BY PRESLEY BARRERA
The Balsera Ballers of Balsera Communications said they knew they were destined to win the First Annual Hispanicize Miami Scavenger Hunt when they randomly walked into a CVS Pharmacy asking for a fake cockroach to complete their scavenger hunt check list and a manager told them he happened to have one in his office.
That was about all the luck the so-called Balsera Ballers needed Friday as they handedly beat second place finisher Boden PR and third place team Marca to claim the first ever crown of what is now firmly a brand new Miami holiday tradition.
Sponsored by Florida Blue and organized in partnership with BTL Network – who put the ENTIRE scavenger hunt together with Hispanicize Miami in ONE WEEK – the event drew Latino influencers from leading advertising and PR agencies, corporations, blogging, journalism, film and the arts to compete in a hectic night hunt that also collected hundreds of dollars worth of toys for ASPIRA.
While the scavenger hunters scrambled to collect fake roaches and pose with the famous roosters of Calle Ocho, Florida Blue and ASPIRA also hosted an early evening dinner for the families and children of ASPIRA. The icing on the cake took place when midway through the scavenger hunt the event’s hashtag #BlueSanta trended on Twitter.
“You can’t ask for more: Florida Blue and BTL Network produced an amazing, fun event and Latino influencers had a blast even as they donated toys that help needy children,” said Manny Ruiz, founder of the Hispanicize platform of companies that includes Hispanicize 2015, the annual Latino trends event. “Our Hispanicize Miami team is already planning a bigger and even funner scavenger hunt for next year so the bar is going to continue to rise.”
The highlight of the night? Too many to count (see the images below) but the consensus one appears to be when someone from Team Buena Vida took an apple pie to the face to help their team score points and then turned around and splattered the same pie in the face of Manny Ruiz.
