There's no better place in America to grow sweet, succulent citrus fruit, and there's no better celebration of sweet Texas citrus than in Mission, Texas, each year when the Texas Citrus Fiesta,the King of Citrus celebrations, kicks off for two full weeks of gala activities and events that tribute this legacy of the fertile Rio Grande Valley.

You can expect to get your fill of all things citrus as this communitywide gala stages a citrus costume show, a Royal Ball, the Annual Coronation of the Citrus Royal Court, a Citrus Fair, cookoff and Youth Show, plus the famous Citrus Fiesta Parade of Oranges and a spectacular carnival for all ages.

This year (2011), the Fiesta runs from Jan. 15-29 and is expected to attract thousands from all across Texas and parts of Mexico.  Annually the event attracts local, state and national media coverage, and the event provides the welcome attraction to the thousands of traveling seniors who call Texas their winter home.

"We've been coming to the Valley for the nearly 15 years and the one thing we never miss is the (Citrus) Fiesta in Mission," says Marvin Wehmeyer of Iowa. "Marge (his wife) and I love to attend multiple events just to see the creativity and enthusiam generated by the unusual activities, like the fashion show ehre all the fashions are made entirely of various kinds of fruit."

Wehmeyer says another of thir favorite events is the annual Parade of Oranges.

"Like the fashion show, the floats are constructed and decorated from citrus products. And the best part of it to us is the fresh orange juice you can get by the glass or the gallon - it's the sweetest in the world," he adds.

According to the official Fiesta Web site, "The citrus industry in the Rio Grande Valley was still young when Paul Ord and the Young Men's business League introduced the first Texas Citrus Fiesta in Mission, in December 1932. They saw the celebration as a way to spread the word about the bountiful winter harvest of grapefruits and oranges from the lush subtropical Rio Grande Valley.The Theme of that First fiesta, held outdoors against the background of the citrus bearing trees, was "Coronation and Pageant of Citrus".  John H. Shary, considered the Father of the Texas Citrus Industry, reigned over the one-day celebration. It started with a half-hour concert and ended with the coronation of King Citrus and Queen Citrianna. This became a tradition of "royalty", with a citrus industry leader chosen as King and a Queen chosen from Rio Grande Valley "Duchesses", each representing a community and its product or industry.The second Fiesta did not take place until 1934 because of damage caused by a hurricane in 1933. Other than during World War II, the fiesta has been held annually. In the 1930's, Fox Movietone News enjoyed showing the Valley's lovely ladies in bathing suits in a swimming pool full of floating grapefruits while the rest of the nation was in a deep freeze."

"The fiesta still takes delight in showing off the lovely ladies and handsome lads at the Coronation of King Citrus and Queen Citrianna. Coronation is now held indoors amidst the flourish of herald trumpets during the last week of January. Since 1932, the Fiesta has presented its Product Costume Style Show where exquisite costumes made of citrus and other local Valley products are exhibited. Through the years, and with modern technology, the costumes have become intricate works of fold art using Valley citrus, fruits, vegetables and foliage that have been pulverized, dehydrated, blended and micro-waved. These costumes have been featured in National Geographic, Southern Living, Texas Monthly magazines, and at shows from Kansas City to Washington D.C. ..."

It is estimated that each year hundreds of Mission-area residents dedicate tens of thousnds of man-hours in making the Fiesta the event the successful Fiesta it has become.  A local Board of Directors work on the next year's project  as soon as the Fiesta ends. The 2010-2011 Board of Directors include Bill Filut, President; Berta Filut, Executive Director, Oscar Martinez, 1st vice president, Buster Brown, 2nd vice president, Norma Sanchez, secretary, Gilbert Acosta, tresurer, Minnie Rodgers, parlimentarian, and members Ric Brown, Rafael Valdez, Jr., Brian Gerlack, Scott Gerlach, Nancy Chapa, and Nora Hinojosa.

Check out the following links to discover more: