Rancho Los Alamitos Event Will Help Latinos Trace Family Roots

Latino families will have an opportunity to learn how to research their family roots Sunday and also see Boda de California Antigua--an early California wedding celebration--at Rancho Los Alamitos in Long Beach.

The wedding will be re-created with traditional costumes, a horse-drawn carriage, mariachi bands, folk dancing and food such as tortillas made as they would have been in the 19th Century.

In addition, the Society of Hispanic Heritage and Ancestral Research will demonstrate how to research Latino family histories.

“It’s easier to do than you think,” said Mimi Lozano Holtzman, who has traced her family lineage back to King Ferdinand V. She said classes, computer programs and documents compiled by the society may become a permanent part of the historic rancho, which is owned by the city of Long Beach and run by a foundation.

The Society of Hispanic Heritage is a volunteer group that helps people find birth records, marriage licenses, shipping logs and other documents that date as far back as 1405, said Holtzman, a retired bilingual teacher.

One family that plans to learn how to trace its roots will be guest of honor at the rancho on Sunday. Santa Ana insurance broker Renan Disner, wife Evy and their four children: Evy, 10; Michael, 9; Anita, 6, and Marisa, 4, were chosen as role models and named “Hispanic Family of the Year” by Hispanic American Family Magazine. The family won $2,000, half of which they donated to a college-bound bilingual student.

“I guess we won because we spend all of our free time with our children,” said Evy Disner, who works part time as an elementary school teacher.

The Boda de California Antigua is scheduled for Sunday from 1 to 4:30 p.m. and is free. The rancho is at 6400 Bixby Hill Road. Information: (310) 431-3541.