Photo courtesy UTSA Institute of Texan Cultures This ofrenda was created by Willie Mendez to honor the deceased volunteers and docents at UTSA Institute of Texan Cultures.

Before Willie Mendez ever knew anything about ofrendas for Día de los Muertos, a co-worker at UTSA's Institute of Texan Cultures asked him to make one of the altars that honor the dead.

“I think they talked to us about it because since we were Mexican they thought, ‘Well, you guys know how to do altars,'.” said Mendez, an education specialist. “That wasn't true.”

Nine years later, he's been making ofrendas for everyone from San Antonio's Bongo Joe to those who died on Sept. 11.

Mendez likes to use items traditionally associated with ofrendas. There are the candles with pictures of saints, paper marigolds called “cempasuchil” to symbolize life, a main red candle with Jesus on it, painted ceramic skulls and papel picado, which is colored paper tissue usually of flowers and skulls. On the ground, there is a jar of mole, chocolate, bowls of plastic fruit and common Mexican foods. Pan de muertos is also laid out for the returning souls.

The ofrendas are a fusion of ancient Mexican culture and Catholic traditions.

Día de los Muertos, which is celebrated Nov. 1 and 2, spans back 2,000 years.

The first day is reserved for deceased infants and children. The second day, which is more popularly celebrated, is reserved for deceased adults.
 
The holiday was eventually adopted by the Catholic religion when the conquistadors landed in the Americas. Today, people embrace the holiday as a means of honoring those who have died. Their death is seen as a stage of life, not the end of life.

Personal items, such as someone's beeper and fingernail polish, are placed around the ofrenda that Mendez created this year, which also honors former volunteers and docents of the institute. To gather these materials, Mendez visits the families and friends of those he honors in his ofrendas.

For one instance, Mendez spoke with a co-worker who was the sole survivor of a plane crash that left 12 dead.

“It was really tough for him to talk about it because he had to relive the whole crash,” Mendez said. “I saw his emotion, and I thought ‘I wonder if I can help him with some of that emotional baggage that he's carrying.'.”

For Mendez, the ofrendas can be a way of connecting with other people.

“When you pass on, people want to know who you really were,” Mendez said. “And [the ofrenda] is where it all comes out,” Mendez said.

Emily Messer | 210SA