Celebrate lives of loved ones lost at Day of the Dead

When Erika Borges was hired as a cultural specialist at the Winchester Cultural Center, she didn't realize that it would give her a deeper connection to her own culture.

"I've gone to the Day of the Dead festival here at the Winchester before but just to check it out," Borges said. "This time I'm organizing, and it's really reminded me of how important it is and reconnected me with my family's cultural traditions."

The Life in Death: Day of the Dead festival is scheduled from 5 to 9 p.m. Thursday and Friday at the Winchester Cultural Center, 3130 S. McLeod Drive. The annual festival draws thousands of participants with live music, an art show and traditional Mexican cultural activities.

Because Halloween falls on a Wednesday this year and most venues planned events on the weekend before, it gives the festival an opportunity to highlight that the Day of the Dead is not simply Mexican Halloween.

"It's a very different holiday, in which we remember and honor the dead," Borges said.

Although the modern holiday is deeply ensconced in Catholicism, it traces its roots to the indigenous people of Mexico, and similar festivals celebrating life through contemplation of the dead predate the arrival of Europeans.

The holiday is marked each year on Nov. 1 and 2, All Saints' Day and All Souls' Day. The former is a commemoration of saints and is also known as All Hallows, from which the name Halloween, celebrated on All Hallows Eve, derives its name. The latter commemorates the faithful dead.

In most parts of Mexico, Nov. 1 is the day children and infants who have died are remembered. It is sometimes called the day of the innocents. The second day is traditionally when adults who have died are remembered.

One of the ways this is done is through ofrendas, which literally translates to offering, which are displays, ostensibly offerings to the spirits of the departed, including their favorite things and refreshment, such as water and salt. In practice, they act as memorials and can tell onlookers much about the person or people they honor.

"We'll have the traditional ofrendas ; in fact, the center is setting up its own ofrenda ahead of time to get the word out," Borges said. "We've noticed this year that in addition to the older, more established groups putting together ofrendas, we have a lot of youth groups signed up to do them."

Ricardo Reyna, an instructor in the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, film department, plans to help the Latino Youth Leadership Alumni set up a display. He said the Latino Youth Leadership Conference invites about 100 graduating high school seniors and juniors to UNLV for a week of programs, including leadership workshops.

"Basically they get a preview of college life," Reyna said. "Getting Latino students into college and getting them to stay through graduation is a huge problem in the community, and the group tries to help out with that."

The alumni of the conference act as advisers and participate in community events, such as the festival.

The following weekend, at 7 p.m. Nov. 9 and 10, Reyna plans to perform his one-man show, "A Compandre Fiesta," at the center, and half of the $10-per-ticket proceeds are set to go to the group.

Another tradition unique to the Day of the Dead festival is Calveras, which translates as "skull," poems that satirize a person, reminding the audience that no matter how great people are, they will eventually have to face death. Originally the poems were short, humorous obituaries of those still living, but now they are often about people who have recently died.

"We've had some very creative entries this year," Borges said. "People have really written some great ones this year."

The festival also includes workshops and music and dance performances. Admission is free. Organizers note that parking is limited and carpooling is encouraged. For more information, visit clarkcountynv.gov or call 702-455-7340.

Contact Sunrise/Whitney View reporter F. Andrew Taylor at ataylor@viewnews.com or 702-380-4532.