T-R PHOTO BY LANA BRADSTREAM Elegant Christmas decorations hang in Midnight Ballroom’s windows for the Navidad con Sabor Latino Christmas bazaar this weekend. Attendees will be able to enjoy traditional Latino foods, family games, vendors and more. The venue is inside the Meadow Lane Mall at 1700 S. Center St. Ste. 2.

Midnight Ballroom will be the site of Navidad con Sabor Latino Christmas bazaar from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Attendees can enjoy traditional Latino foods, vendors, crafts, piñatas, family games and photo ops with Santa and his friends, and more.

The event, free and open to the public, is the brainchild of Yesenia Paz, owner of Yessy’s Creations and Yessy’s Animations. Various sponsors are donating time, money and supplies to make it all come together.

“Most people, when they want to celebrate the holidays, have to go out of town, so this is my way of giving back to Marshalltown. This is for parents and children to have a special moment together in a nice, comfortable location,” Paz said.

Midnight Ballroom owner Luisa Ortega added that she was eager to host the event.

“I like to do events for the community and I really enjoy kids’ activities, because I think that’s kind of a need that we have in Marshalltown,” Ortega said. “You can’t top the Holiday Stroll, but we wanted to do something with a little bit more of a Latin flavor to it. When we go to Mexico for Christmas, the feeling is different. It’s a different ambiance.”

The doors open each day at 11 a.m. At noon and 4 p.m., there will be the chance to take photos with characters including Santa, Grinch, snowman and elf, for a small fee.

At 1 p.m., there will be a Floreo de Soga (making flowers with a rope) performance called Los Charros de Rancho Los 3D. It entails using a lasso, and will be done by Dariel Delgado and Antony Carillo. The presentation is courtesy of Adriana Soto/Adriana’s Agency.

Local businesses have donated piñatas, which will be broken open at 1:30 p.m. and 5 p.m.

Also on the schedule are family games at 3 p.m.

Ortega said holiday shopping options would include Western wear, purses, toys, hair accessories, novelty items and more. While homemade goods are welcome, that is not a requirement to be a vendor.

“Most of the vendors we have coming are not bringing homemade things. They’re bringing boots, belts, purses, makeup and stuff like that,” Ortega said.

If interested in being a vendor, reach out to Ortega or Paz. Spots are 10 feet by 10 feet in size.

Expect to enjoy tamales, pupusas, desserts and other Latin American cuisine.

“We got a lot of diverse desserts from the Hispanic culture, giving a little glimpse of our culture for people who haven’t had a chance to try it before,” Paz said. “We’ll also have a lot of last minute gifts.”

The Central Iowa Art Association will have a booth where kids can color flour/salt ornaments (Sunday only). Immigrant Allies will be assisting at the free craft area. Iowa State Extension will also be hosting a free craft.

Gift certificates from businesses will be given away. Lotería — a game similar to Bingo — will be played. Both women want to see even more participation next year.

“I want this event to tell Marshalltown to help little businesses that are just starting up. If we’re going to grow as a community, we need to let these businesses grow and have more people come here,” Paz said.

Ortega said she’d love to offer posadas in the future, but said it’s harder to pull off when it’s cold outside. These take place on the nine evenings from December 16 to 24 and commemorate the Christmas story.

“When we’d go to Mexico, my kids always enjoyed walking through the whole town, going from house to house to see the nativity scenes, and they’re massive. Some are funny. Some have miniature towns with lights and water,” Ortega said.