Please join us for the annual procession lead by Rescue Culture Collective on Monday, November 2, 2009 at 7pm at 24th & Bryant Streets, in the Mission District of San Francisco.

The procession will end in Garfield Park at the Festival of Altars at 8:30pm at 26th & Harrison Streets.

If you are interested in creating an altar, please visit our Get Involved page.

The Day of the Dead Festival of Altars needs your help! This year, the San Francisco Police Department and San Francisco Recreation and Park Department have raised our fees for the Garfield Park permit. This is a mandatory expense to our modest budget and we are asking for any contributions to help cover these costs. No amount is too small. Please donate if you would like to see this community tradition continue, we cannot do it without your support!

Dia de los Muertos is a traditional Meso-American holiday dedicated to the ancestors; it honors both death and the cycle of life. In Mexico, neighbors gather in local cemeteries to share food, music, and fun with their extended community, both living and departed. The celebration acknowledges that we still have a relationship with our ancestors and loved ones that have passed away.

In San Francisco, Day of the Dead has been celebrated since the early 70s with art, music, performances and a walking procession, which help us contemplate our existence and mortality -- a moment to remember deceased friends and family, and our connections beyond our immediate concerns.

Click Here for a multimedia piece by Kimberly Castillo and Rafael Daly about Dia de los Muertos in San Francisco

EVENT GUIDELINES

We encourage people to bring mementos and candles to celebrate their loved ones. Please bring candles that are in glass containers, we cannot have any open flame votives or candles at the park.

This is a family friendly event. Friendly reminder: drinking and smoking are not allowed on Recreation and Park property.

We will provide trash barrels at the event, but if you live in the neighborhood, please help us by taking your trash home with you.

We ask that everyone to be respectful of one another and towards the Recreation & Park staff as well as the San Francisco Police Department. If you see something that needs to be addressed on the night of the event, please come to the Marigold Project information table at the Garfield Park Clubhouse.

The Recreation and Park Department is asking that we stay off the soccer field and the children's playground.

The event ends at 11:30pm. Please help us, by picking up trash and by leaving the park promptly.

PROCESSIONAL ROUTE

MAP

STARTS at 24th & Bryant
Walk on Bryant
Right on 25th st (Garfield Park on Left)
Right on Mission (Mission Cultural Center on Left)
Right on 24th st
Right onto Harrison
END at Garfield Park (26th & Harrison)