With the help of PTPA, the school held its annual Dia De Los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, chapel on Nov. 2. For the celebration, the chapel’s Narthex is filled with altars topped with marigolds and framed photos of the passed relatives of the school community.

“I felt honored to play a role in this year’s Dia De Los Muertos convocation as it is an overlooked holiday that has significant meaning to many people, but is only recognized by the few students who have grown up celebrating it,” said senior Rodrigo Pontes, a member of the student vestry.

Originating in Mexico, Dia De Los Muertos is a holiday that “acknowledges the symbiotic relationship between life and death,” according to the Mexican Museum. Those that celebrate the holiday believe that the spirits of their passed loved ones “return home and spend time with their relatives on these two days.”

During the chapel, the names of faculty and staff’s passed relatives are memorialized. For junior Lola Sardon, these moments remind her about her grandfather who passed a few years ago.

“On the Day of the Dead … as a tradition, my Grandma has an altar set for him each year, and our family comes together to celebrate his memory,” Sardon said.

At the end of the chapel, Chaplain Mary Ellen Cassini shared a video of the song “Remember Me,” from the animated film Coco, which is about a boy who visits the “Land of the Dead” during the Dia de los Muertos celebration.

“To me, Dia De Los Muertos means to honor our ancestors and to think about all the wonderful people that went before us and how our lives are so blessed by their sacrifice and how much they care for us and I believe that their spirits are still around us,” Cassini said.