West Valley’s UCCC to welcome Day of the Dead celebration

A unique celebration of Mexican heritage comes to West Valley

With decorations of skeletons, skulls, altars and offerings for the dead, you might think that West Valley’s Utah Cultural Celebration Center is celebrating Halloween a few days late. However, the center, located at 1355 West 3100 South, will instead be hosting The Day of the Dead.

The traditional Mexican holiday, which commemorates the spirits of those who have died, will take place on Nov. 2 from 6 to 9 p.m.

“The Day of the Dead is a holiday with important cultural significance in Mexico,” folklorist and cultural specialist Michael Christensen said. “One of the largest and fastest-growing minority populations in Utah is of Hispanic and Latino descent. We knew the holiday is significant in people’s lives.”

The Day of the Dead provides an opportunity for families and friends to pay respects and remember those that have died. The holiday takes place across two days and nights, Nov. 1 and 2. The first night is for children and the second is for adults.

In Mexico, families build altars, either in public places or at the gravesite of a loved one, which they decorate with flowers, food, drinks and other crafts. It is believed that the spirits of the dead will return to these altars during the celebration.

The Cultural Celebration Center, in partnership with the nonprofit organization Una Mano Amiga, has constructed an altar that will be on display at the center through Nov. 3. The altar display and the Day of the Dead celebration are free to the public.

“The altars are tremendously popular and significant,” Christensen said. “We will have a community altar in our gallery, but often families in Mexico will make altars inside their homes to pay the same respects.”

The unique macabre décor that fills the center during the celebration makes the display, according to Christensen, a one-of-a-kind experience. “Some visitors are quite taken aback when they see the displays of skulls and skeletons,” he said. “But once the holiday is explained to them, they understand the concept.”

One of the most common symbols used during The Day of the Dead is the skull. Not only do holiday participants commonly create food in the shape of skulls, bones and skeletons, but they also frequently paint their faces or wear skull-shaped masks known as calacas.

Even though some of the decorations might be similar, The Day of the Dead and Halloween are quite different. “Rather than being scary, gruesome, or even dark, the holiday pays respect and honors the dead,” Christensen said. “Death is not something to be feared, but something to accept as a part of life.”

This year will mark the eighth year that the Utah Cultural Celebration Center will host the Day of the Dead celebration. Those who attend the event Nov. 2 will be able to enjoy traditional Mexican food, music, dancing and crafts for adults and children.