The fourth annual Southern Colorado Juneteenth Festival was hustling and bustling as crowds flocked to the various venues at America the Beautiful Park.

Tents and food trucks encircled the park. Laughter could be heard from the children playing in the bouncy houses and in the Julie Penrose Fountain. Music played on a big stage by the park entrance. Chatter and smiles were everywhere.

Jennifer Smith, a member of OneBodyEnt, the festival organizers, said the free-price-tagged festival, which commemorates the end of slavery in the U.S., is about making sure everyone feels free and has a good time, which is everything to her.

Her dedication to that sentiment was clear as she bounced from the organizer’s tent to the parking lot and back to the tent to deal with various tasks, all while being interviewed.

Food is critical at the festival not just for the practical reason of making sure people are fed, but it also is part of the celebration and sharing of cultures.

“Food and music. When you talk about doing a festival, without the food and music, it doesn’t make any sense,” Smith said.

Previous years saw seven to 10 food trucks at the festival, and the number has expanded to 18 this year.

The expansion has come with a more diverse selection of food, including Mexican, Jamaican, Filipino, barbecue and more.

To Smith, diversity not only keeps the festival interesting but is also important.

“If we just got barbecue, we’re not catering to the community. You’re saying everybody’s free, everybody’s welcome, but you ain’t got everybody’s food? We can't have that,” she said.

Source: The Gazette