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Hispanic Heritage Month kicks off in Pueblo

Pueblo kicks off Hispanic Heritage Month
Posted at 6:43 PM, Sep 21, 2020
and last updated 2021-09-07 12:12:02-04

PUEBLO — Hispanic Heritage Month is a 52-year tradition in the United States. It kicked off last week and News5 is celebrating by highlighting a hispanic business owner in Pueblo.

His name Robert Romero, and you may know him as Mr. Chile. He owns Romero's Cafe & Catering and has been serving up chile, spice, and hispanic culture to the community since 1976.

"We pride ourselves on this and this is what we worked for all these years," said Romero. "It's a great honor for all of us and especially for the hispanic community, because we all grew up making chile and people love it."

Romero also prides himself on sticking true to his culture, which is why hispanic heritage month hits close to home for him.

"Hispanic heritage month means a lot to me, my heritage, being raised with my grandmother and raised out in the fields," said Romero. "It's all about the chile. I remember going to the farm and picking the chile and bringing it home and roasting the chile."

Romero says he enjoys sharing his culture with the Pueblo community, especially because many people's ancestors are from Mexico, Spain or the Caribbean.

Hispanic Heritage Week was first observed in 1968 and designated as a time to celebrate hispanic culture by President Lyndon B. Johnson. In 1988, President Ronald Reagan expanded the celebration to become National Hispanic Heritage Month.

For Stephanie Prigmore, a customer at Romero's, hispanic heritage month is also about supporting hispanic-owned businesses in town.

"Not a lot of people get to own their own business," said Prigmore. "So it's pretty awesome to get to come and support our local hispanic heritage."

Hispanic Heritage Month kicked off on September 15, because it marks the anniversary of independence for Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua. Mexico celebrates its independence on Sept. 16, while Chile celebrated on Sept. 18.

Hispanic Heritage Month lasts until October 15.