Argentina. Uruguay. Bolivia. Honduras. The galore of colorful Latin American country displays went on and on as the smell of homemade cooking and sound of excited chatter filled the air. One of the most anticipated annual events hosted by the WCHS Spanish Honor Society (Sociedad Honoraria Hispánica) was Noche Latina 2023 on Oct. 18, 2023. The event brought students, parents, teachers and community members together to enjoy a night of appreciating and learning about Latin American countries and culture.
“The purpose of Noche Latina is to celebrate and honor Hispanic Heritage Month and learn more about countries, cultures and traditions in Latin America,” WCHS senior Marleigh Kass said. “My favorite part of planning Noche Latina was collaborating with my fellow members of the SNHS and getting to learn about all the cool activities and information they were able to bring to Noche Latina.”
Meticulous meetings of planning and organizing for Noche Latina from the Spanish Honor Society took place over the course of a month prior to the event. Recruiting student volunteers to cook, design posters and create activities, as well as obtaining a dance group, Titanes Salseros, all went into making the night a success.
“As the president of the Spanish Honor Society, my role in Noche Latina planning was to oversee our advertising, aid Sra. Volante in logistics and encourage both society and community members to attend,” SHS officer and WCHS senior Tova Niles said. “The Titanes Salseros, an incredibly talented group of students and Latin dancers [from] Einstein High, were a new addition this year and brought the night’s festivities to the next level! Overall, the turnout was great and definitely exceeded our expectations!”
While Noche Latina is a highly anticipated event coordinated by the Spanish Honor Society, the society also prioritizes boosting awareness of National Hispanic Heritage Month. From daily Hispanic history facts read on the announcements each morning and hanging posters in the hallways, to organizing a spirit week for the week prior to Noche Latina, the SHS ensured that National Hispanic Heritage Month was well celebrated.
“Hispanic Heritage month is important for WCHS students to recognize and participate in because we have a diverse school community and it is important that we take the time to educate ourselves about the cultures of those around us,” Kass said. “[Focusing] especially on their culture and history [is important] in order to create the most inclusive WCHS environment.”
Spirit week themes ranged from “Jersey Day” prompting students to wear a jersey from their favorite Hispanic team or player, to “Como la Flor” encouraging students to wear clothing with flowers.
“Our spirit week themes were based on different aspects of Hispanic culture. My favorite day was flag day because it gave students the opportunity to explain their heritage and traditions and compare them to the traditions of other Latin American countries,” Niles said. “The conversations that began from our spirit week allowed members and non-members alike to understand more about Hispanic culture, and brought excitement and attendees for Noche Latina.”
Overall, it is safe to say that Noche Latina 2023 was a success due to the dedicated planning and hard work from the WCHS Spanish Honor Society. The night represented a time to come together as a school community and celebrate the Latin American history and culture that makes up our world.
“My favorite part of planning Noche Latina was hearing about all the incredible foods members and their families prepared,” Niles said. “It made me so happy to know that participants were enlisting generations and/or generational recipes in the food they brought, and it was all incredible!”
