Scholarships and salsa

Rain didn’t stop couples from dancing to live salsa music Friday night outside Damon’s Steakhouse as dozens of people contributed to a student scholarship fund through the Glendale Latino Association.

Salsa dancing, margaritas and carne asada tacos added to the festive vibe at the event, also sponsored by Glendale Arts, “Salsa for Scholarships,” a fundraiser in which all proceeds were channeled to 20 student scholarships.

Student Sonia Zelezny, 17, sang at the event with the Hoover High School Jazz Band, which played salsa and Afro-Cuban music. Sonia applied for a scholarship, which she said she hopes to get to offset the $45,000 annual tuition at her university. “It’s really important because everybody needs money right now,” Sonia said. She plans to study music business and “make it big” in the future.

Friday’s event was created to help students like Sonia who volunteer in their community, association President Mercy Velazquez said. The students must have a 3.5 grade-point average and be involved in community outreach in order to get a scholarship, she said. Some money will be donated this year to a C-average student, who may not have the best of grades, but has dedication and drive, Velazquez said. Money raised goes to scholarships for Latino high school students in the Glendale Unified School District, Velazquez said. Some funding will go to Glendale Community College students to help them pay for books and school supplies.

Ten scholarships worth $1,000 each and five others worth $500 each will be given to students, she said. The scholarship recipients have not been selected. Throughout the year the association holds business networking events, where it collects money to go toward the scholarships, said Mae Abou-Chakra, a member of the association.

“One hundred percent of that goes to scholarships for Latino students,” she said. Last year the association raised $12,000 in scholarships, which were given 16 students. The association decided this year that it would try to beat its previous record by increasing its target to $15,000.

Glendale Arts used a grant from the Los Angeles County Arts Commission to pay for the outside concert, which was free to the public, said Elissa Glickman, Glendale Arts associate director. The grant is used to put on events on a Friday or Saturday to bring potential customers to downtown Glendale and expose them to area’s businesses. The event not only gets residents to visit local business, she said, but also allows them help area students. The scholarships will be awarded 7:30 a.m. May 27 to the students at a breakfast event at the Hilton Glendale.