WESLACO — Painted skulls, candles and papel picado — these made up the little that some South Palm Gardens High School students knew of Día de Muertos.
At least that was before a group project tasked several talented teenagers with creating an altar of their own. Their inspiration: Selena Quintanilla-Pérez.
“They are not really familiar with Selena,” Melissa Seaver, a teacher at South Palm, said of the students in her Spanish class. “This is a whole different generation of kids, and some of these kids were born after she passed away. But their moms listened to her music and they hear their tias listening to Selena. When they saw my pictures here, because I put up an altar every year, they were like, ‘Miss, you like her too?’ So they decided to honor her for the Day of the Dead.”
The thousands-of-years-old custom, observed between Oct. 31 and Nov. 2, honors the dead by celebrating and praying for deceased loved ones. Translated in English into the Day of the Dead, Día de Muertos has also become synonymous with Catholic tradition, especially in the Mexican and Mexican-American cultures. Some present gifts, such as food or items the deceased enjoyed during their lifetime, as part of the commemoration.
For Seaver’s group, the customary yellow flowers that represent death, portraits and likenesses of the singer slain in 1995 adorned the altar.
“I did the drawings and two skulls … most of the artwork,” Miguel Belmares, 18, said of his role. “She (Selena) liked roses, so I put roses on the side of the skulls.”
Belmares’ work is impressive despite not having previous experience in arts and crafts. What’s more, he was compelled to participate because of a connection he felt to the cultural aspect of the holiday and his family’s background.
Lucy Zapata, 17, and her husband made the trip to Rio Bravo as part of their contribution. That’s where they found the papel picado — perforated paper — to use as the border for the altar.
Janette Romero pitched in toward the latter part of the effort by painting skulls and helping decorate the base. It was an experience that introduced her to more than Selena but the delicate process of creating an altar.
“I’ve always wondered how they do this,” Romero said of the papel picado. “I want to learn how to make it now, just because it looks so interesting.”
Helping research the Day of the Dead is Kayla Cox, 17, who volunteered to write an article about the students’ efforts.
“I think it’s interesting to explore our Mexican culture,” Cox said. “I’ve never really had an opportunity to learn about Día de los Muertos or anything, so I thought it would be fun.”
Seaver, a fan of Selena for more than 25 years, attributed the quality of work performed on the altar to her students’ talents.
“I have been a Selena fan for many years, and throughout the years I’ve collected pictures, I’ve collected memorabilia and every year I put up an altar,” Seaver prefaced. “But I never really had this idea. It was them that decided to go a little further and honor Selena and to learn more about the Day of the Dead.”
