A look at one of the Northwest’s only Day of the Dead parades

While many cities in the Northwest celebrate Day of the Dead, few have Day of the Dead parades. One exception is Walla Walla. 

The small city, where roughly a quarter of residents are Hispanic or Latino, held its second annual Day of the Dead parade on Sunday. 

A mariachi band, dancers, lowriders and a giant skeleton floated down Main Street. The festivities culminated in the renovated Heritage Square, where there was free face painting, musical and dance performances, and vendors selling tamales and light-up balloons.  

A Catrina, riding a horse and holding a chihuahua, kicks off Walla Walla’s Day of the Dead parade.
(Credit: Susan Shain / NWPB)

Manny Perez, the owner of Grandma’s Kitchen, a Mexican restaurant in downtown Walla Walla, organized the event. 

“Mexico City started their own Day of the Dead parade,” Perez said. “And now it’s everywhere. So why not Walla Walla?”  

It’s been 18 years since Perez, whose family is from Mexico City, came to Walla Walla. At first, he and his mother ran a small food stand at the farmers market. Later, they opened Grandma’s Kitchen, which showcases recipes that have been in their family for decades. 

Around 10 years ago, Perez set up an ofrenda, or Day of the Dead altar, in the restaurant’s basement. When people started asking Perez questions about it, he printed a small flier with more information. 

Perez said that Day of the Dead is his culture’s way of honoring loved ones who have passed away. He wants to share that tradition with the community. 

About a dozen lowriders drove down Main Street as part of Walla Walla’s Day of the Dead parade.
(Credit: Susan Shain / NWPB)

“It’s not a scary time of the year,” Perez said. “It’s a day to be happy, celebrate. It’s also another way to be in peace with yourself with those who already left and you didn’t have the opportunity to say what you want to say to them.”

Perez hosted Walla Walla’s first Day of the Dead parade in 2023. “I didn’t know what I was getting into,” he joked. The parade took almost a year of planning, between finding people to participate, getting permits to close down Main Street, arranging sponsors and vendors, and advertising the event. 

But Perez did it again this year. To him, the support from the community has made it worth the effort. 

“I’m really proud that I’m the first one to put a parade on in this particular part of the map,” Perez said. “And especially in Walla Walla, which has been giving us a lot and has wrapped us, my whole family, with their big arms. So, why not give something to them that we love so much?”

People gather to watch a mariachi band perform in Heritage Square as part of Walla Walla’s Day of the Dead celebration. (Credit: Susan Shain / NWPB)

Daniela Torres, who works in community outreach for Seattle’s Mexican consulate, has attended Walla Walla’s parade both years. She said it’s the only Day of the Dead parade that the consulate had been invited to attend. 

At this year’s parade, Torres said she was pleasantly surprised by the number of non-Mexicans who were in attendance. “Probably they don’t know what’s going on with this kind of event, but they want to know what we’re celebrating,” she said.

Torres noted that such parades are especially meaningful for the many Mexican expats who haven’t been home for long periods of time. “It’s a little part of Mexico that is still here in the United States,” she said. “That’s lovely.” 

In future years, Perez said he hopes Walla Walla’s Day of the Dead parade grows in size and attendance, so that he can share the holiday’s ethos with more and more Northwesterners. 

Death “is gonna happen,” he said. “Let’s leave really good memories because the day our loved ones or people forget about us, I believe that’s the day that we really die.”