Premium ContentMouse over Home then click on Premium Content for information.Guatemalan children learn to dance at the same time they're learning to walk.
Eight-month-old Kael Juarez started especially early Sunday as his father, Patricio Juarez, held the baby while dancing a traditional Guatemalan waltz.
"We want children to get used to the music early," said Patricio's wife, Sonia. "It's like a religion."
The Omahans — whose family also includes another dancer, 2-year-old Dante — were among about 200 people who attended the annual Santa Eulalia Festival at Creighton University.
The event was organized by the Comunidad Maya Pixan Ixim, a local group that seeks to enhance the Mayan community in Omaha through arts and culture, education and health programs.
"The idea is to keep the culture alive," said Franco Gaspar, the group's president. "The Mayan people have not disappeared."
The band Marimba Pixan Ixim performed traditional music on a type of xylophone called a marimba. Eight to 12 musicians can play the marimba simultaneously.
The festival began with a Mass in Spanish and the Mayan language of Q'anjob'al at St. John Church on campus. It moved to the nearby Skutt Center, where the food, music and dancing began. Group members sold handmade Mayan goods such a scarves, hats, blankets and crafts.
Santa Eulalia is located in northeastern Guatemala. Its name honors the village's patron saint, Saint Eulalia.
Gaspar said there are about 1,000 native Santa Eulalians living in Omaha. Guatemalans from Grand Island, Schuyler and Sioux City, Iowa, were among Sunday's attendees.
The event also was sponsored by Creighton's Native American Studies program, the Futuro Latino Fund of the Omaha Community Foundation, the Omaha Archdiocese and IXIM: Spirit of Solidarity, a partnership between the Omaha Archdiocese and the Diocese of Huehuetenango, Guatemala.
"It's a special day," said Pedro Toledo, who has lived in Omaha for a decade. "It brings our people closer."
Contact the writer: 402-444-3100, maggie.obrien@owh.com
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