The Chicago Fire is proud to present the seventh annual Budweiser Hispanic Heritage Day on Sunday, Sept. 23, during the Fire's match against D.C. United at TOYOTA PARK (2:00 p.m. CT, My50, TeleFutura). As part of the celebration, the Fire and Budweiser will recognize 11 individuals who have made significant contributions to Chicago's Hispanic community. In addition, the Chicago Fire and Anheuser Busch will donate $1,000 to St. Augustine College to be used for scholarships.
Budweiser Hispanic Heritage Day kicks off at 12:30 p.m. CT with a special pre-game FireFest featuring musical acts representing various Latin American cultures. The pre-game program will include live performances by Back of the Yards Ballet Folklórico, Mariachi Durango, and Banda R7, with dance performances from Alexis Tropical and Academia de Baile Quebradores.
This year's honorees have made significant contributions to Chicago's Hispanic community in the areas of education, sports and entertainment, music and arts, science and technology, and social work. The honorees include: Gustavo Alatta (Professor at DeVry University), Jorge Emilio Corona (Music and Culture), David Diaz (Professional Boxer), Juan Carlos Fanjul (WGN News), Emisael Favela (Decorated Marathon Runner), Martha "Marty" Gutierrez (Executive Director of Rauner Family YMCA), Teresa Ivette Luna (Arts and Culture), Angel Rivera (Humanitarian), Ed Velasquez (President of Velasquez Automatic Music, Inc.), Gil Villaseñor, (Owner/Operator of V & V Supremo), Phil Villaseñor (Owner/Operator of V & V Supremo).
"We're extremely excited to present Budweiser Hispanic Heritage Day," said Chicago Fire President/CEO John Guppy. "Hispanic fans are among the most loyal and passionate, and we look forward to honoring this community and 11 of its great leaders."
