Numerous photos of lost family members stood on three tiers of colorfully decorated tables, surrounded by bright paper flowers and the warm glow of candles. An ofrenda stood as both a memorial and a celebration, a reflection of love that continues beyond death.
Several student organizations hosted a Día de los Muertos event at the J. Wayne Stark Galleries in the Memorial Student Center on Wednesday Oct. 29, providing students a place to remember loved ones, make art and share cultural food.
Photos of family members, submitted before the event, were displayed on a large ofrenda, an altar-like display commonly used for the holiday, and several activity tables were present where attendees could create frames, paint and take part in crafts.
The celebration was organized by multiple student groups, such as the MSC Committee for the Awareness of Mexican-American Culture, or CAMAC, which combines cultural traditions with community support. Volunteers served traditional Mexican food, like conchas and champorado, while attendees made popsicle-frame photo holders, painted, created colorful paper flowers and participated in other arts-and-crafts activities connected to the holiday.
Visualization junior Kaylee Duran, a community affairs associate for the Hispanic Presidents’ Council said the event was meant to reframe grief as a celebration and to offer students a space to support each other. She described the ofrenda as the focal point of the event and emphasized the family atmosphere the organizers hoped to create.
“Día de los Muertos … is an event to commemorate those who are dead and just kind of moving on from grief to celebration,” Duran said. “It’s just a beautiful holiday where we can all celebrate together as a family, Aggies, to celebrate with one another and try to be there for one another.”
The ofrenda included photos of Aggies’ loved ones, and students said that assembling those images into the altar was a meaningful part of the evening. Accounting sophomore and MSC CAMAC Cultural Director Melissa Rodriguez said CAMAC focused on setting up the altar in a way that respected the tradition.
“It’s something that we sat down and took the time to make sure we’re representing accurately,” Rodriguez said. “We’re very thankful to have the opportunity to present and do [this].”
Activity stations gave students hands-on ways to remember the day by participating in traditional Día de los Muertos activities. Business management sophomore Leo Ruiz, director of multicultural development for the Multicultural Greek Council, or MGC, described the food and painting table his group helped bring to the galleries and noted the event’s role on a primarily white campus.
“[At] MGC … we help budget and bring in the money to bring the champorado … and then we also set up a painting table,” Ruiz said. “Día de los Muertos within itself to me means more than just a day in a calendar. It’s something that roots back historically to our Aztec blood … specifically at a [Predominantly White Institution], I think is really important.”
For many attendees, the event served as both a cultural connection and an opportunity for personal remembrance. Urban and regional planning freshman Adamaris Urquidi, a member of MSC CAMAC, said the gathering brought people together across backgrounds and reminded her of similar traditions from her home.
“I know for the Hispanic community, a big thing is just being together and just remembering our families. … This event … it just attracts people, it brings people together,” Urquidi said. “ … It helps spread the culture, the Hispanic culture to the whole campus and just helps people being together.”
The evening combined food, activities and a shared altar to create a space where students could stop for a moment, remember those close to them and celebrate together in Aggieland.
Organizers said they plan to continue offering Día de los Muertos events on campus to keep the cultural connection alive.
“It’s a happy thing. It’s a celebration of life,” Rodriguez said. “The fact that we’re able to mimic that through this event is all I could ask for.”
