The 11th Annual Ecuadorian Festival was a success
Thousands of guests packed Columbus Park Sunday as the Ecuadorian-American Civic Association of Mercer County (ACECOM) celebrated its 11th Annual Ecuadorian Festival.
Organization President Carlos Avila voiced pleasure as approximately 3,000 people celebrated Ecuadorian culture. A parade, food, music and beauty pageant were part of the day long festivities.
“By far, this is the best festival and parade we’ve had since we started this celebration. We had a great turnout and everything was peaceful. We worked very hard on this event. Columbus Park is a great place to celebrate,” Avila said. “We reached out to people in many area towns in Burlington County and even into Pennsylvania. We had many people here from Hightstown which has a huge Ecuadorian community.”
Avila noted that the Pew Hispanic Center recognizes Ecuadorian-Americans as the third largest group of immigrants in Mercer County from South America.
The Festival welcomed Hamilton Councilwoman Ileana Schirmer as a special guest. Trenton Councilman Duncan Harrison and Recreation Department Director Fiah Gussin attended.
“It’s great when we can get together and celebrate Ecuadorian and Latino culture. We have more and more people organizing small groups that contribute so much toward improving our communities,” Avila said.
Avila noted the event occurred without incident and that his group left Columbus Park and area streets clean.
“We had a super day and expect that our celebration gets better each year,” Avila said.