LATHROP – The City of Lathrop will be co-sponsoring the annual fiesta dinner-dance fund-raiser of the United Bacarreneos of America.

The event is set for Saturday, Nov. 20, in the Scott Brooks Gym of the Lathrop Community Center at Valverde Park in Historic Lathrop.

The Lathrop City Council earlier this week unanimously approved co-sponsoring this celebration “because the United Bacarreneos of America group is associated with Lathrop’s sister city in the Philippines,” read the staff’s recommendation presented to the council prior to the vote.

Councilman Christopher Mateo even volunteered to donate the $84 fee that the group is required to pay for the use of the city facility.

“Since I’m a Filipino American, I’ll pick up the ($84) tab,” he said.

Since the fee has been paid already by the organization, part of the motion that the council voted on included the proviso that the money will be reimbursed to the organization.

City Manager Cary Keaten explained that since the city is co-sponsoring the non-profit organization’s fund-raiser, insurance protection for the event will be “under the umbrella” of the city’s coverage.

The vote was made by three members of the council present – Mayor Kristy Sayles, Vice Mayor Martha Salcedo, and Councilman Mateo. Council member Sonny Dhaliwal was not present due to the death of his mother the day before. The fifth seat was vacant, the result of former councilman Robert K. Oliver’s retirement in March.

The fiesta is open to the public and will begin at 7 p.m. Tickets will be sold at the door for $25 apiece which will include a luau-style buffet meal complete with a roasted pig, and a slew of Filipino cuisine. There will be drinks available; however, there will be no alcohol allowed, said current UBA president Nerie Acosta of Lathrop.

Bacarra, a town with a population of more than 30,000 in the northwest region of Luzon in the Philippines from which the majority of the UBA members hail, and the City of Lathrop officially established a Sister City cultural relationship five years ago.

The fiesta celebration is Bacarra’s biggest and most popular community extravaganza every year. The two-day event includes dance, drama and musical performances in the town plaza, school booths featuring the area’s main agricultural products, games and the coronation of the fiesta queen. The Catholic Church joins in the celebration with religious events revolving around the town’s patron saint, St. Andrew.

Founded in 1932 by the late Vicente Acoba of Lathrop and another Filipino leader in the agriculture-rich region of Salinas and Watsonville, the organization’s main mission has always been to promote cultural activities and to provide death-aid benefits to members. In later years, UBA started awarding scholarships to deserving high school students who are planning to go to college. Several preschools in Bacarra, Philippines have been constructed as well with the help of donations from the organization.

The annual fiesta celebration is UBA’s only major fund-raiser during the year. All proceeds go to the UBA’s programs and projects.

The Lathrop Community Center where the fiesta celebration will be held is located at 15557 Fifth Street in the Old Town District.