by Annette Pinder 

Each year, from September 15 through October 15, Hispanic Heritage Month celebrates the history, cultures, and contributions of Hispanic and Latino Americans. In Western New York, those contributions are deeply woven into our community. The Hispanic Heritage Council of Western New York (HHC) helps preserve and share that story while fostering greater awareness and appreciation of the Hispanic community’s past, present, and future. 

Hispanic residents have been part of Western New York since the late 1800s and early 1900s, arriving from Latin America, Spain, and the Caribbean. Generations worked in local fields, factories, rail yards, and steel plants while building families and communities. Today, nearly 70,000 Latinos call Western New York home, contributing to virtually every sector of the region. 

The HHC grew out of Western New York’s first official Hispanic Heritage Month celebration in 2010. Community leader Casimiro D. Rodriguez Sr. recognized the need for greater Hispanic representation in the region’s cultural landscape, leading to the Council’s incorporation as a nonprofit in 2011. Its Hispanic Heritage History Project now collects historical information, artifacts, oral histories, and personal stories to preserve the community’s legacy. 

The Council also coordinates celebrations and educational programs throughout the year, including Three Kings Day, El Día del Niño (Day of the Child), Cinco de Mayo, Hispanic Heritage Month activities, and its annual Hispanic Heritage Community Breakfast. Partnerships with museums, libraries, schools, government, and cultural organizations introduce people from all backgrounds to the richness and diversity of Hispanic culture. 

Its most ambitious undertaking is the Hispanic Heritage Cultural Institute, a $30 million, 38,000-square-foot project on Buffalo’s West Side. The Niagara Street destination is envisioned as a place for gathering, learning, exhibits, performances, storytelling, and cultural programming. The location is especially meaningful: In 2014, the Buffalo Common Council officially designated the Niagara Street Corridor as the Hispanic Heritage District. 

The Council’s mission also extends to community health and well-being. Through a partnership with the WNY Integrated Care Collaborative, HHC provides bilingual screening and social-care navigation under New York’s Medicaid 1115 Waiver. A bilingual navigator helps connect community members with resources affecting health outside the doctor’s office, including food and nutrition, housing, transportation, legal assistance, and access to benefits. Providing help from someone who understands both a person’s language and culture can make an important difference in whether families successfully access the services they need. 

That work underscores an important connection: Health is shaped not only by medical care, but also by whether people feel supported, connected, and able to meet their everyday needs. 

Hispanic Heritage Month celebrates music, food, art, traditions, and accomplishments. The HHC reminds us that heritage is also about preserving stories, strengthening communities, educating future generations, and creating a sense of belonging. In doing so, the Council is preserving an important chapter of Western New York’s history—and helping write its future. 

Learn more, volunteer, or support the Hispanic Heritage Council of Western New York at hispanicheritagewny.org.