In honor of Dia de los Muertos, the Kentucky Folklife Program partnered with the Kentucky Museum and the WKU Department of Society, Culture, Crime, and Justice Studies to offer a community ofrenda at the Kentucky Museum. 

According to the Kentucky Folklore Program website, “Día de los Muertos or Day of the Dead is a Mexican/Mexican-American traditional holiday celebrated on the night of October 31st, and continuing through November 1st and November 2nd in which families remember their loved ones who have passed on with an altar, food, music, and togetherness.”

An ofrenda is a homemade offering or altar used to celebrate loved ones who have passed away. The folklore program’s website says, “The legend is that our loved ones who have passed return to these Ofrendas to celebrate life with the living.”

The Folklore program invites people to donate items for the ofrenda’s altar. These things, like pictures, sentimental items, fake foods and fake flowers, will be placed on the altar to display. A full list of items and how to donate them can be found on the program’s website.

The ofrenda was organized by folklore specialist Camille Acosta. Hailing from El Paso, Texas, Acosta is a WKU alumna with a master’s degree in folk studies.

She organized the ofrenda for the first time last year in the Pioneer Log Cabin. It was created out of Acosta feeling homesick.

“I was just missing home,” Acosta said.“I think you get these little moments of, ‘Man, I miss this. I miss the food, I miss the smells, I miss people.’ And I’ve always loved this tradition so deeply and there’s always been some semblance of an altar. Like in my home, or my grandparents’ home and things like that.”

Acosta’s father is an immigrant from Parral, Chihuahua, Mexico, who moved to El Paso, Texas. Her father ignited her love of folklore by raising Acosta and her brother with a connection to their Mexican heritage.

“My dad has always loved a scary story. My dad loves horror. He loves monsters. When me and my brother were younger he always used to tell us really terrifying stories. Just right before bed, here’s this terrifying story,” Acosta said to the Herald. “As I grew up, I started to realize I really love different cultures’ versions of horror and the way folklore transcends borders,”

One of Acosta’s aims with the ofrenda is to bring people together despite cultural differences.

“There is that semblance of togetherness that transcends borders and hatred, or what have you. And I think that’s exactly what these cultural traditions do, right? This ofrenda specifically does. It invites people to talk about, you know, who is this picture of your grandpa?” Acosta said. “That’s what this specific ofrenda does for the college population. For Kentucky, the commonwealth, in general: just start a conversation.”

The community ofrenda will be open Wednesday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Kentucky Museum until Saturday, November 2.

News Reporter Malone Farmer can be reached at [email protected].