The 7th annual Celebration of Day of the Dead will be in Clemson University on Friday, November 1, 2024. This event will be free and open to everyone.

Food trucks will offer a wide variety of options, and face-painting will be available. While most vendors accept credit cards, organizers suggest bringing cash just in case. Guests are also encouraged to dress warmly and bring a blanket or chair to picnic on the grass.

Parking is free in the green and orange spaces behind Sikes Hall, parking lot E6 on this map.

A Catrina — a giant skeleton in elegant dress — will again be on display, along with an altar exhibit and a live mariachi band. Guests are encouraged to bring pictures or mementos to leave in honor of deceased loved ones.

It is also tradition to offer their favorite food or drink, which is thought to be an enticement for spirits of the dead to return to the realm of the living for a night, making el Día de los Muertos a joyful celebration of life.

This year’s sponsors include the Clemson University Commission on Latino Affairs; the College of Arts and Humanities; the Division of Community, Engagement, Belonging and Access; Clemson Libraries; the Department of Languages; the College of Engineering, Computing, and Applied Sciences; the Office of the Provost; the South Carolina Botanical Garden; the Bob & Betsy Campbell Museum of Natural History; the Department of Visual Arts; Clemson’s Student Government Council of Diversity Affairs; the Hispanic Alliance; and the Consulate General of Mexico in Raleigh.