By Will Schmitt | The Press Democrat – PressDemocrat.com – Photo: Beth Schlanker | The Press Democrat.
Photo: Antonio Sanchez, 14, and Felipe Navarro practice with a large mariachi ensemble before performing at the Fiesta de Independencia at the Luther Burbank Center for the Arts in Santa Rosa, California.
Maximiliano Calleja, clad head-to-toe in green, red and white, stood outside the Luther Burbank Center for the Arts on Sunday afternoon, holding a Mexican flag in each hand and ready to move into the midst of hundreds of other revelers. Calleja, a 33-year-old native of Puebla, Mexico, who lived in Santa Rosa for more than a decade, now works as a chef in New York City. He was back in town to see family and to go with them to the 10th annual Fiesta de Independencia, a prominent celebration marking Mexico’s independence from Spain and the start of Latino Heritage Month.
