Day of the Dead, Canoga Park, Nov. 1 + 2, 2008

by Donna Mercer

This is the third year our AOAT students have volunteered at various Day of the Dead events, with this year’s group participating in Canoga Park at two separate festivals. Saturday night, Nov. 1, Ms. Salehyar and a contingent of students helped with face painting and crafts at the Canoga Park Youth Art Center. This venue sponsors their own party every year, free to the community, and also organizes the children’s area at the Sherman Way festival on Sunday. The Sunday event was also a smash success, with about a dozen students and teachers doing face painting and supervising other crafts from 10 am straight through to helping with clean-up at 5 pm! Ms Salehyar, Mrs. Mercer, Mrs. Irilian, and Mr. De Gracia all took time away from their weekends to enjoy the beautiful weather and the grateful customers who lined up for the long wait to get a free, fabulous full-face skull or other design. We all had fun, and the happy faces of our finished “works of art” were such a rewarding return for our time and creative efforts!