11/12/2024
We love Nadia
I am Nadia Hagen Onuktav- I am the Artistic director for The All Souls procession - I took over form Susan johnson in 1998 and I have been creating this event with you and for you for 26 years.
How many folks here attend the procession?
Over 150,000 people attend the Procession and All Souls brings over 30 Million to the City of Tucson Annually.
MMOS raises the money and produces the event-
We are a small, grassroots, Non-profit.
Our Board is 90% women of color. We are Mexican and White, Asian and Balck and Middle-eastern- (that’s me- middle eastern)
We struggle and scrape and sacrifice each year to raise 150,000 dollars to close streets, pay for cops and port-0- potties.
We cannot do this every year without you.
This event has always teetered on the edge of financial disaster-
It doesn’t look like it, right?
It looks good- She looks good-
That’s called “THEATER” friends.
You turn s**t into Gold.
That’s alchemy.
You take paper and make flowers- You take paint and glue and make Beauty.
Here’s the hard truth.
All Souls will not be here if you don’t DONATE.
And here’s some more harsh love— If you don’t support us now-
One of three things will happen-
No Procession
Remember in 2021 during Covid- when there was no procession? Quiet streets.
There will still be concerts - in bars and parties - in bars and face-painting and costume contests- in bars-
and they will not be free and you will be not be walking thru your Barrio with you family and neighbors- because only people over 21 can be in bars.h
The City
If the City takes over the Procession- it will no longer be the riotous, wild, rumpus you have come to love-
It will be restricted and regulated and safe and boring.
There will be no URN, and there will be no fire- the spark will be risk-managed until there is nothing left.
A Title Sponsor
If All Souls falls under corporate sponsorship- you will see slick marketing and better fundraising campaigns than mine- haha
On the screens on the stage and everywhere you look you will see ads for their products and their products for sale in all the vending booths along the route.
And the corporation will run it until they realize that events like this don’t make profits and then they will dump it.
but it doesn’t have to be that way-
You can keep All Souls alive- You can keep All Souls In the hands of the people- in your hands-
The Power is in your hand right now-
Pull out some cash and drop it in the buckets near the Busker stage and Dance of the Dead Gates
Pull out your phone and scan the QR code on the screens around the finale site or go to allsoulsprocession.org and Donate
Five Bucks -Ten Bucks- Twenty Bucks
You can keep All Souls Free for All Souls
