Bella Ciao, Ciao, Chow!
A weekend-long call to the living and the dead—part ritual, part reunion, part rebellion. Inspired by Festa dei Morti, Italy’s Day of the Dead, we’re gathering across New Jersey to feed our ancestors, honor our bond, and build something better in their name.
Events are happening all across the New Jersey (yes, even Central) and extending into Philly and online, including an Italian Folk Music House Concert, tarot readings, altar-building & writing circles, and of course, a Festa dei Morti feast.
Pull up a chair. Bring your stories. Bring your rage. Bring dessert.
The air is still warm in New Jersey, but the light is changing.
We are approaching the final harvest, waiting for the frost. There is a rush, a final buzz of activity that might now consist of gathering costumes for trick-or-treat, but has always been connected to ancient rituals of preparation and celebration across so many cultures.
The Mama Leeds Collective invites you to remember with us. We are each cultivating inclusive gatherings rooted in ancestral remembrance, seasonal ritual, and cultural storytelling, where all are invited to participate and connect, regardless of background.
Weekend Schedule
Wednesday, October 29th - Central Jersey
Virtual Samhain Ritual & Circle, 6:30-8:30 PM (Zoom)
At Samhain, the veil thins and the final harvest turns to shadow. Together we’ll honor our ancestors, release what we no longer wish to carry, and weave a Spiral Path Cauldron ritual beneath the season’s magic.
Teachings + Ritual + Letter Burning Release
Closing with 3-card tarot readings
All are welcome.
Friday, October 31st - South Jersey
Welcoming the Ancestors: Tomato Pie, Percussion, and Petitions, 6:30 PM (Hammonton)
An intimate gathering of food, music, and ancestral connection hosted by Bury Me in New Jersey.
Join us for a cozy house concert + potluck in Hammonton, South Jersey featuring the vibrant sounds of Make Tammurriata Not War, bringing live Southern Italian-inspired folk music to the heart of South Jersey.
We'll gather to share plates, move our bodies, and honor those who came before us, weaving together joyful sound with sacred remembrance.
Saturday, November 1st - Central Jersey, Philly & Online
Virtual Necromancy Readings with Chiara Scura, 10 - 2 PM (Zoom)
Step into the liminal space and hear messages through necromancy spreads.
Connect with the liminal space in a 45-minute Day of the Dead tarot reading with Gina Gilligo Guillen
Sessions 10/30, 11/1, & 11/3 held hourly from 10 - 2 PM | $75 per slot | Online
Philly Zine Fest: DIY Publishing + Collective Storytelling, 11AM–5PM (Philly)
An annual celebration of zines, radical creativity, and community-made media.
Bury Me in NJ and Make Known Publishing will be tabling with the newly released Mourning Papers.
Also featuring a curated collection of zines exploring Italian identity, radical history, and grief, some by us, some by friends.
Free and open to all, Mitten Hall, Temple University (1913 N. Broad Street, Philadelphia)
La Mort: Virtual Sacred Circle + Writing Ceremony, 12:30PM (Zoom)
A guided ritual space to gather, reflect, and create.
Focused on honoring our own grief, growth, and transformation, participants will have the chance to nurture their personal alters and participate in a guided writing activity.
Hosted by Melissa
Open to all identities and backgrounds. Bring your stories, your losses, your love.
Samhain Ritual & Circle at Prophecy, 6:30-8:30 PM (Toms River)
At Samhain, the veil thins and the final harvest turns to shadow. Together we’ll honor our ancestors, release what we no longer wish to carry, and weave a Spiral Path Cauldron ritual beneath the season’s magic.
Teachings + Ritual + Letter Burning Release
Closing with 3-card tarot readings
All are welcome.
Sunday, November 2nd - North Jersey
Bella Ciao, Ciao, Chow! A Day of the Dead Celebration, 12-4PM (Springfield)
Inspired by Italian/American folk rituals, this is a day to break bread, build altars, and craft together.
Bring memories of and petitions to your dearly departed to build our community altar.
We’ll break bread and share a classic Italian/American Sunday Sauce, of which we'll provide vegan and gluten free options. Gravy? Never heard of it. (Don't start!)
While enjoying a little caffè and cannoli, we'll practice a little Italian folk magic and create a protection amulet to take along with you on your journey.
Throughout November until the 15th - Central Jersey & Online
Readings for the Witches’ New Year at Prophecy, (Toms River & Online)
If you feel called to divine your year ahead, I am offering tarot readings infused with Samhain’s energy.
Any reading booked before November 15th will include a BONUS 15-Card Yearly Outlook Spread—a way to enter the new witch’s year with clarity and insight.
A little about Mama Leeds
“Let it be the devil.”
This is all we know of Mama Leeds' story. In the Jersey pinelands of the 1700s, a mother suffering under poverty, with no choices or options for reproductive freedom, casts her thirteenth child out to haunt the world that held her down. The birth of the Jersey Devil, or so the legend goes.
Her true tale is untold, lost but valuable. Another voice worth hearing, another face pulled from the shadows. She has inspired a collective of creators and writers, artists and musicians, folk practitioners and cooks of culture and cauldron alike, to support each other in remembering what was lost.
Let’s remember, gather, and imagine forward, together.
