City Heights Día de Muertos Celebration

City Heights Día Muertos celebration returns live, spirited, and vividly-hued to Jeremy Henwood Memorial Park, the long-time home of the event.

The second longest-running celebration in San Diego!
When: Oct. 30, 2021 from 1 p.m. - 5 p.m.
Candlelight Vigil @ 7 p.m. - 8 p.m.

Where: Jeremy Henwood Memorial Park (in front of the City Heights Weingart Library.) at 3795 Fairmount Ave. in City Heights.

Here are some highlights for this year’s event: Cultural entertainment and art making opportunities will be offered. Returning from previous years will be Drummers Without Borders featuring a giant puppet and lantern drum parade winding around the city block, The Old Globe brings another round of five short plays written and performed by community members, Mariachi Victoria, Chinuelo (Chinelo) masked dancers from Guerrero, Mexico, Radio Latina supports with sound equipment and an emcee.

Activities return such as maskmaking with San Diego Guild of Puppetry, and a drumming lesson session with Drummers Without Borders. Talks are being held to imagine and actualize a community-wide art project going on the entire day. Catrina and Catrin outfits are encouraged (a la Posada,) and a contest usually takes place. A candlelight vigil is planned for the evening.

New cultural groups participating will be Ballet Folkloric Xochipilli (SDSU), Majestic in Motion with two youth dance groups, Hoover High School Band, and Grupo Colibri, and there may be more cultural participants by the day of the event.

Always outstanding are the community altares set up by families and organizations. These have a sense of ritual and reverence combined with a degree of mirth. The paths are strewn with marigolds and greens, and a breeze carries the heady scent of flowers and pan de muerto. (Bread of the dead.) There is a splendid new logo, which will be available on tee shirts and more. Food will be available.

A free of cost community event started by the Residents’ Committee to continue the Mexican cultural holiday honoring the deceased family members and friends.

City Heights Día de Muertos Celebration is on Facebook