Rainfall pitter-pattered on the plastic canopy as Como residents lit candles and ate bread in honor of Dia de Los Difuntos, or All Souls Day, Nov. 2, at the Lake Como Cemetery.
Jose Velasco, an eight-year neighborhood resident, reminisced on the celebration in his hometown of Mexico City.
“They put everything out. They put cigars, mezcal and pulque,” Velasco said in Spanish. “It’s a big celebration. They do it big.”
Velasco and his family, who live one block away from the Lake Como Cemetery, provided the canopies used to set up the altars. The Lake Como Cemetery Association organized the event for its diverse neighborhood residents.
Recently, the cemetery was designated as a historic site and received a marker by the Texas Historical Commission. (Cristian ArguetaSoto | Fort Worth Report) 
District 3 Councilmember Michael Crain talks to a representative from the office of District 90 state Rep. Ramon Romero Jr. (D- Fort Worth). Crain represents the district Como lies in. (Cristian ArguetaSoto | Fort Worth Report) 
An ofrenda, or offering, sits on a table at the Lake Como Cemetery Association’s All Souls Day celebration on Nov. 2. Traditionally, Mexican families put out a dead loved one’s favorite food on All Souls Day. (Cristian ArguetaSoto | Fort Worth Report) 
Father Chris Jambor, a priest at All Saints Episcopal Church, 5001 Crestline Road, blesses the food provided at the All Souls Day celebration on Nov. 2. (Cristian ArguetaSoto | Fort Worth Report) 
Jeremy Drake, a member of Legacy Lake Como, a nonprofit organization in charge of maintaining the Lake Como Cemetery, bows his head as a father blesses the ofrenda, or offering. (Cristian ArguetaSoto | Fort Worth Report) 
A decoration of a dead Xoloitzcuintle sits at an ofrenda, or offering, table. The Xoloitzcuintle dog is said to guide souls into the afterlife in Mexican lore. (Cristian ArguetaSoto | Fort Worth Report) 
A candle illuminates the space at Lake Como Cemetery on Nov. 2. (Cristian ArguetaSoto | Fort Worth Report) 
A guest lights a candle at the Lake Como Cemetery on Nov. 2. (Cristian ArguetaSoto | Fort Worth Report) 
Representative Ramon Romero Jr., who represents District 90, lights a candle while he eats a snack at the Lake Como Cemetery Association All Souls Day Celebration. (Cristian ArguetaSoto | Fort Worth Report) 
Candles light a path into the Lake Como Cemetery on Nov. 2. (Cristian ArguetaSoto | Fort Worth Report) 
Elouise Burrell, a Como resident, lights candles at an ofrenda, or offering, table. (Cristian ArguetaSoto | Fort Worth Report) 
The Lake Como Cemetery Association decorated two spaces, covered with plastic canopies, with traditional Mexican skulls, foods and drinks on Nov. 2. (Cristian ArguetaSoto | Fort Worth Report) 
The Lake Como Cemetery Association has been involved in maintaining the cemetery. (Cristian ArguetaSoto | Fort Worth Report)
All Souls Day, a Catholic and Mexican holiday, is a day to remember and honor those who have died with prayer, community and other traditions.
“My family on my mom’s side has relatives that are Mexican, Black Mexican, that stay in Mexico. They practice this religiously,” Jeremy Drake, Como resident and secretary for Legacy Lake Como, said. “I remember going down there as a kid. I grew up on both sides.”
Drake, who works on maintaining the cemetery, has Mexican family members and added he is accustomed to seeing Dia de Los Muertos, Day of the Dead, Dia de Los Difuntos, All Souls Day, and Dia de Los Santos, All Saints Day, celebrations.
The event attempted to reach the Hispanic community living in Como, Drake said.
“I was telling my friend that the cultures are kind of similar,” Drake said. “They have some things that they do, that we do, I mean, look at the food.”
Cristian ArguetaSoto is the community engagement journalist at the Fort Worth Report. Contact him by email or via Twitter. At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here.
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