Piñatas go on parade…DMC student club enters redesigned donkey-shaped piñata, wins second place as part of competition and fundraiser supporting Día de los Muertos Festival
DMC Architecture and Construction Technology Club’s “Donktropolis” features architectural remake of piñata that shows off skills learned in the classroom
Article by Melinda Eddleman
The piñata has a name, “Donktropolis,” and a backstory that describes the reasoning for its redesign. The donkey-shaped re-creation is the work of Del Mar College students with the Architecture and Construction Technology (ACT) Club with members hoping to win the top prize as part of the Parade of Piñatas competition held to support Corpus Christi’s annual Día de los Muertos Festival.
The Architectural/Drafting Technology students who worked on the piñata include Makayla Anderson, Lauren De La Garza, Crystal LeBlanc, Priscilla Mulhorn, Karalee Pena and Amari Washington.
During an Oct. 13 kickoff party held by K Space Contemporary and other organizers at La Palmera Mall to announce the winners, open bidding to raise more funds and start online voting for the People’s Choice Awards, DMC representatives learned the club earned second place and a $150 gift card.
The ACT Club now has another chance to win. Online public voting for the People’s Choice Award is now open through Oct. 23 at app.jotform.com/262734720642153.
Participants can view the 18 piñatas entered in the Superheroes Unite-themed competition by visiting the corridor entryway just outside of JCPenny inside La Palmera Mall (5488 S. Padre Island Dr., 78411). On display until Oct. 25, Piñatas on Parade is presented by the mall and the Coastal Bend Association of Realtors® Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee, and the piñatas are up for bids to raise more funds beyond the entry fees each organization paid to participate. The auction closes at 11:55 p.m. on Oct. 23.
The ACT Club’s $150 entry fee was generously and personally covered by Russell Franques, who serves as treasurer for the DMC Foundation’s Board of Trustees and is a partner with Highpoint Wealth Advisors.
Following the Parade of Piñatas competition theme, Superheroes Unite, to celebrate the power of courage, kindness, teamwork and imagination, Donktropolis “symbolizes hope for tomorrow’s cities with the donkey carrying superhero DMC graduates dedicated to sustainable technology and human-centric design, creating buildings that foster connectedness, emotional uplift and simple beauty to enhance the joy of life.”
The ACT Club's piñata features unique architectural design elements that demonstrate the skills that DMC’s Architectural/Drafting majors learn in the classroom.
As a community service project for the club, DMC Associate Professor of Architectural/Drafting Technology Brad Eilering says, “Our students are learning first-hand the importance of service to the public and the advancement of their careers in architecture and the construction industry.”
Del Mar College empowers students to achieve their dreams. We offer quality programs, individual attention, outstanding instruction through faculty with real-world experience and affordable costs to credit and noncredit students in Corpus Christi and the South Texas Coastal Bend area. Nationally recognized while locally focused, we’re ranked in the top two percent of community colleges in the country granting associate degrees to Hispanic students (Community College Week). Del Mar College focuses on offering our students programs that match current or emerging career opportunities. Whether students are interested in the fine arts, sciences, business, occupational or technical areas, students get the education they need for the future they want at Del Mar College.