Cesar Chavez Pilgrimage Saturday in Pomona

POMONA - Education and the need to protect it from budget cuts will be among the messages heard Saturday as part of the seventh annual Cesar Chavez Pilgrimage and Community Celebration.

The event begins at 9:30 a.m. outside of Pomona City Hall, 505 S. Garey Ave., and concludes at Philadelphia Elementary, 600 E. Philadelphia St.

Participants will gather at City Hall where they will hear from speakers, including Julie Chavez Rodriguez, of the Cesar Chavez Foundation and Rev. Patricio Guillen, executive director of Libreria del Pueblo in Ontario, said Jose Calderon, president of the Latino and Latina Roundtable of Pomona Valley and San Gabriel Valley.

During the walk, participants will stop in front of the Pomona Unified School District Education Center, 800 S. Garey Ave.

Educational cuts and reductions in teachers are detrimental to students, Calderon said.

While at the district offices, those walking will call on state and federal elected officials to spare education from further reductions, he said.

The walk is also a call to youth to follow the example of Cesar Chavez, co-founder of the United Farm Workers union.

Chavez called on people especially youth to use their life in service to others rather than engaging in selfish activities and crime, Calderon said.

The community celebration at Philadelphia Elementary will include music, folkloric dance performances along with food and information booths.