Mexico celebrates a yearly tradition called Day of the Dead during the last days of October and the first days of November. Due to the duration of this festivity and the way people get involved it has been called "The Cult of Death."

Mary J. Andrade is a native of Ecuador. She established her residence in the United States in 1967. She received her B.A. in Journalism from the University of Guayaquil, Ecuador and specialized in photography in the United States. In 1978, she and her husband Frank founded the bilingual newspaper La Oferta. This weekly publication circulates in San Jose, California.