Dia de Los Muertos is a holiday that celebrates our ancestors and keeps their memories with the living. It is celebrated on the 1st and 2nd of November. This tradition has been going on for over 3000 years and is celebrated in Mexico, El Salvador, Ecuador, and Guatemala.
The Puente Learning Community has a tradition of creating an altar for the Puente students and the campus community during this time. In the past, it was hosted in the Intercultural Center, but this year, the team wanted to find a more central location that would allow more students to experience the beauty of the altar.
This year, Puente student leaders Miriam Gil-Alvarez, Crystal Rangel-Cruz, and other Puentistas created a beautiful altar in Fireside to honor those who passed away.
On the altar are marigolds, a symbol of joy and resilience in Dia de Los Muertos traditions. In addition, the altar typically includes pictures of loved ones, favorite foods of the departed, sugar skulls (calaveras), flowers, and other meaningful objects that honor those who have passed. Puente also invited FSU and the Kababayan Learning Community to represent how they celebrate Undas, the Filipino observance of the Day of the Dead, which was celebrated on November 1st (All Saints’ Day) and November 2nd. Like other traditions, Undas is celebrated through gatherings at cemeteries and at home, where families created alters to honor their loved ones.
It is a spiritual holiday during which people celebrate the dead, usually with a small gathering in the cemetery. People bring candles and flowers, decorate the gravestones, and sometimes stay all night.
If you haven’t had a chance to take a quiet moment to visit the altar and reflect on the lives of those who have passed, we invite you to do so on Friday, November 15, before it is removed for this year.