Highland Park kicked off its Día de los Muertos celebration on Saturday, Oct. 24, drawing families to Jens Jensen Park in the Ravinia District for an opening party filled with mariachi music, sugar-skull face paint and a flower ceremony honoring the dead. The citywide celebration, now in its third year, runs through Sunday, Nov. 1, and for the first time stretches beyond downtown Highland Park into the Ravinia District.
The expansion is part of a broader buildout this year, according to Enjoy Highland Park, which notes that Día de los Muertos Week now includes 11 new experiences, seven of them free, ranging from guided art walks and fiestas to food tastings and family movie screenings. As reported by the Lake County News-Sun, the opening Saturday event featured a performance by Mariachi Mexico Vivo at Jens Jensen Park, drawing families from Highland Park and surrounding towns.
Meghan Meredith, manager of the Heller Nature Center and Rosewood Interpretive Center, told the News-Sun that leadership of the event transitioned to her over the past year and that many people contributed to pulling it together. She described Día de los Muertos as a time to remember loved ones, celebrate their lives and honor their memories. Meredith added that community events like this one remind people of shared connections across cultures and traditions.
Piñatas, Face Paint and a Proud Display of Heritage
Jessica Soto, superintendent of operations for the Park District of Highland Park, helped supervise two piñata-breaking opportunities for children during the festivities, the News-Sun reports. Soto said she enjoys watching community support for the event grow year after year. Among the attendees were 9-year-old Jaidy Cortez, a third-grader from Wheeling, and 3-year-old Valeria Vargas, also of Wheeling, while almost-12-year-old Marcus Gran, a sixth-grader from Highland Park, also joined in the celebration.
Eliza Gonzalez, who lives in Gurnee, wore traditional clothing and skull face painting to the opening event. She said representing her culture is important to her and that she is proud of her Mexican heritage. Brian and Hannah Bimschleger, who live in Highland Park with their children Sable, 6, and Rio, 3, also turned out for the celebration, with Brian carrying young Rio.
Brian Bimschleger said he wants his children to learn about different cultures and to respect other people. Hannah Bimschleger said the event matters to the fabric of their town's culture. Día de los Muertos itself is a tradition observed in Mexico and elsewhere in early November to honor heritage and deceased loved ones, according to the News-Sun.
A Week of Ofrendas, Chocolate and a Coco Screening
Beyond the opening celebration, Highland Park's weeklong slate includes ofrendas, or altars, along with dancing, crafting and Mexican hot chocolate throughout the week, per the News-Sun's account. A family screening of the 2017 animated film Coco is scheduled for Friday, and the week wraps with a free community ofrenda closing celebration on Sunday. According to the Park District of Highland Park, that Sunday gathering will offer an afternoon of remembrance, culture and community with traditional music, cultural activities and kid-friendly crafts.
Saturday's opening celebration, dubbed Tarde de Catrinas, was free and held at Jens Jensen Park, 486 Roger Williams Ave., per the Park District's event listing. Attendees were invited to dress as a Catrín or Catrina for a chance to win prizes. Enjoy Highland Park notes that the week is set to conclude on Nov. 1 with a separate, ticketed masquerade party at Pixca, distinct from the free community ofrenda event happening the same day.
Growing Interest Across the Region
The Park District's first Día de los Muertos celebration, held in 2022, drew an estimated 250 attendees and included an ofrenda, dance and musical performances, family bingo and skull face-painting, according to the Chicago Tribune. That inaugural event was moved indoors to West Ridge Center after a blustery, rainy forecast threatened the outdoor plans.
Interest in the holiday appears to be climbing elsewhere in the region as well. A Gail Borden Public Library ofrenda in Elgin received 378 photos this year, up from 270 the previous year, with its grand opening drawing 980 people, the Chicago Tribune reports. Flor Chavez, cited in that same report, credited some of the recent surge in popularity to the 2017 Disney/Pixar film Coco. The Elgin Symphony Orchestra also planned a Día de los Muertos concert for Thursday, Oct. 29, with $20 tickets, according to the Tribune's reporting.
Other Día de los Muertos events are unfolding across the Chicago area this week. La Casa Cultural Latina in Urbana planned a Nov. 1 celebration featuring art, music, snacks, altar tours and hands-on activities, per La Casa Cultural Latina. Spring Lake Cemetery in Aurora is hosting its own Nov. 1 gathering with a community ofrenda, music, vendors and food, according to Spring Lake Cemetery, which is inviting visitors to submit photographs of loved ones for the display with a suggested, nonrequired $10 donation per photo.
