All students experience homesickness at some point. Fabian Camacho remembers as a freshman feeling lonely and searching for community that felt like home. Those feelings inspired him to bring a piece of his culture to campus and invite others to share in it.
Now a senior elementary education major, Camacho received a grant from the McPherson College Horizon Fund to build an ofrenda to celebrate Dia de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, a traditional Mexican holiday beginning on November 1. The ofrenda, located in the Miller Library lobby, is a shrine created to honor family members and loved ones who have died.
Ofrendas often include photos, candles, marigolds, and decorations. Camacho’s ofrenda features all those elements, along with spaces for anyone to display a photo of a loved one or even a pet. Dia de los Muertos, he explains, is about celebrating, honoring, and remembering those who have passed.
“Even though it’s a Mexican holiday, anyone can contribute to this,” Camacho said. “The one thing that unites us is death and loving people we have lost. I thought this was a way not only to share my culture with the community but also for people to come together and do something special.”
The ofrenda will be on display in the library through Nov. 10 and is open to anyone who wishes to place a photo in remembrance of someone they’ve lost.