JDRF and Local Girl Receives the Support of a Community

On Saturday, Oct. 11, Suavemente’s First Annual Tamale Festival was held at Fleming Park in Colton. It was a day full of food, drinks, music, entertainment and classic cars. Local man Albert Zamora, with the help of many community members and organizations, was the driving force behind putting this event together. The main goal of the event was to raise money for diabetes research and for the diabetes supplies for Lalena Maquinalez, 11, of San Bernardino. Zamora shared that he found his main inspiration for pulling the event together in the story of this young lady, who was diagnosed with juvenile diabetes at the age of seven; she currently is in the fifth grade at Mildred Dalton Henry Elementary School in San Bernardino. “This event is for Lalena Maquinalez and others who also have juvenile diabetes,” Zamora said. “This is great, I am honored,” he said after talking about the event and the attention it gained from the community. About two thousand people attended the event Zamora shared. “I was hoping to break 1,500 people,” he said. Classic cars was also a major theme for this event. “We had over ninety cars at the event,” Zamora mentioned. There were also contests for the Top 20 cars, the “Suavemente Choice” for a specific car or motorcycle, the “Best Tamale”, and the “Most Creative.” The “Suavemente Choice” motorcycle winner was Jay Vickier of the Kings and Queens Car Club. The “Best Tamale” Award of 2014 went to Annie and Ralph Delgado, and for the “Most Creative” tamale went to The Light of the World Church of Victorville. Tents and booths from many different businesses and organizations filled the park. Tamales were being served throughout the day, along with other food and drinks such as snow cones, lemonade, cookies, popcorn and more. Zamora added, “We had really good, strong people that made it happen... I’m in awe and in shock, the event was blessed.” While the bills for entertainment, advertising, and such have not all been accounted for just yet, Zamora estimates that the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation and Lalena Maquinalez will each be receiving a donation of approximately $600 as a result of the event. Gloria Maquinalez, Lalena’s mom, wanted to thank everyone in the community that came out and supported the event. “She was so happy, the appreciation Albert showed her... she was just full of joy that day,” Gloria said of her young daughter.