist hurricane victims rebuild their lives, as well as organizing donations of household goods to help Puerto Rican residents build new lives in the City of Buffalo and around Western New York

The three-day event according to official estimates drew over 30,000 people from August 18, 19 and 20^th making it one of the largest heritage events in Buffalo and Western New York.

Each year, in mid-August, the Puerto Rican/Hispanic community comes together to celebrate the colorful culture that surrounds its heritage. The highlight of the festival is a parade that travels down Niagara Street (Avenida San Juan). There’s also a fantastic weekend-long festival/concert series that took place at LaSalle Park primarily on Saturday, August 19 and Sunday, August 20, featuring: Domingo Quinones , Funk Urban Salsa , Luisito Rosario and some of the hottest Puerto Rican/Hispanic music acts in the industry.

The three-day affair pays respects to a beautiful people, the crystal blue waters of Puerto Rico, ethnic food, ethnic pride, and dance.

The Grand Marshal of the 2018 parade was Lucy Candelario, Executive Director of The Belle Center

The Junior Grand Marshals were: Dialo Rivera Stevens and Gabriel Morrisroe

Dialo Rivera Stevens

Gabriel Morrisroe