Remembering Hector Padilla: EPCC Literary Contest Pays Tribute To Beloved Professor

El Paso Community College has yet another excellent literary event coming up and this one is sentimental to so many of the staff at the college, including the host of this upcoming event honoring the late English Professor, Hector L. Padilla.

The Hector Padilla Contest was founded in honor of Professor Padilla after his passing in 2020. Padilla was a beloved English Professor who taught at the Rio Grande and Valle Verde campuses. Professor Minerva Laveaga Luna, faculty advisor for EPCC's Chrysalis, chose to create the contest for Padilla.

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"I created the Hector Padilla Contest in his honor through Chrysalis to celebrate his support for students and his love of literature." said Minerva.

The Barbed Wire Open Mic crew will help EPCC's Papagayo Project host this reading for winners of the 2023 Hector Padilla Contest at Little Temple on EPCC's Rio Grande Campus. The emcee of the event, Professor Richard D. Marrufo, was a colleague of Professor Padilla and holds his memory dearly. Professor Marrufo is also the Project Director for The Barbed Wire Open Mic and runs The Papagayo Project as well.

"He is the one who first hired me at EPCC. He was a mentor and a confidant. He would let me use his office and pick his brain on anything EPCC, English, or writing related. That was so important to me." Marrufo shared.

Catch the Chrysalis team, The Papagayo Project, and The BWOMS Crew hosting this wonderful event, Friday, April 26th and hear the work written by contest winners during the reading. For anyone wanting to take part in the literary celebration, there will be an open mic portion for writers and readers in the community after the winning readers share their work.