QuinCeaneraS


LEFT & BELOW: Annaa Laura with her youthful tennis shoes and her more formal high heels.


Annaa Laura wants to follow


her sister to ASU to study jour- nalism, with the ultimate goal of going to New York to work for the “Today” show and even dancing on Broadway. But for the time being, the Cibola sophomore has been jug- gling her studies with volunteering for such organizations and events as Crossroads Mission and the Relay for Life fund-raising walk to benefit cancer victims.


By the time a quinceanera takes


place, Lopez said, a family can have easily have spent a year’s time in planning and arranging such details as choosing and renting a hall for the reception, select- ing the theme and theme colors for the reception, decorating the hall to match the theme, picking out the dresses and clothing worn by the girl and the members of her court, ordering the din- ner menu and cake, lining up the photographer and the music, and sending out invitations. And the total cost may well equal the expense of a wedding.


Lopez concedes some of her


friends and acquaintances question the value of invest- ing so much time and money on what amounts to a birthday celebration, one that happens only a few years


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before the family has to deal with other large expenses like the daughter’s college education or wedding.


But for Lopez, a girl’s 15th birthday is a pivotal


A girl's 15th birthday is a pivotal moment, one worthy of a send-off and expects will be a productive, happy and well-lived life.


moment, one worthy of a send-off to adulthood and what the family hopes and expects will be a productive, happy and well-lived life.


Having been through the experi-


ences of her own quinceanera plus two more for her daughters, Lopez has some advice for parents whose daughters are about to celebrate


their 15th birthdays: • Don’t lose sight of the reason for the quinceanera:


your daughter’s passage into adulthood, and all the joys


SouthweSt Living - CeLebrationS 2011


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