Carleton students and Ottawa community members gathered in the Horticulture Building at Lansdowne Park for Locura Latina, a fundraising gala celebrating Latin American culture hosted biannually by the Humanitarian Organization of Latin American Students (HOLAS), on March 9.
This year’s Locura Latina was particularly significant, as it marked the 10th anniversary of HOLAS and the eighth year of the gala series. Doors opened at 8 p.m., with performances taking place at 9:30 p.m., and celebrations running late into the night.
HOLAS vice-president Ilse Mendoza explained that the event is meant to promote diversity, and share Latin American culture with the Ottawa community.
“I think Locura Latina is about showcasing the beauty of Latin American culture,” Mendoza said. “We come and we party all night and we have a really great time, but at the same time, we’re raising money so we can help people who are less fortunate than us.”
According to the event page, the gala’s proceeds went to Angels for Humanitarian Aid, an organization aimed at providing aid and relief in Venezuela.
“Right now, there’s a whole political issue [in Venezuela] and a lot of people, and especially younger students, who are being affected by this issue,” Cassandra Ambar said, who is currently serving her second term as president of HOLAS.
Ambar said she began attending Locura Latina in high school, and attributes her ties to Locura Latina to her sister’s work as an HOLAS executive for three years.
“Since that three years that I was in high school, I attended every single event, and it was honestly such a blast,” she said. “As soon as I entered university, I understood the reason why they do this and it just blew my mind and really encouraged me to be an executive and really be part of that community.”
According to Ambar, the choice of which Latin American humanitarian organization to support varies from year to year, and is voted on by HOLAS members.
“The way we choose an organization each year is by asking our members what they would like to or where they would like to help out . . . It’s sort of like a democracy,” she said.
The event cause was particularly dear to volunteer Santiago Martinez, a first-year aerospace engineering student from Colombia, due to his country’s proximity to Venezuela.
“You kind of feel a connection with them. We’re like brothers and sisters, so you have an event like this where all profits are going to go to helping the people of Venezuela, not the government per se, but the people,” Martinez said. “I’m very happy to be a part of something that’s greater than myself.”
While HOLAS never sets a specific amount in terms of fundraising goals, Ambar explained that this year’s gala saw about 1,000 attendees, and raised an estimated $7,000.
“Usually we end up raising, I want to say like a minimum of $7,000 dollars, and I can’t speak for the amount we raised this time just because we haven’t actually seen it all, calculated everything . . . but it’s looking pretty good,” she said.
According to Ambar, HOLAS relied on donations from friends, borrowing decorations and supplies, as well as cutting costs by opting for a venue that was less expensive than in previous years in order to host the event. She noted that the organization’s anniversary was a big factor in boosting attendance at this year’s event.
“Due to the fact that it was our 10-year anniversary, a lot of old members and a lot of old executives who don’t come to our events anymore, . . . they actually ended up coming to this event, which was very, very neat,” Ambar said.
Attendee Raza Moghal said Locura Latina is a necessity in order to promote diversity and self-exploration.
“HOLAS has got a really good mandate . . . It’s an opportunity to spread your wings, explore other cultures,” Moghal said.
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