PARADE, FESTIVAL, CARNIVAL and Live Music Return to the Heart of South Omaha

First National Bank and the South Omaha Business Association (SOBA) present the 2017 Cinco de Mayo Omaha festival from Friday, May 5 through Sunday, May 7. All public events take place along and around historic South 24th Street between L and P Streets in the heart of South Omaha.
Cinco de Mayo Omaha 2017 highlights include a Saturday morning parade, a full carnival with rides and midway games, a variety of food and refreshments including a beer garden, and various vendors and exhibitors. The family-friendly celebration also features activities just for children ages 2 to 10 (Mundo de Niños / Kids World) as well as activities and entertainment for pre-teens and teens (Area Juvenil / Youth Area).
Live music from area artists and internationally known Mexican-music acts will entertain festival goers throughout the weekend, with La Maquinaria Norteña performing on the main stage Friday night and Los Horoscopos de Durango performing Sunday afternoon.
The Miss Cinco de Mayo, Little Miss Cinco de Mayo (in its second year) and the new Junior Miss Cinco de Mayo coronations will highlight opening night at 6 p.m. on the Main Stage. The candidates must be of Hispanic descent and English/Spanish bilingual. Young women who enter the competition for Miss Cinco de Mayo are between 14 and 18 years old, Junior Miss candidates are ages 9-13 and Little Miss candidates are ages 5-8. They prepare for the final event through a variety of activities—including field trips and workshops on dance, resume building, self-esteem, and healthy lifestyles/nutrition and exercise—in the weeks leading up to the coronation. All candidates will make appearances Friday night, and the winners and runners-up receive cash and gift card prizes.
Other associated events include a career expo on Friday, a health fair on Sunday, Sunday morning worship services, and a boxing tournament benefiting the nonprofit Victory Boxing Club. A full schedule of events and information on purchasing concert tickets and ride passes is available on the event’s website, cincodemayoomaha.com, or by searching @cdmOmaha for its Facebook page.
Grand Marshal Marty Ramirez
Dr. Marty Ramirez, a commissioner for the Nebraska Sesquicentennial Commission, is a retired counseling psychologist who worked at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln for 38 years. He received his bachelor’s degree from Chadron State College and his master’s and doctoral degrees from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Ramirez began his UNL career as a counselor for the Department of Minority Affairs in 1973 and later worked with the university’s Counseling Center and Department of Counseling and Psychological Services. Ramirez has presented numerous local and national workshops in the areas of mental health, career planning, diversity and cultural competence.
The Scottsbluff native has also received extensive recognition for his community activities. In 1987, Ramirez was named Nebraskaland Days’ Hispanic Man of the Year and two weeks later named League of United Latin American Citizens’ National Hispanic Man of the Year. Other honors include Omaha’s Mexican Independence Day Veterans Award in 1992, the Lincoln YWCA’s Mentor and Allies Award in 2000, and both Leadership Lincoln’s Melvin W. Jones Mentoring Award and the Distinguished Alumni Award from Chadron State College in 2013. Ramirez is a Vietnam veteran and Purple Heart recipient.

Grand Marshal Jamesena (Jamie) Grimes Moore
Jamie Grimes Moore is a commissioner for the Nebraska Sesquicentennial Commission. She retired as vice president of Volunteer and Community Services from United Way of the Midlands in 2011. Moore received a bachelor’s degree from North Carolina Central University and a master’s degree in social work from the University of Nebraska Omaha, and is a certified social worker licensed in Nebraska.
Moore is a graduate of Leadership Omaha and United Way of America Minority Leadership Development. For over four decades she has also served on professional, community and nonprofit boards holding various elected and appointed leadership positions at the local, state, and national level. Her numerous awards include Omaha BPW Woman of the Year in 1996, the 2000 Nebraska Outstanding Volunteer Leader Award, the 2003 inaugural Women of Color Volunteer Award from UNO, Nebraska’s 1992 and 2003 Social Worker of the Year, and YWCA Woman of Vision in 2003. In 2008, she received the Alumni Award for Excellence in Public Service from UNO College of Public Affairs and an inaugural Legacy of Leadership Award from the National Coalition of 100 Black Women- Omaha Metropolitan Chapter.

About Cinco de Mayo Omaha
The mission of Cinco de Mayo Omaha is to promote the Mexican culture and bring awareness to South Omaha businesses and organizations while raising funds for local nonprofit groups. Since the first local Cinco de Mayo was organized three decades years ago as a small South Omaha celebration concurrent to celebrations in Mexican- American communities throughout the U.S., the Omaha event has grown into a full-fledged festival and a destination for celebrants of all cultural backgrounds. Attendance continues to increase, and the 2017 festival is expected to welcome more than 65,000 visitors from eastern Nebraska, western Iowa, and even as far away as South Dakota, Kansas and Missouri.