Lorain's Antonio Barrios Big Voice competition returns Saturday

LORAIN — The third annual Antonio Barrios Big Voice competition returns Saturday. This year's free event will feature nine competitors performing two days — 5 p.m. Saturday and July 29 — at Oakwood Park, co-organizer City Coucilman Rey Carrion, D-6th Ward, said. Each performer will sing two songs on Saturday in front of three judges, and all move on to the July 29 competition, co-organizer Annette Corrao said. On July 29, each will perform another song, and judges will choose the top three that evening. The top three will then perform another song and judges will choose a first-, second- and third-place winner. The judges are professional musicians and performers themselves, she said, each representing different styles. She said the performers are happier with just two days of competition, rather than several weekends back-to-back. This year's prizes are $1,000 for first place, donated by Carrion Motors; $500 for second place, donated by the Friends of South Lorain; and $250 for third place, donated by Carrion. This year's contestants are: Cody Szymanel, Selena Vasquez, Jaslynn Serrano, Jasmine Candelario, Aaron Riggins, Caleb Rosa, Gabrielle Holland, Vegas Polosky and Sami Nickerson. Carrion said the city's ties to South Lorain are what prompted his run for City Council and the other events he's been a part of — and the Big Voice competition is no different. "South Lorain, in my opinion and the opinion of many, has been forgotten," he said. "And it has been an area where most of the folks that live in our community have some connections to South Lorain. … (They) came to work here, they established roots here, raised family here." Corrao agreed, noting her own family's ties. She worked at Citibank on East 28th Street and Pearl Avenue for about a decade and is the daughter of a U.S. Steel worker. "Without South Lorain, Lorain is not Lorain," she said. When the competition started three years ago, it was amid an effort to change the way people saw South Lorain, and the way its residents saw themselves, Carrion said. When he was first elected to City Council, Oakwood Park faced challenges — vandalism, crime and the perception it wasn't safe. Now, with the third year of the competition it's brought people who haven't been to South Lorain in 20 years back to the neighborhood they grew up in, Carrion said. "This is something the community needs," Carrion said. "And to be able to bring this back year after year says a lot." Alongside this year's competition, Latin City Soul will perform from 7-9 p.m. Saturday and Latin Jazz Players from 7-9 p.m. July 29. On Saturday there will be Latin dance lessons during the concerts, with a small competition for the best dancers, Carrion said. The best couple will receive a $100 cash prize. This year's Big Voice competition and other performances will be at Oakwood Park near Field No. 2, closer to East 36th Street. Parking is available in the lot by the pool or throughout the park. Sponsorship and donation opportunities are available through the Friends of South Lorain, @FriendsofSouthLorain on Facebook. Contact Carissa Woytach at (440) 329-7245 or cwoytach@chroniclet.com.