Posted on Oct 31, 2023
For this Kansas City family, lost loved ones are never truly lost on Dia de los Muertos
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For the Palacio family, Dia de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, is a chance to reintroduce lost loved ones to a world that never got to meet them. Using one of the holiday’s most well known traditions, the building of the ofrenda, the family creates intimate glimpses into the lives of those who have passed on.
The sounds of Latin music and sizzling grills filled the air on the chilly first Friday in October, as hundreds of Kansas City residents gathered at the Mattie Rhodes Cultural Center in the city’s historic Westside neighborhood. Crowds of multi-generational families fought off the evening’s dropping temperature by exchanging intimate greetings and warm embraces.
It was Mattie Rhodes' 25th annual Dia de los Muertos Family Festival, the first of dozens of celebrations that would happen before and after the holiday, which is traditionally observed on November 1 and 2.
As the crowd wandered through the event, a handful of families stood beside a row of cars which lined 17th Street. In the opened trunks of each car sat intricately decorated shrines, covered in the traditional arrangements of orange marigolds and calaca skulls, known as ofrendas.
The sounds of Latin music and sizzling grills filled the air on the chilly first Friday in October, as hundreds of Kansas City residents gathered at the Mattie Rhodes Cultural Center in the city’s historic Westside neighborhood. Crowds of multi-generational families fought off the evening’s dropping temperature by exchanging intimate greetings and warm embraces.
It was Mattie Rhodes' 25th annual Dia de los Muertos Family Festival, the first of dozens of celebrations that would happen before and after the holiday, which is traditionally observed on November 1 and 2.
As the crowd wandered through the event, a handful of families stood beside a row of cars which lined 17th Street. In the opened trunks of each car sat intricately decorated shrines, covered in the traditional arrangements of orange marigolds and calaca skulls, known as ofrendas.
For this Kansas City family, lost loved ones are never truly lost on Dia de los Muertos
Posted from kcur.org
Kansas City
Culture
Mexico
Heritage
Holidays
Posted 6 mo ago
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PO1 William "Chip" Nagel
..."In the personal ofrenda Dominic’s family builds for Dominic every year, the teenager appears as a bright, happy young man. The altar is draped in old basketball jerseys, garnished with small boxes of Chinese takeout. It's covered in photos of Dominic laughing with people who loved him.
A blue T-shirt printed with the words, "I AM DOM" sits on a table beside the shrine, representing the non-profit Yvette and Manuel started in honor of Dominic. The organization offers financial support to families with children battling cancer.
“They’re able to help people who probably wouldn't be helped otherwise,” said Monica Palacio, Dominic’s aunt. “I think that's amazing. They are definitely continuing Dominic's life through the work they've done with that foundation.”
Monica has been helping her family set up their ofrendas, both publicly and privately, for years. She’s seen how they can help a family let go of some of their grief, making space for a celebration of those they’ve lost.
She believes this is what makes so many people, inside and outside of Latino communities, connect with Dia de los Muertos.
“Honoring and remembering each individual who’s on these altars,” she said. “Keeping the things that they did throughout their lifetime on the ofrenda. People outside of our culture just gravitate towards that. It brings them in and helps them to be part of and celebrate us.”
..."In the personal ofrenda Dominic’s family builds for Dominic every year, the teenager appears as a bright, happy young man. The altar is draped in old basketball jerseys, garnished with small boxes of Chinese takeout. It's covered in photos of Dominic laughing with people who loved him.
A blue T-shirt printed with the words, "I AM DOM" sits on a table beside the shrine, representing the non-profit Yvette and Manuel started in honor of Dominic. The organization offers financial support to families with children battling cancer.
“They’re able to help people who probably wouldn't be helped otherwise,” said Monica Palacio, Dominic’s aunt. “I think that's amazing. They are definitely continuing Dominic's life through the work they've done with that foundation.”
Monica has been helping her family set up their ofrendas, both publicly and privately, for years. She’s seen how they can help a family let go of some of their grief, making space for a celebration of those they’ve lost.
She believes this is what makes so many people, inside and outside of Latino communities, connect with Dia de los Muertos.
“Honoring and remembering each individual who’s on these altars,” she said. “Keeping the things that they did throughout their lifetime on the ofrenda. People outside of our culture just gravitate towards that. It brings them in and helps them to be part of and celebrate us.”
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