DAYTON — With the merengue and other dance music blaring, the Puerto Rican Cultural Society of Dayton put its vitality on display this weekend in marking its 30th anniversary at the Dayton Woman's Club.

Jenny Honingford, one of the club's founding members, said 10 couples started the society in 1978 to pass on customs to the next generation and raise public awareness of Puerto Rican culture. In those early days, the close-knit group would gather to fix traditional dishes such as empanadillas — pastry turnovers filled with meat — and fried and mashed plantains.

"Thirty years ago, we were very small," said Honingford, who, like many locals of Puerto Rican ancestry, came to work as a nurse at the Dayton Veterans Affairs Medical Center in the early 1950s.

But Dayton's Puerto Rican community has grown considerably, thanks in large part to employers such as Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, as well as the University of Dayton, said José "Rafi" Rodriguez, president of the Puerto Rican Cultural Society of Dayton and a retired U.S. Air Force colonel.

It's also gaining visibility. Attendance at the awards gala has soared from 85 two years ago to a diverse crowd of about 175 at the gala held Saturday, April 5, Rodriguez said.

The annual awards gala, now in its third year, is meant to thank volunteers and garner support from local academia and businesses, Rodriguez said. The awards were made in Puerto Rico by an artisan who incorporated the society's logo in fused glass. The logo features a well-known fortress in Puerto Rico with a rising sun in the background.

The Puerto Rican Cultural Society, which bills itself as Dayton's premier Latino/Hispanic arts organization, seeks to boost awareness of Puerto Rican culture and heritage throughout the region and Ohio. It has a booth at A World A'fair, sends volunteers to teach in public schools, and finds cultural outlets through the arts, including its own performance group, Rondalla Puerto Rico.

Key to the local community's cohesiveness is pride not only in culture, but family.

"The family unit is so strong," noted Sylvia Fronista, another founding member.

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