y and members of the community came together Sept. 10 to celebrate with the second annual International Festival.
The festival took place at Yokuts Park and featured booths from over 40 vendors, some of who were businesses started by people with special needs. International Festival also included various live acts, presentations and children’s activities.
The resource center is also known as H.E.A.R.T.S.
H.E.A.R.T.S. is an acronym for help, encourage, advocate, resources, training and support.
The H.E.A.R.T.S. Connection center is a resource center for families who have children with disabilities and special care needs. They are staffed entirely by people who have a family member with special needs. The group doesn’t charge for its services and any disability is eligible.
“We wanted to celebrate all abilities, cultures and communities,” said Danielle Pilkington, resource development coordinator at H.E.A.R.T.S.
The first International Festival was held last year to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the organization and was attended by an estimated 3,000 people.
The entertainment for the festival ranged from music and cultural dancing to a parade.
One of the highlights from the stage was a presentation by Loren John Presley on Nina, a robot designed to assist children with autism.
“For me, it’s the community coming together to see what Kern County has to offer,” said Pilkington about the message of the event.
Anyone from the community was invited to participate.
“We’re here to be seen and put more info out there about what we do,” said Sara Nilson from Alpha Canine.
Alpha Canine is a local sanctuary for homeless dogs. They had a booth at the event staffed by workers handing out pamphlets and answering questions.
“We’re here selling food so we can be here together,” said Luis Gomez from Mision Apostolica who was selling tacos and chatting with the crowd.
H.E.A.R.T. Connection wanted to keep the event as cheap as possible so they only charged for the bounce house.
“We’re mostly here for the kid events … A day out is always good,” said Scott Pierce who brought his kids to International Festival.