Celebrate dia de los muertos with the mortuary science department.
By Cynthia M. Herrera
The mortuary science department will host a Dia De Los Muertos, or day of the dead, event from 8 a.m through 10:50 a.m on Oct. 30 in Room 231 of Nail Technical Center at this college.
The event has been hosted by the department for the last five years.
There will be three workshops throughout the morning. At 8 a.m. the workshop will consist of making Papel Picado and information on why it is used will be given. Papel picado are designs of perforated paper.
A sugar skull workshop will follow at 9:25 a.m., however, this year, the skulls will be made using papier-mâché. The last workshop, on how to make altars for Día De Los Muertos, will begin at 10:50 a.m.
Altars are built to honor the lives of those who have died and are decorated with candles and items the deceased may have enjoyed.
The items are used to attract the souls for a short period of time, according to the Smithosonian Latino Center website.
Día Del Los Muertos is a cultural event in the Latino community that takes place on Nov. 1 for the children who died and on Nov. 2 for the adults.
The Aztecs originated the event and they celebrated the dead for a month during the summer and believed that the goddess, Michtecacihuatl, Lady of the Dead, watched over them.
However, when the Aztecs were conquered by Spain, the Catholic faith meshed with the beliefs of the Aztecs and was celebrated on All Saints’ Day, which is on Nov. 1, said Gerald Erichsen, Spanish language expert for the about education website.
Many funeral homes throughout San Antonio host the event, such as Funeraria Del Angel Roy Akers and Castillo Mission Fueneral Home said Francisco E. Solis, director of learning assessment and review. The event is free to the public.
For more information, call 210-486-1138.