Dead get their day in downtown Modesto as community celebrates Mexican holiday

The dead were living it up in downtown Modesto on Saturday.

The annual Dia de los Muertos celebration — Day of the Dead — returned to Tenth Street Plaza and nearby J Street as the traditional Mexican holiday, officially celebrated on Oct. 31-Nov. 2, was marked with music, dance, colorful dress and more.

Presented by the American GI Forum, Dia de los Muertos featured a daylong festival and family friendly events, with vendors, street performers, a car show and pageants featuring Catrin and Catrina — traditional icons of the holiday. A procession of coffins to honor the dead also marked the event in the afternoon.

The community was invited to join in the celebration that remembers departed loved ones every year. Altars were set up and activities for children were offered during the free event.

A crowd gathered in the afternoon around folklorico dancers as they entertained those attending, including many — young and older — who roamed the plaza with faces painted as ornately decorated skulls.

This story was originally published October 20, 2018 at 5:07 PM.