El lucero

Club Estrella’s Monthly Newsletter

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September 2001

October 2002

Club Members:

Please inform me if you have a change of address and/or telephone number so our membership roster is accurate, and you can continue to receive a newsletter, and event information.

Direct your correspondence to:

Michelle L. Montalvo, Secretary

614 N. 11th Street, San Jose, CA 95112

Phone: 408.977-1773 e-mail:

Club Roster Addition: Paco & Margarita P

2002 Board of Directors

President – Chuck Hernandez

Vice President – Ralph Alvarez

Secretary – Michelle Montalvo

Treasurer – Ralph Jimenez

Festejos Director – Gloria Guel

Festejos Bar – Herb Chavoya

Festejos Tickets – Irene Wright

Festejos Food – Mollie Munoz

Sergeant at Arms – Martin Montalvo

Festejos Decorator – Mike Montalvo

Assistant Secretary – Katie Montalvo

Assistant Treasurer – Lucy Coppel

Assistant Food – Sarah Perea

Assistant Sergeant of Arms – Rick Chavoya

“Lifeand Death Are Not Contrary Worlds We are a singlestem with two twin flowers.”

Juan Rulfo

General Meeting, Friday, October 18, 2002, 6 PM,

Back Door Deli, De La Cruz,

San Jose, California

We Need Your Help Again! Since you did so well at selling tickets for our Tardeada – Let’s Have a RepeatPerformance for our

Octoberdance

October 19th
8:00 p.m.
Halloween Dance
Napredak Hall
Tickets
Will Be Available At the Door!

“Are You Here?” raffle last month was won by Gloria Guel.

This month’s prize is $15.00

Festejos Food Corner

FromManuel, Mollie, & Sara

Our menu for Octoberwill feature that favorite Witches Brew (beef stew), green salad, and dessert. Thedonation will be $5.00. If you plan on attending please contact Mollie at 408.736.7507or Sara Perea 510-487-3267. We want to be sure that we have plenty of food for everyone.

Health & Welfare – Lucy Coppel

Call me if you have any members to report who are sick or in the hospital. 650-949-4313.

Note: The Telephone Network is only responsible for calling about information regarding our members and their immediate family (children); all other extended family members do not require a phone call.

GOOD NEWS! No one reported any illness’this month.

General Meeting Issues

1. Building Fund

A motion to dissolve the Building Fund, made by Ralph Alvarez and seconded at last months meeting will be open for discussion and voted upon at the October meeting.

2. Nominating Committee

Volunteers will be askedfor, to serve on the Nominating Committee to come up with a slate of officers willing to run for next year’s board positions. Please consider serving on this committee.

Club Estrella’s 2002 Event Schedule

☻Friday, October18, 2002 – General Membership Meeting,

Back Door Deli

Reno Trip was cancelled due to lack of people signing up.

☻ Saturday, October 19,2002 – Halloween Dance at Napredak Hall with“Gray Wolf”playing your Mexicanfavorites & more. 8:00 – 12 p.m. PLEASE NOTE your decorator Mike Montalvo will be needing your help to decorate at 9:00 a.m. Your help will be very much appreciated!

☻Friday, November 15, 2002 – General Membership Meeting – Back Door Deli

December 7, 2002 – Christmas Dinner/Dance,

Orquesta Pacheco

December 31, 2002 –

New Year’s Eve Gala Dinner/Dance, Los Reyes

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September 2002

Day of the Dead – Dia de Los Muertos

Katie Montalvo

Excerpts from the wonderful, informative book written by Gina Hyams and presented to me by my daughter Michelle after I had constructed my first Dia de Los Muertos altar. I started mine three years ago after being inspired by a special exhibit at the Mexican Heritage Art Museum. It has truly made me feel closer to my dearly loved ancestors and encouraged me to seek further information about their lives.

“Day of the Dead celebrates the intimate, continuing relationship between the livingand the dead. Like the celebration of a birthday, it reconfirms annually the love, goodwill, and generosity that the beloved can count on, no matter that they are dead.”

In Western cultures, we tend to perceive death as the end of the world. Unexpected and invariably tragic, it’s the fate to be avoided at all costs. We cloak the occurrence in euphemisms, take a day or two off from work to attend the funeral, then try our best to buck up and move on with life. If we dwell too long on the loss of a loved one, we’re deemed morbid and irrational.

Mexicans, on the other hand, not only accept the inevitability of death, they embrace the power as being essential to the fabric of life,. As Octavio Paz wrote in THE LABYRINTH OF SOLITUDE. “The Mexican is familiar with death, jokes about it, caresses it, sleeps with it, celebrates it; it is one of his favorite toys and his most steadfast love.” For them, dying isn’t fatal; it’s part of the continuum of time and space. They celebrate Dia De losMuertos, Day of the Dead, an exuberant, sensual, remarkably life-affirming fiesta for the dead. The name of the holiday is actually misleading, as the ceremonies take place over three days, October 31 to November 2.

Both at home and at the cemeteriesfamilies construct elaborate altars called ofrendas to honor their ancestors. They adorn these altars with fragrant marigold blossoms, candles, photos, favorite foods of the deceased, candy skulls, and other symbolic items. The vibrant mix of colors, smells, flavors and potent nostalgia are meant to lure and guide the spirits back to earth for a family reunion. Offerings are made of things that especially pleased the dead in life – tequila, rhinestone earrings, silly comic books – so that theirsouls may brieflydelightin these pleasures once more.

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September 2002