El Dia De Los Muertos in Special Collections / Program (2013)

Over the past 25 years, the University of Arizona Library has hosted several El Dia De Los Muertos programs and altar installations. Dr. Alba Nora Martinez, a professor in the Spanish Department was an early promoter of this programming, and I worked with her at the Main Library to produce at least two different programs and installations in the late 1990s, when I was Assistant to the Dean for Staff Development, Recruitment and Diversity. Years later, after I became coordinator of exhibits and events at Special Collections, I decided to have the programming revived. In 2013, I worked with three graduate students, Amy Vaterlaus, Stephen Curley and George Apodaca on the altar below. We made paper flowers and I purchased other materials for inclusion in it. They also gave very informative presentations about various aspects of the Mexican Day of the Dead traditions in Mexico and the United States. Justin Enriquez and Juan Aguilar provided musical entertainment and there were Mexican beverages like horchata and jamaica as well as pan de muerto, provided by La Estrella Bakery. It was a fun and memorable event!