Actor Edward James Olmos will deliver the keynote address at the 2026 Sacramento Latino Book & Family Festival, a free, all-day event set for Saturday, Oct. 10, at Valley High School, 6300 Ehrhardt Avenue. The festival runs from 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. and is open to the public, with programming built around author panels, health services and family activities.
Olmos, an actor and producer, is scheduled to speak at 1 p.m. in the school's main gym, according to KCRA. He co-founded Empowering Latino Futures, the nonprofit organization behind the festival, and has long advocated for literacy and Latino representation. The nonprofit was established in 1997 by Olmos and Kirk Whisler as a 501(c)(3) organization, according to Empowering Latino Futures, which says its programs have reached 1.7 million people and directly impacted an estimated 7,500 lives since then.
A Day Built Around Authors and College Access
The day opens with an Award-Winning Author Panel at 11 a.m. featuring Latino writers, including KCRA 3 anchor and children's author Leticia Ordaz. A College Ready Panel follows at noon, offering information on college applications, financial aid, higher education and student success, per the same KCRA report. Organizers say a major focus of this year's event is helping young people see themselves as future college students, professionals, leaders and authors.
Families will also get the chance to meet internationally recognized and award-winning Latino authors and buy signed books, the station's report notes. The festival is designed to bring together families, authors, educators, colleges, community organizations and health providers under one roof.
Health, Early Learning and Community Villages
Beyond the author programming, the festival will feature themed villages spread across campus. The Health Village will offer free health services, information and resources, while the Children's Village connects parents with early-learning programs, preschools and libraries. The Education Village links families with colleges, schools and other educational programs, and a Community Village will feature financial empowerment programs and local organizations.
The Authors Village will celebrate Latino writers and books for children, teens and adults, rounding out a lineup that also includes lowriders, live music and other family entertainment, according to the same account. Sacramento365 describes the festival's underlying goal as promoting a love of reading, a longtime objective of Empowering Latino Futures.
Fourth Year in South Sacramento
This marks the festival's fourth year in Sacramento, and last year's event drew more than 4,000 people. The 2025 festival was held at the same Valley High School campus in south Sacramento and featured civil rights icon Dolores Huerta as guest of honor, who urged attendees to “show our faces,” according to the Sacramento Bee. The year before that, the festival was held at Sacramento City College, where it featured vendors, celebrity speakers and local artists, and where Olmos spoke about the importance of books and giving back to youth, telling attendees, according to the Sac City Express, about “the importance of self-esteem, self respect and self worth.”
Empowering Latino Futures has staged versions of this festival well beyond Sacramento. A companion event, the 79th San Diego Latino Book & Family Festival, was held in April at MiraCosta College in Oceanside from 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., featuring more than 35 Latino authors, including International Latino Book Award winners, according to KPBS. That festival included its own Authors, Health and Education villages along with lowrider displays and author readings, as reported by Times of San Diego.
Reports differ on exactly how many festivals the organization has staged nationwide since 1997: KCRA put the total at 79, while the Sacramento Bee reported 76 as of 2025. Either figure points to a program that has expanded well beyond its Sacramento roots, even as the Oct. 10 event keeps its focus squarely on Valley High School and the families it serves.
