Rockford’s Monica Terronez grew up with her father taking to her to mercados, the Spanish word for markets, in Milwaukee and Chicago where she could get immersed in her culture — to shop the vendors, eat the food and listen to the music.
Terronez always wondered why her family had to travel to experience that, why in a city as large as Rockford there was no summer Latino market series to not just promote Hispanic culture but to support local Latino businesses, as well.
“It just bugged me because I know how many Latinos there are here in Rockford just from me going to St. Edward’s Church and St. Patrick’s Church,” Terronez said. “We need a mercado … to promote Latino businesses for someone who’s just starting out.'”
Last year, Terronez and a group of dedicated Hispanic leaders did just that when they launched the South Main Mercado.
The inaugural event, held along Rockford’s South Main Street in the heart of one of Rockford’s Hispanic business and cultural centers, attracted about 300 people.
This summer, South Main Mercado returns with plans of quadrupling its impact with more sponsors, more music and more visitors. The event is free.
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This year’s market will be held from noon to 7 p.m. Sunday, June 9. South Main Street will be shut down from Kent to Morgan streets to accommodate the eight food trucks, eight musical performances and more than 80 vendors.
To kick things up a notch, the loading dock at Comprehensive Community Solutions at 917 S. Main St. will be transformed into a stage for live music, the Rockford Park District and YMCA will bring a kids zone and the Ethnic Heritage Museum will run an interactive photo booth in its gazebo.
“Bringing something back like this to the southwest side of Rockford is so important to me,” said Melissa Santillan, the Ethnic Heritage Museum’s Latina leader of the Year for 2024.
Santillan grew up in Rockford, her family coming from Mexico many generations ago. She still remembers the excitement she would feel growing up when the On the Waterfront festival and its Ethnic Village would arrive each summer.
Organizers of this year’s South Main Mercado hope to bring that excitement and sense of community back to Rockford’s Hispanic residents.
Santillan is hair stylist. She hosts a podcast. She designs clothes. And now, she’s working to make sure her kids get to experience the Rockford she remembers
It’s important, she said, “so that my kids can see a part of my upbringing by attending events like this that show you the culture, the food and the music.”
Chris Green is a Rockford Register Star general assignment reporter. He can be reached at 815-987-1241, via email at cgreen@rrstar.com and X @chrisfgreen.
