It's time for Cinco de Mayo, but this time the party is not on May 5th.

"Cinco is Coming," a free event put on by Warehouse 21 and Gear Up collaborations will be celebrating Cinco de Mayo with an arts, music and cultural festival for all ages. The event will start at 4 p.m. Saturday at Warehouse 21 in the concert hall downstairs. This is the first annual youth music and arts festival to celebrate this holiday, and will hopefully become an annual event.

The idea originated with Greg Malone, director of programs and operations at W21, and moved into the hands of director and producer Joe Ray Sandoval and Angelo Jaramillo. Jaramillo is the northern regional coordinator for Gear Up (a college readiness program for under-represented communities), which works closely with 29 high schools around New Mexico.

Capital High is one of the schools that participates in Gear Up, and is the brains behind the whole Cinco de Mayo operation.

A core group of about 15 kids worked on putting the festival together, and about five more working with Wise Fool, a local circus performing company, have created the celebration.

The students from Capital will include in the event narratives and spoken word about why the day is important.

With food, fun, 10 bands, Mariachi, Maria Benitez, hip-hop and DJs, "Cinco is Coming" will probably be here to stay.

Jahla Seppanen is a senior at Monte del Sol. You can reach her at jnm747@hotmail.com.