The dead live on in memory at the Moravida Festival

MOSES LAKE — This world and the next came together Saturday at the Moravida Festival at the Grant County Fairgrounds. 

This is the third year the fairgrounds has held the festival, said Fairgrounds Coordinator Rebecca Martinez, and although she didn’t have verified numbers, she said it appeared to be the best-attended. 

The event is based on the traditional Mexican Día de Muertos, or Day of the Dead, usually celebrated in the first couple of days of November, when families remember those who have passed on and keep their memory alive. Local families brought flowers, candles and photos of their deceased loved ones for a communal altar, and some families had put out larger displays, called ofrendas, in memory of their family members. 

“It's a day that they really (hold sacred) for their loved ones that they lost,” said Maria Avila, who was visiting an ofrenda in memory of her niece, who passed away in a car accident last year. “They eat all day with them in their grave sites or homes, they set up big shrines for them. In Mexico, this is huge. They have parades and the whole city set up for Day of the Dead.” 

“This was the first year that we filled the entire building and all the shelves that are available,” Martinez said. “We had to add some last-minute tables just to be able to accommodate everybody that wanted to put up an ofrenda.” 

Besides the shrines, there was a continual schedule of entertainment in the 4-H building, including singers, musicians both local and traveling. The Mount Vernon Mariachi y Folklórico made the trip over from the west side to perform, and Kataleya Garcia of Quincy performed as well.  

The Ag Building held a variety of craft vendors, and there were food vendors and children’s games in the field outside. 

Planning for the event began back in the spring, Martinez said. Her seven-person committee reached out on social media for families who wanted to memorialize their loved ones and contacted some who had also participated in past years. 

“We're just happy that we've been able to keep it going and provide this great cultural event for the community,” she said. 

Moravida Committee 

Anita Reyna 

Alexandrea Hipolito 

Guillermo Hermosillo 

Noemi Garcia 

Jerry De La Rosa 

Lupe De La Rosa 

Madeline Sánchez 

    Crystal Hitt, left, and Vira Ortiz visit an ofrenda at the Moravida festival Saturday at the Grant County Fairgrounds. The ofrendas are shrines set up to remember family members who have passed on in the traditional Mexican Día de Muertos celebration.
  

    Julie Whitworth and her children Elle, 7 and Everett, 4, look over an ofrenda at the Moravida Festival Saturday. Many children came to the event in their Halloween costumes.
  

    Singer Mari Vela performs at the Moravida Festival Saturday.
  

    The communal altar at the Moravida Festival held flowers, candles and photos of the deceased.