Hispanic Heritage Month & Día de los Muertos
September 15 - October 15 & November 1
Paying tribute to Hispanic Americans of the Glendale community in a celebration of history and culture and in recognition of the community’s struggle for inclusion and equity.
DÍA DE LOS MUERTOS
Saturday, November 1, 2025 • 3:00 PM Face Painting • 4:00 PM - 7:00 PM Festivities
Central Library • 222 East Harvard Street • Glendale, CA 91205
Join the City of Glendale and Glendale Library, Arts & Culture for the annual Día de Los Muertos festivities.
Coaxochitl Aztec Dancers
Ballet Folklorico Mexico Azteca
Miramonte Elementary Little Kids Rock
Bilingual Storytime
Day of the Dead or Día de Los Muertos is a Mexican holiday that is celebrated in different parts of the world on November 1st and 2nd. Día de Los Muertos is a colorful celebration of life that reunites the living and the dead. Families build ofrendas to honor and welcome their beloved departed family members.
Glendale Día de Los Muertos: Where Culture Builds Community
The story of Glendale’s Día de Los Muertos began in July 2017, when five members of the Glendale Latino Association and the City Clerk’s Office gathered with one goal, to find new ways to connect and empower Glendale’s Latino community. They knew that culture brings people together, and that through celebration comes understanding. Día de Los Muertos, with its colors, music, and meaning, was the perfect bridge between community engagement and cultural pride.
That November, with only $350 and a lot of corazón, the first DDLM came to life at the Pacific Park Library. The shelves were dressed in papel picado and flores de cempasúchil. Families painted sugar skulls, enjoyed chocolate caliente y conchitas, and listened to bilingual stories. Nearly 400 people came, proving that this was just the beginning of something special.
By 2018, the celebration had grown into a citywide festival on Artsakh Paseo, supported by the City Council and joined by local artists, nonprofits, and volunteers. Attendance soared to over 2,000 people, filling the streets with music, art, and laughter. Each year brought new ideas; community altars, live performances, and educational booths reflecting Glendale’s diversity and heart.
When the pandemic hit, the spirit of DDLM didn’t fade. Instead, the team created an altar honoring the people of Artsakh and Armenia, and the library hosted a virtual celebration, keeping the community connected through creativity and care.
Today, Glendale Library, Arts & Culture continues the tradition through its Be The Change initiative, celebrating inclusion and unity. Each altar, each marigold, each story shared reminds us that Día de Los Muertos is not only about remembering the dead—it’s about celebrating life, together.
BILINGUAL ENGLISH-SPANISH STORYTIMES - CUENTOS INFANTILES EN ESPAÑOL
Friday, September 19 • 10:30 AM - 11:00 AM • Central Library
Friday, October 17 • 10:30 AM - 11:00 AM • Central Library
Friday, November 14 • 10:30AM - 11:00AM • Central Library
Join us for books and fun in Spanish & English.
Birth - 8 years.
This program is designed for families to enjoy global language picture book read-aloud sessions with your Glendale Children's staff. Birth - 8 years.
YARN PAINTING
Wednesday, September 24 • 4:30 PM - 5:30 PM • Central Library
Use colorful yarn to “paint” bold patterns and designs in the style of Wixárika (Huichol) artists from Central/Western Mexico. Ages 7 – 12 years.
CALAVERA COOKIE DECORATING
Tuesday, October 28 • 2:30 PM - 4:00 PM • Pacific Park Library
Thursday, October 30 • 4:30 PM - 6:00 PM • Library Connection
Decorate a sugar cookie in a fun and festive holiday design of your choice. Drop in while supplies last. Ages 3 – 12 years.
DIA DE LOS MUERTOS FELT DESIGNS
Wednesday, October 29 • 1:00 PM - 5:00 PM • Casa Verdugo Library
In celebration of Día de los Muertos design a felt wallet or small bag. While supplies last. Ages 5 – 12 years.
TWEEN MAKER AFTERNOONS
Have fun at these creative workshops and celebrate Hispanic Heritage with a different theme each month. While supplies last.
Ages 9 – 12 years.
MAKE A PAPEL PICADO GARLAND
Wednesday, September 17 • 4:30 PM - 5:30 PM • Central Library • Ages 9 – 12 years.
MAKE A PAPER ROLL MINI ALTAR
Wednesday, October 15 • 4:30 PM - 5:30 PM • Central Library • Ages 9 – 12 years.
TINKER, TAILOR MAKE: MUERTOS PEG DOLLS
Monday, October 27 • 3:00 PM - 4:00 PM • Pacific Park Library • Ages 9 – 12 years.
DIA DE LOS MUERTOS MARIGOLD PAPER FLOWERS
Monday, September 22 • 4:00 PM - 6:00 PM • Casa Verdugo Library
Wednesday, October 15 • 4:00 PM - 5:00 PM • Montrose Library
Wednesday, October 22 • 4:00 PM - 5:00 PM • Montrose Library
Monday, October 27 • 4:00 PM - 6:00 PM • Casa Verdugo Library
Join us to make paper marigold flowers for our Día de Los Muertos 2025 celebration at the Glendale Central Library on November 1. Your creations will decorate the Central Library, and you’ll receive community service credit for making a positive contribution to the Glendale community. Ages 13-18.
Be The Change by exploring these booklists about the Hispanic community:
¿Le gustaría tener acceso a infinidad de contenidos digitales de temáticas variadas y en multiformato en un solo clic?
¡Ahora es posible con Odilo!
Local Resources
¡Adelante Latinos! is an all-volunteer committee within the Glendale Unified School District dedicated to the advancement, support and success of all students of Hispanic/Latinx heritage in our schools.
Glendale Latino Association’s mission is to provide scholarships to local students who have demonstrated educational excellence and extraordinary citizenship, promote activities that improve education, and bring together businesses and professionals.
La Plaza de Cultura y Artes honors the past, inspires the future, and recognizes the enduring cultural influence of Mexicans, Mexican Americans and all Latinas/Latinos in Los Angeles through transformative exhibitions, programming and educational experiences.
Los Angeles Conservancy: Latinx Heritage
Read about the Eastside as an epicenter for pivotal social and cultural movements in the Latinx community.
Glendale Community College Multicultural & Community Engagement Center
The Multicultural & Community Engagement Center (MCEC) at Glendale Community College is dedicated to helping our campus build a culture of acceptance and inclusion through engagement.
The mission of Mujeres de Maiz (women of the corn) is to bring together and empower diverse women and girls through the creation of community spaces that provide holistic wellness through education, programming, exhibition and publishing. As an inter-cultural, intergenerational and interdisciplinary collective they have made that space from the stage to the page, the gallery to the streets, and ceremony and wellness world for women of color by sharing their own specific blend of mind, body, spirit and cultural work.
Self Help Graphics & Art fosters the creation and advancement of new artworks by Chicana/o and Latinx artists through experimental and innovative printmaking techniques and other visual art forms. We are an organization rooted in community, and since 1973, have been at the intersection of arts and social justice, providing a home that fosters the creativity and development of local artists. We establish international collaborations and partnerships nation-wide and create world-wide cultural exchanges.
Riverside Art Museum- The Cheech
The Cheech is a “center of Chicano art, not only for painting, but for sculpture, photography, and video arts.” The 61,420-square-foot center will house hundreds of paintings, drawings, photographs, and sculptures by artists including Patssi Valdez, Sandy Rodriguez, Carlos Almaraz, Frank Romero, and Gilbert “Magú” Luján.
