Day of the Dead altars keep tradition alive

Courtesy photo/Vicky Lowe

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The theme of this year Day of the Dead altar display at the Utah Cultural Celebration Center theme is "Si muero lejos de ti" (If I Die Far From You), inspired by a phrase from the popular Mexican song "Mexico Lindo y Querido."

SALT LAKE CITY — Ever since she was a little girl growing up in her hometown in the state of Chiapas, Mexico, Vicky Lowe has created altars for the annual Day of the Dead to honor her loved ones who have passed away.

“I used to go to the cemetery with my grandparents to clean and decorate the gravesites, where we used to place altars,” said Lowe, now an activist and educator at the Madeleine Choir School.

Day of the Dead altars, known as ofrendas in Spanish, are designed to be placed during the celebrations Nov. 1-2 to honor the dead. In the Catholic Church, these days mark the feasts of All Saints and All Souls, respectively.

The Day of the Dead celebration is based on the belief that the souls of loved ones come back during that time.

When Lowe arrived in Utah, she found no one who celebrated the tradition, and she saw no altars anywhere. When her grandparents passed away eight years ago, she was unable to visit their graves due to the distance. Lowe felt the need to find a way to honor their lives. She decided there was no better way than setting and designing an altar in their honor, but it wasn’t until 2015 that she was able to share that tradition in a community setting.

“I wanted my students and their families to learn more and celebrate this tradition, so we joined forces and ideas and the altars started being a tradition at the school,” she said.

Besides being a learning experience, through the ofrendas the community was able to unite through their connections and cultural memories.

In 2016, Lowe received an invitation from the Utah Cultural Celebration Center to create a public display of ofrendas.

“These altars are dedicated to create awareness about important social issues that are going on in the United States, in our countries of origin and in the world,” Lowe said.

The choir school community as well as friends contribute ideas, material and time to Lowe as she creates the ofrendas.

“As we go on, we are building our own community,” she said. “We cooperate, we have fun, we help each other and remember the people that we love, the interest, that we care,” she said.

One of the most important aspects is the “respect that we create about life, about how everyone deserves respect, and about how our cultural traditions strengthen our identities,” she said.

As the Day of the Dead approaches each year, Lowe starts thinking about issues that are affecting the community. Then she invites the students and their families to contribute their ideas.

“I take notes, and little by little the idea for our next altar is born,” she said.

Keeping cultural traditions and identity alive is important, because “our young generations need to know about diversity, and how keeping traditions alive is an important part of who they are,” she said. “We need to make our cultural identities present and visible.”

Creating a Day of the Dead altar is just one way to do this, she said.

“We are very fortunate to be able to continue this tradition here in Utah,” she said.

This year’s Utah Cultural Celebration Center altar was designed based on a line from a popular Mexican song “Mexico Lindo y Querido.”

“This song refers to dying away from one’s home, family and even homeland. In this altar, we seek to commemorate all those who have died far from their families and countries of origin,” said Lowe.

Many immigrants die on their journey to the United States, or family members aren’t able to return home for the funeral when loved ones die.

“Families of those who die while living in the United States are not always able to provide a proper ceremony according to their tradition, often because of fear of being removed from the country or having to relocate,” Lowe said. “Many immigrants have also lost loved ones back in their countries and have not been able to be there to say goodbye. Many, many families will never be able to visit their dead loved ones who are on either side of the U.S./Mexico border. Even more tragic is the number of children who have died while in the custody of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.”