LA JARA — La Jara held its annual Glory Days on Aug. 20. Town manager and head of the Glory Days committee, Larry Zaragoza, shared the origin of Glory Days.

"It was originally called Lasso Days, commemorating when La Jara was established in 1902,” he said. “On the 100th anniversary, in 2002, the name was changed to Glory Days and it's been called that ever since."

This year started out with a 2-mile walk/run at 7 a.m. sponsored by the SLV Health Regional Medical Center to promote health and fitness.

The community was treated to a free pancake and bacon breakfast, thanks to the kind donation of the owner of Jack's Market, Bob Plane. It was hosted by the volunteer fire department.

A local park was then dedicated to a lifelong resident of La Jara, the late Adelmo Medina. He was a highly decorated World War II veteran who ran the Standard gas station for many years following the war.

After the breakfast and dedication, Glory Days continued with a parade of beautiful floats. There were other activities, like a paintball tournament, and an exhibition of vintage cars and fancy bikes, courtesy of Rollin Deep Car Club. Robert Allaart had his Orange County stingray fancy bike which had won 13 trophies.

The dance group, Los Vecinos Bailadores, from Antonito, performed "dances from the past" in the early afternoon. Then suddenly, the rain began. Despite the unusual weather, it didn't dampen the spirits of those at the festival.

The dance group focuses on slow Spanish waltzes of European descent. The mayor of La Jara, Paula Medina (no relation to Adelmo) joined in some of the dances.

The festivities continued with an excellent bluegrass band from Taos, N.M., called Cracked Pot. There were arts and crafts for children and a beer garden for adults.

There were different types of food, and booths selling jewelry, and more. Everyone was thankful for the rain after a dry, hot summer.

Glory Days is a celebration of the town of La Jara.