9th annual Hispanic Heritage Luncheon to take place Oct. 12

AMARILLO, Texas (KFDA) - The ninth annual Hispanic Heritage Luncheon and Awards is set to take place Oct. 12.

The event will take place in the Heritage Room of the Amarillo Civic Center. Lunch lines will open at 11:30 a.m. and the program will start at noon.

Organizers say Los Barrios de Amarillo will partner with the Barrio Neighborhood Committee and the Amarillo Hispanic Chamber of Commerce to honor the Hispanic culture and local heroes.

The event will feature a panel discussion providing stories of the Barrio to those in attendance.

Organizers say this year’s speaker is Rodrigo “Rigo” Zapata. Zapata and his family were born in Aguascalientes, Mexico and moved to the U.S. when he was eight years old in 1999.

Zapata celebrated his 10 year anniversary at Amarillo National Bank, where he first started as a part-time teller. He became a teller supervisor in 2014 before transitioning to a mortgage processor in 2017. After becoming a mortgage loan officer in 2020, he was promoted to a business loan officer in 2022. He became assistant vice president of Business Loans that same year.

Zapata will speak about Latinos and the drive, prosperity and progress they have made in the city and country.

Awards will be presented to local leaders and volunteers.

Sponsorship and ticket purchases are due by Oct. 2. Tickets can be purchased on the Los Barrios de Amarillo website.

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