Texas Border Business
By Roberto Hugo González / Texas Border Business
PHARR, Texas — Bert Ogden Auto Group, through Fiesta Nissan Edinburg and Bert Ogden Nissan McAllen, is contributing $25,000 as presenting sponsor of the 2026 Avocado Festival, continuing its support for the City of Pharr’s annual community celebration.
The sponsorship was announced Thursday, Oct. 1, during a check presentation at Fiesta Nissan Edinburg. City officials, Greater Pharr Chamber of Commerce representatives, and Bert Ogden Auto Group leaders attended the event, held nine days before the festival, scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 10, in downtown Pharr.
Greater Pharr Chamber of Commerce President and CEO CJ Sanchez thanked Fiesta Nissan Edinburg, Bert Ogden Nissan McAllen, Robert C. Vackar and Janet Ogden Vackar, and the Bert Ogden team for the contribution. The Nissan dealerships are serving as presenting sponsors for the second consecutive year.
“Your support helps make this possible, and we do not take it for granted,” Sanchez said. “Thank you for believing in the City of Pharr, for believing in the Chamber and for believing in this event.”
Pharr City Manager Dr. Jonathan Flores said the festival also provides an opportunity to explain the importance of the Pharr International Bridge to the region. City officials said more than 70% of the avocados consumed in the United States cross through the bridge.
“There’s also an educational component, and it’s about our international bridge and everything that our Pharr International Bridge does, not just for the community of Pharr, but for our entire region,” Flores said.
Bert Ogden Auto Group Chairman Robert C. Vackar thanked the city and Chamber and spoke about the company’s relationship with Pharr. “We appreciate everything that the Pharr Chamber and the City of Pharr do for us,” Vackar said.
Bert Ogden Auto Group CEO Natasha Del Barrio said the company has a longer connection to the festival through Bert Ogden BMW, its first dealership in Pharr. She said Bert Ogden BMW has been a presenting sponsor since the festival’s first year, while the Nissan dealerships have sponsored the event for two years.
Del Barrio also recalled her family’s connection to Pharr’s produce industry. She said her grandfather was a trucking broker in Pharr who moved produce between Mexico and destinations across the country.
“It’s a nice, full-circle kind of a moment to get to be part of this great event,” Del Barrio said.
The Avocado Festival will run from 2 to 11 p.m. Oct. 10. Organizers said Los Palominos will headline the musical lineup, which also includes Braxton Keith, La Cafetera, De Parranda and a Taylor Swift tribute band.
The festival will also feature more than 100 food and market vendors, a carnival, student contests, a guacamole contest, activities and fireworks. Admission will be free from 2 to 5 p.m. and $5 after 5 p.m.
“The Avocado Festival celebrates our people, our culture and the significance of the Pharr International Bridge to our region,” Sanchez said, “and, of course, the star of the show, the avocados.”
