Balch Springs cemetery hosts Día de los Muertos with altars, mariachi and marigolds

At Laurel Oaks Memorial Park in Balch Springs, families went to the cemetery to remember relatives and friends. Some stood in silence, others gathered to mariachi music, and gravesites were decorated with altars, bright orange marigolds and favorite foods. NBC 5 DFW's Maria Guerrero reported that families were doing the same at cemeteries across Dallas-Fort Worth over a two-day stretch.

The celebration, Día de los Muertos, has roots in Mexican and Catholic traditions and coincides with All Souls' Day. It is built around the idea that departed loved ones briefly return, and marigolds, known as the flower of the dead, are believed to help guide their spirits home.

For Joshua Ferrer, the day offers a way to be near a brother he never had the chance to know. Ferrer said his younger brother Brandon died at birth, and he visits the resting place every November. "There's some loved ones you never got the chance to meet, but you feel a little closer," he said.

Emily Bearden, CEO and president of Laurel Oaks Funeral Home & Memorial Park, said the cemetery started its event after noticing that many Hispanic families already marked the day on their own. "We kind of just want to meet people where they are," she said. She described the gathering as family-friendly, with vendors, mariachi bands and face painters.

Ferrer's advice to anyone who visits a loved one's grave was simple: "Never forget the people who you have." Original reporting by NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth.