Montañez kicks off Hispanic Heritage Month on UNC campus – Boulder Daily Camera

Pursue your higher education and do whatever work you have in life with passion – that was the message of Saturday’s Fiesta de La Gente, organized by the Latino Coalition of Weld County on the campus of the University of Northern Colorado.

Whether you’re a teacher, a chef, a banker or a janitor, do your best to make people remember your name, said Richard Montañez, an author and motivational speaker who claims to have invented Flamin’ Hot Cheetos. Montañez told attendees about growing up in a California barrio as the second child in a family of 10 and how he now speaks at institutions like Harvard, Notre Dame and elite corporations.

In 1976, Montañez said he was hired as a janitor at the Frito-Lay plant in Rancho Cucamonga, California. He held that position before creating the popular snack in 1992. A 2021 Los Angeles Times article disputed his claims by speaking with other Frito-Lay executives who said his story was not true.

Montañez filed a lawsuit against PepsiCo, Frito-Lay’s parent company, accusing the company of orchestrating a “smear campaign” against him, according to a USA Today report. The film “Flamin’ Hot” was released in 2023 about Montañez’s life and rise to success after creating the snack.

Montañez’s message to the mostly Hispanic audience was to do every job they have to do to a top-notch standard. No matter the job, make sure that when people see the finished product, they remember the person who did it. He also stressed the importance of standing out rather than fitting in.

“It only takes one revelation to create a revolution in your life,” he said. “My first revelation was that even though I wanted to fit in with everybody else, I realized that I was never created to fit in. I was always created to stand out. Ladies and gentlemen, everyone here, none of you were ever created to fit in. You were all created to stand out.”

The inspiring speech and event should be considered an unofficial kickoff to Hispanic Heritage Month, which officially begins Sunday, Sept. 15, said Stacy Suniga, president of the Weld County Latino Coalition. Suniga said the coalition held a dance last year to kick off Hispanic Heritage Month. This year, however, they wanted something even grander for the community.

“I wanted to include other Latino groups and bring in elements that I know Latinos and their culture appreciate,” she said. “We just thought this year we would bring everyone together.”

Suniga thanked the city of Greeley for its financial support as well as the more than 30 vendors at the event. She said the coalition plans to host the event again next year.

“I hope they have fun and realize how much fun it is for us together,” Suniga said.